Chapter 16: Swarajya to Empire (Maratha period)
Choose the correct alternative and complete the sentence.
_____________ is known as the Father of Indian Navy.
OPTIONS
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj
Chhatrapati Rajaram Maharaj
Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj
The Pathans from Afghanistan had settled in ___________, the province at the foothills of the Himalayas
OPTIONS
Varanasi
Mathura
Ayodhya
Delhi
Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj wrote the Sanskrit text _________.
OPTIONS
Nayikabhed
Budhabhushan
Nakhshikh
Satasattka
Find the incorrect pair from set B and write the correct ones.
SOLUTION
Write the name.
He was the Chief of the intelligence network of Shivaji Maharaj.
SOLUTION
Bahirji Naik
He assisted in the provincial affairs -
SOLUTION
Subhedars I Deshadhikari
Leader of the Rohillas -
SOLUTION
Najib Khan
Complete the following concept map.
SOLUTION
Explain the statement with reasons.
Shahajiraje is known as the visionary of Swarajya.
SOLUTION
Shahajiraje Bhosale was a prominent sardar in the Nizamshahi kingdom. After the end of Nizamshahi rule, he accepted the rank of a Mansabdar in the Adilshahi court.
Shahajiraje was valiant, courageous, wise and well-versed in the science of statehood.
He had successfully handled many Adilshahi expeditions in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
The provinces of Pune, Supe, Shirwal, Indapur and Chakan were given to Shahajiraje as Jahangir. He personally aspired to establish Swarajya. He is regarded as the visionary of Swarajya.
The concept of Swarajya was visualized by Shahajiraje and it was turned into reality by Chh. Shivaji Maharaj.
Chh. Shivaji Maharaj laid the foundation of Swarajya from the Mawal region. Several factors like a topography of Maharashtra, valour of the local Mawalas, the administrative and military experience gained by the Maratha sardars while working with Nizamshahi and Adilshahi and above all these the able leadership of Chh. Shivaji Maharaj could make it possible.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj built the naval force.
SOLUTION
In the year 1657 C.E., after conquering Kalyan and Bhiwandi, the boundaries of Swarajya extended upto the coastline.
The British and the French were involved in Salt trade. Chh. Shivaji Maharaj wanted to establish control over the sea waters.
Chh. Shivaji Maharaj was the only king in medieval India who attempted to build a navy.
He realized to check the activities of foreign traders so having Navy was important. It was necessary for his military strategy also. During the second sack of Surat, Chh. Shivaji Maharaj brought those ships to the coast of Surat and loaded the huge booty on them acquired from Surat.
It is apparent that Chh. Shivaji Maharaj wanted to establish complete control over the land as well as on the sea
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj charged heavy duty on the salt imported from the Portuguese territory.
SOLUTION
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was keen on protecting the local industries.
He protected the salt industry in Konkan. At that time, traders imported salt from the Portuguese territory and sold in Swarajya.
That affected the local trade in Konkan areas.
Chh. Shivaji Maharaj charged heavy duty on the salt imported into Swarajya from the Portuguese territory.
The intention was that the salt imported from the Portuguese territory would then cost more and as a r esult its import would be discouraged and the sale of the local salt would increase.
Write short notes.
Maratha Art
SOLUTION
Developments of Maratha miniature paintings can be seen through illustrations on the manuscripts such as pothis, pattachitra and patrikas. Examples, the wooden stands of pothis have pictures of Ganapati, Riddhi-Siddhi, Gopalkrishna in dark red, green and yellow colours.
Miniature paintings include human portraits and themes like ragamalas, talamala, processions, etc.
Murals are found on the fac;ade of the Wadas, as well on the walls of reception areas (Diwankhana) and bedrooms.
The 18th century murals have survived till today at places like Naik-Nimbalkar Wada at Vathar, Rangamahal at Chand wad, Mayureshwar Mandir at Morgaon, Shiva Temple of Pandeshwar and Matha at Benawadi
The main theme of murals are mythological stories. They include scenes from Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Puranas.
The subjects of contemporary social life were also reflected in the paintings. Royal court, royal meetings, processions were also included in them.
Maratha Architecture
SOLUTION
Chh. Shivaji Maharaj built forts, the tradition of which was prevalent in the Deccan for three centuries.
