# The Marathas: Rise and Fall of the Maratha Power (1707-1818) Source: https://tracknation.in/story/the-marathas-rise-and-fall-of-the-maratha-power-1707-1818 (TrackNation — free UPSC notes with PYQs) > Founded by Shivaji on the twin pillars of guerrilla warfare and the Chauth-Sardeshmukhi levies, the Maratha state was transformed into an empire under the Peshwas — Balaji Vishwanath, Baji Rao I and Balaji Baji Rao — reaching its zenith by ## Foundation: Shivaji & the Maratha System 🎯 **Exam priority: Foundational.** *Tier 3 — tested occasionally and/or sets up the storyline; master the key facts and move on.* **Why this topic matters for UPSC.** The Marathas are the last major Indian power before British consolidation — the Subsidiary Alliance that broke them is a key policy term that recurs in Articles 14 and 22. - The Maratha Confederacy, the Peshwa, Shivaji's legacy, and the three Anglo-Maratha Wars are the storyline. - The Subsidiary Alliance (Wellesley) is the policy hook that links the Marathas to the British Acts theme. - Focus on the causes of the Maratha decline and the Bassein/Poona connection. The Marathas were the most formidable of the powers that rose on the ruins of the Mughal Empire. To understand their 18th-century empire, we must begin with the state and the fiscal system Shivaji built. ## Foundation: Shivaji & the Maratha System - **Shivaji (1630-1680)** carved out an independent Maratha kingdom in the western Deccan, was crowned **Chhatrapati at Raigad in 1674**, and governed with the help of a council of eight ministers, the **Ashtapradhan** (headed by the **Peshwa** or chief minister). He was a master of **guerrilla warfare (ganimi kava)** against the far larger Mughal and Bijapur armies. - The Marathas' two great fiscal claims — levied on territories outside their direct rule — were the **Chauth** (about one-fourth of the land revenue) and the **Sardeshmukhi** (an additional one-tenth). These became the engine and the rationale of Maratha expansion across India. ## Shahu, Tarabai & the Rise of the Peshwas After Aurangzeb's death the leadership of the Maratha state passed, over two generations, from the Chhatrapati to his Brahmin chief minister. ## Shahu, Tarabai & the Rise of the Peshwas - **Shahu**, grandson of Shivaji and an Aurangzeb prisoner since 1689, was **released in 1707** after the emperor's death. A **civil war** at once broke out between **Shahu at Satara and his aunt Tarabai at Kolhapur** (fighting in the name of her son Shivaji II). The great Maratha **sardars**, each with his own loyal soldiery, bargained between the rivals to enlarge their own power. - Out of this conflict a new system emerged under **Balaji Vishwanath**, beginning the **period of Peshwa domination** in which the Maratha state was transformed from a kingdom into an empire. ## Balaji Vishwanath, Peshwa (1713-1720) The first of the great Peshwas turned a contested throne into a launch-pad for northern expansion — but also sowed the seeds of later weakness. ## Balaji Vishwanath, Peshwa (1713-1720) - A Brahmin who rose from a petty revenue official, **Balaji Vishwanath was made Peshwa in 1713**. By diplomacy he won over the big sardars to Shahu and concentrated power in his own office, becoming the functional head of the state. - He signed a pact with the **Sayyid brothers (1719)**: Shivaji's old territories were restored to Shahu, who was granted the **Chauth and Sardeshmukhi of the six Deccan provinces** in return for 15,000 cavalry for the emperor and an annual tribute. Balaji then led a Maratha force to **Delhi (1719) and helped the Sayyid brothers overthrow Farrukhsiyar** — where the Marathas saw the Mughal Empire's weakness first-hand. - **The seed of decline:** he assigned the collection of chauth/sardeshmukhi to individual