THE MARATHAS
Shivaji
Shivaji was born at Shivner, 1627.
Father- Shahji Bhosale. Mother- Jija Bai
Shivaji inherited Jagir of Poona from his father in 1637
In 1663, Shaishta khan captured Poona but Shivaji reclaimed it
Aurangzeb sent Raja jai Singh of Amber, who besieged Purander fort.
This resulted in Treaty of Purander, 1665, where Shivaji surrendered 23 of 35 forts to Mughals and promised loyalty to the Mughal Empire and Aurangzeb.
However, they soon fell off when Shivaji was captured by Emperor.
In 1674, Shivaji recaptured all his lost territory & crowned himself at Raigarh assuming the title of Chhatrapati.
His spiritual Guru was Samarth Ramdas, a brahmin saint and spiritual poet of Maharashtra, his major text was an Advaita Vedantist text, the Dasbodh.
Died 1680.
Administration
The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was the undisputed head of the administration.
The administrative system of Shivaji had eight ministers to assist him in the work.
The ministers, however, did not form a cabinet in the modern sense of the term, for they were responsible to Shivaji alone, who appointed and dismissed them at will and the function of the ministers was purely advisory.
Among the ministers the Peshwa enjoyed a higher status and royal confidence, but not supremacy over his colleagues.
The 8 main ministers were called Astapradhan:
1. Peshwa- Finance & General administrator. His main duties were to control other officers and promote harmony in the administration. He represented the king in his absence and put his seal below the king’s to all royal letters and dispatches.
2. Amatya or Majumdar- Accountant General. His duty was to check all the accounts of income and expenditure and to countersign all statements of accounts, whether of the kingdom as a whole or of the particular districts.
3. Sar e Naubat or Senapati- Military commander. He was in charge of the recruitment, organization and discipline of the army. He had also to arrange for the disposition of the troops on the fields of battle.
4. Mantri or Waqnavis- Intelligence & Household affairs. He was in charge of compiling a daily record of the king’s activities and to watch over his invitation lists, meals, etc., so as to guard against plots. Sachiv or Shuru Navis- His duty was to see that all royal letters and dispatches were drafted in the proper style. He had to revise the letters and dispatches. One of his duties was to check the accounts of the parganas.
6. Sumanta or Dabir- His duty was to advise the king on matters relating to foreign states and on questions of war and peace. He had also to receive foreign ambassadors and envoys and to keep in touch with the activities of other powers.
7. Nyayadhish- Chief Justice, he was responsible for civil and military justice and for endorsing judicial decisions regarding rights of lands, village headship, etc.
8. Pandit Rao- Charities & Religious administrator. His main duties were to fix dates for religious ceremonies, to punish heresy and to disburse among the Brahmans large sums of money set apart by the king for charity. He was the judge of canon law, royal Almanac and Censor of Public Morals.
Except the Senapati, all other ministers were Brahmans.
All the ministers except the Pandit Rao and the Nyayadhish were required to command armies and lead expeditions.
Shivaji appointed his own revenue official Karkuns, diminishing the power of existing Deshmukhs and Kulkarnis.
Other Officers
1. Diwan- secretary
2. Mujumdar – auditor and accountant
3. Fadnis – deputy auditor
4. Sabnis or daftardar – office incharge
5. Karkhanis – commissary
6. Chitins – correspondence clerk
7. Jamdar – treasurer
8. Potnis – cashier
Shivaji instinctively adopted the guerilla system of warfare, which became its modus operandi against far more powerful Mughals.
Shivaji also understood the necessity of building up a navy. He built dockyards and ships for trade as well as for protection. The Maratha navy held its own against the British, Portuguese and Dutch.
Shivaji employed members of all castes and tribes to maintain balance among them.
No office was hereditary in Marathas except Chhatrapati and later Peshwa.
It was rare to assign jagirs to civil and military officers during Shivaji
He gave special attention towards the administration of the forts, which were the basis of his Kingdom.
In matters of administration, he gave superior position to his civil officers as compared to military officers.
He established Ryotwari system in revenue administration. The state kept direct contact with the farmers and fought tooth and nail to eliminate intermediaries.
Provinces
Shivaji divided his kingdom into four provinces. Each province was under the head called Mamlatdar or Viceroy. Each province was divided into several districts and villages. The village was an organised institution.
The chief of the village was called Deshpande or Patel. The head used to run the affairs of the village with the help of the Village Panchayat.
Like the centre, there was a committee or council of eight ministers with Sar e Karkun or the prantpati as its head.
Revenue system
The Ryotwari system was introduced in which the revenue was directly collected from the farmers. Wherever possible, Shivaji abolished the jagirdari system.
Land in every village was measured and the produce was roughly assessed.
On the basis of assessment, the cultivators were asked to pay 40 per cent of their produce as land revenue.
The farmers had the option to pay land revenue in cash or kind.
The accounts of the revenue officers began to be thoroughly checked.
In the event of famine of natural calamity, the state offered loans to the peasants.
According to foreign commentators at the time, Shivaji's tax-collecting regime appeared to be demanding and oppressive.
Chauth and Sardeshmukhi
Chauth and Sardeshmukhi were two types of taxes collected in South India, however, Chauth and Sardeshmukhi were not introduced by Marathas.