The Kasaba temple in Pune and Vitthal temple in Vitthalwadi were reconstructed by Veermata Jijabai.
During the Peshwa period, the Maratha kingdom regained its prosperity and all forms of art and architecture received patronage.
The construction of temples began on a large scale during the later Peshwa
Period. These temples are of three types. Examples of temple architecture of this period are found at Saswad, Mahuli, Jejuri, etc.
These are huge in size. The plan of these temples is in star design, the foundation of the temple was multi layered and were named accordingly.
The shikhara is made in bricks and stucco method.
The Kalaram, Goraram and Sundarnarayan temples at Nasik and Mahadev temple at Trimbakeshwar, Mohiniraj temple at Nevasa are similar to the temples in Malwa and Rajasthan.
These temples are constructed in stone. These temples are embellished extensively with sculptures.
The third type of temples can be found at Pune, Satara, Wai etc.
It included arches, wooden hall and sanctum sanctorum(gabhara). The Shikhara slopes inwards at the top
The stone 'Deepamala' is a remarkable feature of these temples. The stone deepamalas at Jejuri were built by Shahajiraje.
The Chhatris (Samadhis) at various places are noteworthy.
Balbharati Solutions for History 11th Standard Maharashtra State Board
• Chapter 2: First Cities of India
• Chapter 3: Chalcolithic Villages in India
• Chapter 5: Janapadas and Republics
• Chapter 6: Second Urbanisation in India
• Chapter 7: India and Iran (Persia)
• Chapter 8: India during Mauryan period
• Chapter 9: Post Mauryan India
• Chapter 11: Kingdoms in South India
• Chapter 12: India, Nations in the northwest of the Indian Subcontinent and China
• Chapter 13: India, Shri Lanka and Southeast Asia
• Chapter 14: Delhi Sultanate, Vijayanagar and Bahamani Kingdom
• Chapter 15: India during Mughal period
• Chapter 16: Swarajya to Empire (Maratha period)
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16. Swarajya to Empire (Maratha period)
16.1 Contribution of Sants
16.2 Foundation and Expansion of Swarajya
16.3 Maratha war of independence
16.4 Administrative system established by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
16.5 Release of Shahu Maharaj
16.6 Peshwa period
16.7 Art, architecture, literature
16.8 Trade, industries and social life
Aladdin Khalji defeated the Yadavas of Devgiri and the rule of Delhi Sultans began in south India. After Khalji, the Tughluq and Bahamani kingdoms ruled over Maharashtra. Later Bahamani kingdom was disintegrated into five parts. Among them, Nizamshahi and Adilshahi ruled parts of Maharashtra. The Mughals turn their attention to south India. As a result, Nizamshahi came to an end. This was the general political scenario during 17th century, when Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj established Swarajya marking the rise of Maratha power.
16.1 Contribution of Sants
Superstition and rituals ruled at large in medieval Indian society. People had become fatalistic and inert. They had become inert. The condition of the common people was miserable. These were the times when the sants in Maharashtra made efforts to bring the masses back to life.
In Maharashtra, the tradition of sants, which began with Chakradhar Swami. Sant Namdev, Sant Dnyaneshwar, Sant Eknath, Sant Tukaram and Samarth Ramdas. It was continued by sants coming from various strata of the society. For example Sant Chokhamela, Sant Goroba, Sant Sawata, Sant Narhari, Sant Sena, Sant Shaikh Muhammad etc. Similarly women sants such as Sant Nirmalaba (PrOSTATE), Sant Muktabai. Sant Janabai, Sant Kanhopatra and Sant Bahinabai Siurkar also belong to this period. The sants, created a sense of a belonging among people toward their native region, language, literature, and culture. They gave message of equality to people. Their teachings were based on the principles of humanity. They preached harmonious community life, unity and love. Their efforts created social awakening. Their teaching helped people to survive situations like foreign invasions, draughts or other natural calamities. Their devotional songs became a source of a great moral support for people. Their work created a sense of self-esteem among the people of Maharashtra.