sardars, and the system of **watans and saranjams (jagirs)** made them strong, autonomous and jealous of central power — so Maratha conquests were made not by a central army but by sardars with **private armies**, a fatal long-term weakness. ## Baji Rao I, Peshwa (1720-1740) His son took Maratha arms deep into Mughal India and raised up the great families of the future confederacy. ## Baji Rao I, Peshwa (1720-1740) - **Baji Rao I**, Peshwa at just 20, was "the greatest exponent of guerrilla tactics after Shivaji." By his death in **1740** the Marathas controlled **Malwa, Gujarat and parts of Bundelkhand**, and the families of **Gaekwad, Holkar, Sindhia (Scindia) and Bhonsle** rose to prominence under him. - He repeatedly defeated **Nizam-ul-Mulk**, forcing him to grant the chauth and sardeshmukhi of the Deccan; expelled the **Sidis of Janjira** from the mainland (1733); and captured **Salsette and Bassein** from the Portuguese. Yet he conquered far more than he could administer — laying no firm foundations for empire. ## Balaji Baji Rao (Nana Saheb), Peshwa (1740-1761) Under the third Peshwa the empire reached its zenith — and shifted its capital to Poona. ## Balaji Baji Rao (Nana Saheb), Peshwa (1740-1761) - When **King Shahu died in 1749** he left the management of the state to the Peshwa; the office had become **hereditary**, and **Balaji Baji Rao** shifted the seat of government to **Poona**, becoming the de facto ruler. - Maratha armies now overran India: **Orissa was ceded by Bengal (1751)**, the Nizam was crushed at **Udgir (1760)**, Mysore was made tributary, and at Delhi the Marathas became "the power behind the Mughal throne." Pushing into the **Punjab**, they expelled the agent of **Ahmad Shah Abdali** — bringing on the great collision of 1761. ## The Third Battle of Panipat (1761) The struggle for mastery of North India was decided on the field of Panipat. ## The Third Battle of Panipat (1761) - **Ahmad Shah Abdali** allied with **Najib-ud-daulah of Rohilkhand and Shuja-ud-daulah of Avadh**. The Peshwa sent a great army north under his cousin **Sadashiv Rao Bhau** (with his son Vishwas Rao and the European-style artillery of **Ibrahim Khan Gardi**) — but Maratha arrogance had antagonised the Rajputs, Jats and Sikhs, so they fought almost **alone**. - The two armies met at **Panipat on 14 January 1761**. The Marathas were **completely routed**: Vishwas Rao, Sadashiv Rao Bhau and nearly **28,000 soldiers** perished, and the grief-stricken Peshwa died in June 1761. Yet, as one historian notes, Panipat "did not decide who was to rule India, but rather **who was not**" — neither Marathas nor Afghans could hold the prize, and the way was cleared for the **rise of British power**. ## Madhav Rao & the Maratha Confederacy A brilliant young Peshwa briefly revived the empire, but after his death it dissolved into a loose confederacy of great chiefs. ## Madhav Rao & the Maratha Confederacy - **Madhav Rao** (Peshwa 1761-1772) restored the empire's fortunes in just eleven years — defeating the Nizam, making Haidar Ali pay tribute, and bringing Emperor Shah Alam back to Delhi as a Maratha pensioner (1771). But he **died of consumption in 1772**, plunging Poona into a succession struggle: **Narayan Rao was murdered (1773)**, and **Raghunath Rao went over to the British**, triggering the **First Anglo-Maratha War**. **Nana Phadnis** led the regency for the infant Sawai Madhav Rao. - By now real power lay with the great houses of the **Maratha Confederacy**: the **Peshwa at Poona, the Gaekwad at Baroda, the Bhonsle at Nagpur, Holkar at Indore and Sindhia at Gwalior** — each with its own army and only nominal loyalty to Poona. **Mahadji Sindhia** (d. 1794), who built a French-trained army and controlled Shah Alam from 1784, and **Nana Phadnis** (d. 