Before Marathas, the tradition of Mulkgiri (Arabic term signifying a plundering raid on foreign lands) was established by raiders like Muhammad bin Qasim.
Even Chauth and Sardeshmukhi were already familiar taxes in Deccan well before Shivaji. In fact, Portuguese had also paid these taxes to the neighbouring kings of their territories to avoid conflicts with them.
Shivaji divided the entire area into two parts. One is Swarajya or Mulk e Qadim, the area that belonged to the Marathas.
Other is the outside area, which whenever plundered was to be levied the Chauth and Sardeshmukhi. The states of Bijapur and Golconda had agreed to pay Rs. 3 Lakh and Rs. 5 Lakh respectively per annum to avoid Maratha incursions.
Chauth was comprised of 25% of the revenue assessment whereas Sardeshmukhi was an additional levy of 10% of revenue which Shivaji claimed on being the Sardeshmukh (overlord).
Coinage
Shivrai- copper coin minted during the rule of Marathas and remained in circulation till the end of the 19th century, primarily in the Bombay Presidency region.
Minted for the first time on the occasion of coronation of Shivaji, copper coins were minted (including a gold coin called Shivrai Hon).
Dudandi Shivrais were minted during Peshwa period. Dudandi literally means two-bars.
The British East India Company also minted Shivrais at Poona during the period of 1820-1830.
Religious policy
Shivaji was a devout Hindu, but respected all religions within the region.
Shivaji had great respect for other contemporary saints, especially Samarth Ramdas, to whom he gave the fort of Parali, later renamed as 'Sajjangad'.
Among the various poems written on Shivaji, Ramdas' Shivastuti is the most famous.
Shivaji's son Sambhaji later built a samadhi for Ramdas Swami on Sajjangad upon the latter's death.
Samarth Ramdas had also written a letter to Sambhaji guiding him on what to do or not to do after death of Shivaji.
Shivaji allowed his subjects freedom of religion and opposed forced conversion.
Shivaji also promulgated other enlightened values, and condemned slavery.
He applied a humane and liberal policy to the women of his state.
Kafi Khan, the Mughal historian, and Francois Bernier, a French traveller, spoke highly of his religious policy.
He also brought converts like Netaji Palkar and Bajaji back into Hinduism.
Shivaji's contemporary, the poet Kavi Bhushan stated “Had not there been Shivaji, Kashi would have lost its culture, Mathura would have been turned into a mosque and all would have been circumcised". However, such claims are obviously exaggerated.
Though many of Shivaji's enemy states were Muslim, he treated Muslims under his rule with tolerance for their religion.
Shivaji had several noteworthy Muslim soldiers, especially in his Navy. Siddi Sanbal, Noor Khan, Daulat Khan, and Siddi Misri were prominent in the navy; and Siddi Ibrahim Khan was chief of artillery.
Major Peshwas
Balaji Vishvanath (Under Maratha ruler Shahu)
Baji Rao (Under Maratha ruler Shahu)
Balaji Baji Rao (made Peshwaship hereditary at Treaty of Sangola in 1750)
Maratha Confederacy
After the Third Battle of Panipat, Marathas were transformed into confederacy with Peshwa at Poona, four major Sardars and other petty Sardars. The period of their comeback after the debacle at Panipat is called Maratha Resurrection.
Four major Sardars
1. Bhonsle of Nagpur
2. Gaekwad of Baroda
3. Scindia of Gwalior
4. Holkar of Indore
Culture
Mughal and Rajput cultural elements as well as the European entered the region and got assimilated into the Maratha culture.
With the sardars being their agents in the North, the Peshwas grew in wealth and power. New bazaars that were established and mobile military camps became conduits of culture, as beautiful artefacts, jewellery, and textiles from many regions of the country were sold here.
The Peshwas wished to enhance their lifestyle, their adornment, and their architecture.
Poona grew in importance and the Shanirwarada, the Peshwa mansion became the centre of administration and culture.
Various festivals were celebrated in the Maratha court, Ganeshotsav, Dassara, and Vasantpanchami.
The practice of sprinkling coloured water during Holi was a Rajput influence.
The practice of enslavement of women, known as Kunbins, the bonded women were forced to do menial work for their master who could also exploit them sexually, and anyone who tried to escape was jailed.
Among the folk performing arts, the Tamasha and the Lavani (became very erotic during the time of the Peshwas) were most famous.
Promotion of Marathi and Sanskrit
Though Persian was a common courtly language in the region, Shivaji replaced it with Marathi in his own court, and emphasised Hindu political and courtly traditions.
The house of Shivaji was well acquainted with Sanskrit and promoted the language, his father Shahaji had supported scholars such as Jayram Pindye, who prepared Shivaji's seal.
Shivaji continued this Sanskrit promotion, giving his forts names such as Sindhudurg, Prachandgarh, and Suvarndurg.
He named the Ashta Pradhan as per Sanskrit nomenclature with terms such as nyayadhish, and senapat, and commissioned the political treatise Rajyavyavahar Kosh. His Rajpurohit, Keshav Pandit, was himself a Sanskrit scholar and poet.
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