16.2 Foundation and Expansion of Swarajya
In the first half of the 17th century, Nizamshahi and Adilshahi had established their rule in Maharashtra. Many eminent Maratha sardars flourished under their rule. They held Jahagirs in the remote regions of the Sahyadris. The difficult terra in of Sahyadri allowed them to operate independently. Shahajiraje Bhosale was a prominent sardar in the Nizamshahi kingdom. After the end of
Nizamshahi rule, he accepted the rank of a Mansabdar* in the Adilshahi court. Shahajiraje was valiant. courageous, wise and well-versed in the science of statehood. He had successfully handled many Adilshahi expeditions in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The provinces of Pune, Supe, Shirwal, Indapur and Chakan were given to Shahajiraje as Jahagir. He personally aspired to establish Swarajya. He IS regarded as the visionary of Swarajya.
*A military officer who maintains his own division of soldiers.
He sent his son Shivajiraje and his wife, Veermata Jijabai from Bengaluru to Pune along with his loyal and capable associates. Veermata Jijabai encouraged Shivaji Maharaj to fulfil the dream of Shahajiraje of establishing Swarajya. She was a visionary and an efficient administrator. She constantly guided her son in the mission of establishing Swarajya and provided him with the excellent education necessary for the king of Swarajya.
The concept of Swarajya was visualised by Shahajiraje and it was turned into reality by Shivaji Maharaj. Shivaji Maharaj laid the foundation of Swarajya from the Mawal region. Several factors like topography of Maharashtra, valour of the local Mawalas, the administrative and military experience gained by the Maratha sardars while working with Nizamshahi and Adilshahi and above all these the able leadership of Shivaji Maharaj could make it possible.
After joining the Adilshahi court, Shahaji Maharaj entrusted the administration of his Jahagirs at Pune, Shirwal and Supe region (pargana) to Shivaji Maharaj. Yet the forts located in those Jahagirs and nearby areas were in the custody of Adilshahi court. The one who owns the forts owns the land' was the ruling of the day. Hence Shivaji Maharaj began with capturing the forts in the vicinity of his jahagirs. He took over the fort of Torana and laid the foundation of Swarajya. Shivaji Maharaj established the first capital of Swarajya at the fort of Rajgad. Chandrarao More proved to be a hindrance in Shivaji Maharaj's efforts to create Swarajya. Shivaji Maharaj successfully took over Javali. After this victory the activities of Shivaji Maharaj in Konkan were escalated. Realising the danger of the increasing activities of Shivaji Maharaj, the Bijapur court sent their powerful General Afzalkhan to curb the increasing power of Shivaji Maharaj.
Shivaji Maharaj had anticipated the intentions of Afzalkhan, who had taken up the challenge of killing Shivaji Maharaj. He met Afzalkhan at Pratapgad. As expected Afzalkhan attempted treachery but Shivaji Maharaj was well prepared and killed Afzalkhan in self defence. Afzalkhan's huge army was set on the run and huge booty and weapons were collected left behind by them. This made Swarajya's treasury richer.
After Afzalkhan's defeat, the Bijapur court sent Siddi Jauhar to attack Swarajya. He seized the fort of Panhala and closed all possibilities of escape for Shivaji Maharaj. In this difficult situation Shiva Kashid, loyal servant of Swarajya, disguised himself as Shivaji Maharaj and made it easy for Shivaji Maharaj to escape. When Siddi came to know the truth he killed Shiva Kashid. Thus Shiva Kashid sacrificed his life for the cause of Swarajya. Bajiprabhu took up the task of blocking Siddhi Masud's path in Ghodkhind and stopped him in his chase of Shivaji Maharaj. Bajiprabhu was successful in doing this. He fell dead only after receiving the news of Shivaji Maharaj reaching Vishalgad safely.
At the time of ascending the throne, Aurangzeb was aware of the ambitious plans of Shivaji Maharaj. He sent his maternal uncle Shaistakhan on an expedition against Shivaji Maharaj. Shaistakhan camped in Lal Mahal in Pune. Shivaji Maharaj who knew Shaistakhan's intentions managed to enter the Lal Mahal and cut off Shaistakhan's fingers.
Shaistakhan had no alternative but to hastily leave Lal Mahal. Shivaji Maharaj gained more confidence and he attacked Surat, the prosperous economic capital of Aurangzeb and collected large booty. Enraged by this, Aurangzeb sent his powerful sardars Mirza Raje Jaising and Diler Khan to attack Swarajya. They captured many forts in the Swarajya. Shivaji Maharaj had the wisdom to comprehend the situation and decided to retreat tactically by signing the 'Treaty of Purandar'. According to the treaty, Shivaji Maharaj had to present himself before Aurangzeb at Agra, along with his son Sambhaji Maharaj. Aurangzeb acted treacherously and put Shivaji under house arrest. Shivaji Maharaj very cleverly misled the guards and escaped from Agra.