1800) were the last great Maratha statesmen. ## Why the Marathas Fell The Marathas' very structure doomed them once a disciplined rival appeared. ## Why the Marathas Fell - The empire had **no strong central army** — conquest rested on sardars with private armies bound to the centre only by the **watan/saranjam** system; if pressed, they would side with the Nizam, the Mughals or the English. New lands were plundered for revenue but **never properly administered**. - Maratha ambition **antagonised every potential ally** — Rajputs, Jats, Sikhs and Avadh — leaving them isolated at Panipat. After 1761 the chiefs **could seldom cooperate**, intriguing against one another at Poona. This disunity made them easy prey for the British, who finished the confederacy in the three **Anglo-Maratha Wars (1775-1818)** — the subject of the next article. ## Why This Matters for UPSC ## Why This Matters for UPSC - **Prelims:** Shivaji's **Ashtapradhan**; **Chauth & Sardeshmukhi**; the line of Peshwas (Balaji Vishwanath → Baji Rao I → Balaji Baji Rao → Madhav Rao); capital shifted to **Poona (1749)**; the **Third Battle of Panipat (14 Jan 1761)**; the **Confederacy houses** (Gaekwad-Baroda, Bhonsle-Nagpur, Holkar-Indore, Sindhia-Gwalior); Mahadji Sindhia; Nana Phadnis. - **Mains:** why the Marathas failed to replace the Mughals as the all-India power; the significance of the Third Battle of Panipat; the structural weaknesses (watan/saranjam, private armies, decentralisation) of the Maratha state. ## Test Yourself: Practice Questions The rise and fall of the Marathas is a high-frequency Prelims theme — the Peshwa line, Chauth/Sardeshmukhi, Panipat (1761) and the Confederacy houses recur often. (The questions below are practice MCQs, not labelled PYQs.) ## Practice Questions **Q1.** The 'Chauth' levied by the Marathas was approximately: - (a) one-fourth of the land revenue - (b) one-third of the land revenue - (c) one-tenth of the land revenue - (d) one-half of the land revenue **Answer: (a)** — Chauth was about one-fourth of the land revenue, while Sardeshmukhi was an additional one-tenth, both levied on territories outside direct Maratha rule. **Q2.** Who was made the Peshwa in 1713, beginning the period of Peshwa domination? - (a) Balaji Vishwanath - (b) Madhav Rao - (c) Baji Rao I - (d) Balaji Baji Rao **Answer: (a)** — Balaji Vishwanath was made Peshwa by Shahu in 1713 and transformed the Maratha state into an empire led by the Peshwa's office. **Q3.** The Maratha capital was shifted to Poona by which Peshwa, following King Shahu's death in 1749? - (a) Balaji Baji Rao (Nana Saheb) - (b) Narayan Rao - (c) Balaji Vishwanath - (d) Baji Rao I **Answer: (a)** — Balaji Baji Rao (Nana Saheb) became de facto ruler after Shahu's death in 1749 and shifted the seat of government to Poona. **Q4.** At the Third Battle of Panipat (1761), the Maratha army was commanded (in effect) by: - (a) Madhav Rao - (b) Nana Phadnis - (c) Mahadji Sindhia - (d) Sadashiv Rao Bhau **Answer: (d)** — The actual command lay with Sadashiv Rao Bhau, the Peshwa's cousin, supported by Vishwas Rao and the artillery of Ibrahim Khan Gardi. **Q5.** In the Maratha Confederacy, the Bhonsle ruled from ___ and the Holkar from ___: - (a) Indore; Nagpur - (b) Nagpur; Indore - (c) Gwalior; Baroda - (d) Baroda; Gwalior **Answer: (b)** — The Confederacy houses were the Peshwa (Poona), Gaekwad (Baroda), Bhonsle (Nagpur), Holkar (Indore) and Sindhia (Gwalior). **Q6.** Shivaji was crowned Chhatrapati in 1674 at: - (a) Raigad - (b) Poona - (c) Satara - (d) Kolhapur **Answer: (a)** — Shivaji was crowned Chhatrapati at Raigad in 1674. Satara and Kolhapur were the rival seats of Shahu and Tarabai after 1707; Poona became the Peshwa's capital in 1749. **Q7.