Soon after returning to Swarajya Shivaji Maharaj conquered the forts which were held by Aurangzeb.
To announce the sovereign and independent status of Swarajya it was necessary to make it official. Realising this Shivaji Maharaj decided to get himself coronated. With his coronation as a sovereign a king the provinces under his rule assumed the status of an independent kingdom. After coronation he began the Karnataka expedition. However, he did not live long after the victory in the south. He passed away on 3rd April 1680 at Raigad. His untimely death caused an irreparable loss to Swarajya.
To announce the sovereign and independent status of Swarajya it was necessary to make it official. Realising this Shivaji Maharaj decided to get himself coronated. With his coronation as a sovereign a king the provinces under his rule assumed the status of an independent kingdom. After coronation he began the Karnataka expedition. However, he did not live long after the victory in the south. He passed away on 3rd April 1680 at Raigad. His untimely death caused an irreparable loss to Swarajya.
16.3 Maratha war of Independence
After the death of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj was coronated as the king of Swarajya. During his reign, a constant conflict continued with the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb's rebellious son Akbar had established friendly relations with Sambhaji Maharaj. Enraged by this, Aurangzeb came down to Deccan along with a huge army and able sardars. who were veterans of warfare. For the next 25 years he camped in Maharashtra and fought against the Marathas. But he could not succeed in destroying the Swarajya. Aurangzeb killed Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj in a very cruel manner (11* March 1689). Aurangzeb hoped that the Maratha power would be weakened with Sambhaji Maharaj's death but it did not happen. Instead the Marathas unitedly fought against the Mughals and expanded their rule.
After Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, Chhatrapati Rajaram Maharaj took over the reins at Raigad. Aurangzeb sent Zulfikar Khan to seize the fort of Raigad. Chhatrapati Rajaram Maharaj, Maharani Tarabai. Maharani Yesubai (Queen of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj) and her son Prince Shahu were staying in Rajgad. All the Maratha royalties, thus staying at one place was dangerous. It would have been strategic to fight the Mughals from two places at time. Hence, Maharani Yesubai asked Chhatrapati Rajaram Maharaj to leave for Jinji. Maharani Yesubai herself stayed back at Raigad and continued to fight. In 1689 C.E., the Mughals succeeded in taking charge of Raigad. Maharani Yesubai and Prince Shahu were arrested and sent to Delhi. Maharani Yesubai remained in captivity of the Mughals for the next thirty years.
While leaving for Jinji, Rajaram Maharaj entrusted Ramchandrapant Amatya, Shankaraji Narayan Sachiv. Santaii Ghorpade and Dhanaji Jadhav with the responsibility of defending Raigad. The querrilla tactics of Santaji and Dhanaji proved the large scale artillery and huge cannons of the Mughals to be of little use. Despite holding very few assets the Marathas continued to create havoc for the Mughals. Rajaram Maharaj safeguarded Swarajya in these trying times. This was a great task in itself and a great success of Rajaram Maharaj.
After the death of Rajaram Maharaj (March, 1700 C.E.), his wife Maharani Tarabai continued to fight against Aurangzeb. Maharani Tarabai led the Swarajya movement under extremely unfavourable conditions. She single-handedly took charge of the administration and fought for Swarajya for twenty five years with the help of her sardars. At times, the Marathas had to fight the Mughals on lands beyond the boundaries of Swarajya, but she did not stop them.
This was an indication that the scenario of the war was changing. The Maratha War of Independence was a tussle between the Mughal ambition of expanding their Empire and the desire for independence cherished by the Marathas. Finally the death of Aurangzeb put an end to this fighting. In the beginning, the Mughal rulers adopted an aggressive policy while the Maratha policy remained that of defence. But by the second half of the 18th century, this condition changed. With the weakening of Mughal power, the Marathas could extend their rule almost all over India.