** Under the 1719 pact between Balaji Vishwanath and the Sayyid brothers, in return for the Chauth and Sardeshmukhi of the six Deccan provinces, Shahu agreed to: - (a) accept a Mughal governor at Satara - (b) maintain 15,000 cavalry for the emperor and pay an annual tribute - (c) give up all claims to Shivaji's old territories - (d) surrender Raigad to the Mughals **Answer: (b)** — Shivaji's old territories were restored to Shahu, who got the Chauth and Sardeshmukhi of the six Deccan provinces in return for 15,000 cavalry for the emperor and an annual tribute. **Q8.** Baji Rao I captured Salsette and Bassein from the: - (a) English - (b) French - (c) Dutch - (d) Portuguese **Answer: (d)** — Baji Rao I expelled the Sidis of Janjira from the mainland (1733) and captured Salsette and Bassein from the Portuguese. **Q9.** Consider the following events of Balaji Baji Rao's Peshwaship: (1) Orissa was ceded by Bengal in 1751. (2) The Nizam was crushed at Udgir in 1760. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? - (a) 2 only - (b) Neither 1 nor 2 - (c) Both 1 and 2 - (d) 1 only **Answer: (c)** — Both are correct: under Balaji Baji Rao (Nana Saheb) Orissa was ceded by Bengal (1751) and the Nizam was crushed at Udgir (1760), as the empire reached its zenith. **Q10.** Before the Third Battle of Panipat, Ahmad Shah Abdali allied with: - (a) the Nizam and Haidar Ali - (b) the Rajputs and the Jats - (c) Najib-ud-daulah of Rohilkhand and Shuja-ud-daulah of Avadh - (d) the Sikhs and the English East India Company **Answer: (c)** — Abdali allied with Najib-ud-daulah of Rohilkhand and Shuja-ud-daulah of Avadh, while Maratha arrogance had antagonised the Rajputs, Jats and Sikhs, leaving them almost alone. **Q11.** Madhav Rao brought Emperor Shah Alam back to Delhi as a Maratha pensioner in: - (a) 1761 - (b) 1765 - (c) 1784 - (d) 1771 **Answer: (d)** — Madhav Rao (Peshwa 1761-1772) restored Maratha fortunes and brought Shah Alam back to Delhi in 1771. It was Mahadji Sindhia who controlled Shah Alam from 1784. **Q12.** Which long-term weakness of the Maratha state is traced to the system that took shape under Balaji Vishwanath? - (a) Conquests were made by sardars with private armies, made autonomous by watans and saranjams - (b) The capital was moved permanently to Kolhapur - (c) The Chauth was abolished, cutting off revenue - (d) The Peshwa's office was abolished **Answer: (a)** — Collection of chauth/sardeshmukhi was assigned to individual sardars, and the watan and saranjam system made them strong and autonomous — so conquests were made by private armies, not a central army. **Q13.** Mahadji Sindhia (d. 1794) is best known for: - (a) signing the 1719 pact with the Sayyid brothers - (b) building a French-trained army and controlling Shah Alam from 1784 - (c) leading the regency for the infant Sawai Madhav Rao - (d) commanding the Maratha army at Panipat in 1761 **Answer: (b)** — Mahadji Sindhia built a French-trained army and controlled Shah Alam from 1784. The regency was led by Nana Phadnis; Panipat was commanded by Sadashiv Rao Bhau. ### UPSC Previous Year Questions (PYQs) *These are practice questions on a frequently-tested theme; the Third Battle of Panipat, the Peshwas and the Confederacy houses have all appeared in UPSC Prelims over the years.* ### Mains Practice Questions Use these to frame full-length answers. You don't have to answer one exactly — they show the angles UPSC tests, so let them guide which points you cover. - How did the office of the Peshwa transform the Maratha state from a kingdom into an empire? - Explain the Chauth and Sardeshmukhi and their role in Maratha expansion. - Why was the Third Battle of Panipat (1761) a turning point in 18th-century Indian history? - What structural weaknesses (watan/saranjam, private armies, the confederacy) led to the Marathas' fall?