16.4 Administrative system established by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
The regions in Maharashtra including Nashik, Pune, Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur, Sindhudurga, Ratnagiri, Raigad; Belgaum, Karwar, Dharwad in Karnataka; some regions of Andra, Jinji and Vellore in Tamil Nadu comprised Swarajya. Shivaji Maharaj set up an ideal administrative system for the smooth running of Swarajya's affairs.
The formation of the Ashtapradhan Mandal (council of eight ministers) and its growth took place along with the expansion of the kingdom. After coronation, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj created special posts of Ashtapradhans. It included 'Peshwa'. 'Amatya', 'Sachiv'. 'Mantri', "Senapati, 'Sumant', 'Nyayadhish' and 'Panditrao'.
Shivaji Maharaj had a strong intelligence network of his own. Bahirji Naik was the Chief of this network. Before starting on any expedition, Shivaji Maharaj obtained detailed information from his spies and then planned his expedition.
When the ministers went on expedition, their representatives (Mutalik) looked after the administration. There was a special officer called 'Darakdar' appointed to look after every department of the ministry. Other officers were 'Diwan' (secretary), 'Majumdar' (auditor and accountant), 'Phadnis' (Deputy Auditor), 'Sabnis' (office in-charge), 'Karkhanis' (Commissary), 'Chitnis' (Correspondence clerk), 'Jamdar' (Treasurer), 'Potdar' (assay master) etc.
The Kingdom was divided into two parts for the sake of administration. One of it was the province which was geographically bound together and the other comprised scattered regions in the south. The first province was divided into three sections. The northern section was assigned to the Peshwa which included the regions from Salher to Pune and North Konkan. The central part consisted of south Konkan, Sawantwadi and Karwar. This was assigned to the Sachiv. In the third part the regions of high plateau i.e. Satara-Wai to Belgaum and Koppal was assigned to the 'Mantri'. A separate 'Subha' of Karnataka was created and Hambirrao Mohite and Raghunath Narayan Amatya were appointed on it. 'Sarsubhedars' were appointed on all these regions in association with the 'Pradhans' (Ministers). This was known as *Rajmandal'. The appointment of 'Killedar' (keeper of the fort) and 'Karkun' (clerks) was made by the King himself. The Pradhans had to submit annual accounts to Shivaji Maharaj.
Sarsubhedars taking care of provincial administration were known as 'Deshadhikari'.
There was a difference between the administration under the Islamic rulers and the administrative system set by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Sarsubhas in the Swarajya were meant to be the zonal divisions for overall administration, while under Islamic rulers a division merely served the purpose of revenue collection.
The Subhedars were assisted by 'Deshmukhs' and 'Deshpandes'. The main task of a Deshmukh was to collect the land revenue, to develop waste land into cultivable land and settle new villages. All government officials received salary in the form of cash instead of land grant (watan).
'Village' was the basic unit of the administrative system. New villages were settled. The people were provided with cattle, seed money, money for daily utilities. The farmer was given a period of two years, to repay the advance after a good harvest. This system was known as ' Batai' system.
16.5 Release of Shahu Maharaj
The Mughals continued their efforts to defeat the Marathas, even after the death of Aurangzeb. For that purpose they adopted the strategy of dividing the Marathas. They released Shahu Maharaj from captivity in 1707 C.E. After his release there was a conflict between Maharani Tarabai and Shahu Maharaj. Shahu Maharaj won the ensuing battle. Balaji Vishwanath played an important role on behalf of Shahu Maharaj and later he was appointed as Peshwa.
16.6 Peshwa period
After Balaji Vishwanath, his son, Bajirao I was appointed as the Peshwa. He expanded the Maratha empire upto Malwa, Rajasthan and Bundelkhand. He defeated the Nizam.
After Bajirao I, Balaji Bajirao alias Nanasaheb was appointed as the Peshwa. Meanwhile, the Marathas were defeated in the third battle of Panipat. The Maratha rule became weak. Madhavrao Peshwa tried to re-establish the Maratha power.
The defeat in Panipat was not just a political defeat but it also lowered the morale of the Marathas greatly.
Madhavrao Peshwa tried to elevate the spirits of Marathas as well as re-establish the Maratha power in the north. The Marathas were successful in overcoming the great defeat at Panipat and creating a politically strong position for themselves in the politics of the north. This factor was very important. Malharrao Holkar, Ahilyabai Holkar, Raghuji Bhosale, Mahadji Shinde, Nana Phadanvis played a great role in the re-establishment of Maratha influence.
Malharrao was the founder of the Holkar State at Indore. He served the Maratha power for a long time. He had a great share in establishing the Maratha prestige in the north. After the death of Khanderao, son of Malharrao. Ahilyabai Holkar assumed the reins of the Indore administration. Maheshwar was the seat of administration under her. She built temples, ghats, dharamshalas, and drinking water facilities at various pilgrim centres. She was a capable, astute, and excellent administrator. Raghuji Bhosale was the most capable ruler among the Bhosales of Nagpur. He brought the regions in Eastern India upto Bengal under the Maratha dominance. After the miserable defeat of the Marathas at Panipat, Mahadji Shinde was instrumental in reestablishing the Maratha supremacy and prestige in North India. He trained his Army and modernised his artillery under the guidance of French military expert, Benoit de Boigne. Mahadji managed the difficult affairs with strong determination and remained incharge of Delhi affairs during 1771 C.E. to 1794 C.. Nana Phadanvis and Mahadji Shinde set the affairs of the state right after the death of Peshwa Madhavrao.
The two Peshwas who succeeded Peshwa Madhavrao, namely Narayanrao and Sawai Madhavrao, did not live long. Their untimely death set the decline of Maratha power. At this time, the Mughal power had also become weak. Taking advantage of this situation, the British started interfering in the internal strife among the Maratha sardars. Peshwa Bajirao II was defeated by the British and the British established their supremacy over India. The British brought entire India under their dominance.
16.7 Art, architecture, literature
Art The development of Maratha miniature Paintings is seen through illustrations on the manuscripts such as pothis, pattachitra and patrikas. The same style is maintained in the glass paintings as well. Illustrated manuscripts of Sanskrit texts such as 'Bhagvat Gita', 'Devi Saptashati', 'Bhagvat Purana' as well as Marathi texts such as 'Dnyaneshwari' (Bhavarthadipika), 'Shivaleelamrut', 'Pandavapratap' etc. are available. The paintings of Dashavatara are included in them. The wooden stands of the pothis have paintings of various deities such as Ganapati, Riddhi-siddhi, Ramapanchayatana, Gopalkrishna, Vishnulakshmi in dark red, green and yellow colours. The miniature paintings, include human portraits and themes like ragamalas, talamala, processions etc. Remarkable portraits of Bajirao I, Nanasaheb Peshwa, Pilaji Jadhavrao are available. Murals are found on the facade of the Wadas, as well as on the walls of reception areas (Diwankhana) and bedrooms. In the temples, the mandapa wall, owri (varanda), shikhara, gabhara (sanctum sanctorum) and chhat (ceiling) were also decorated with paintings. The 1 8th century murals have survived till today at places like the NaikNimbalkar wada at Vathar, Nana Phadanavis wada at Menavali, Rangamahal at Chandwad, Mayureshwar mandir at Morgaon, Shiva temple of Pandeshwar, and Matha at Benawadi. Mythological stories form the main theme of these murals. They include scenes from Ramayana and Mahabharata and Puranas. The paintings of Dashavatara and Krishnaleela are found almost everywhere. The subjects of contemporary social life were also popular in the paintings. Royal court, royal meetings, processions were also included in them.
During the Maratha period, keertan and singing of Bhajans were popular. Powadas (Ballads) were composed during this period to encourage the spirit of heroism among the people. The ballads known as 'powadas' and 'katavas', composed by the Shahirs were the types of historical poetry. The powadas composed by Adnyandas on the slaying of Afzalkhan and Tulsidas on the battle of Sinhagad are well-known.
The literary tradition of 'Lavani' developed in the later Peshwa period. Shahirs like Anantafandi, Prabhakar, Ramjoshi, Saganbhau and Honaji Bala are known for their beautiful compositions.
Various dance forms from the Maratha period have existed till today such as including lavani, koli dance, Gaja Nrutya etc. The tradition of vocal music also received patronage in Maratha States.
Architecture: Shivaji Maharaj gave priority to build forts. He built hill forts and sea forts. This proved benificial in establishment of Swarajya. The required expertise of maintaining forts was easily available to him. The Kasaba temple in Pune and Vitthal temple in Vitthalwadi were reconstructed by Veermata Jijabai. During the Peshwa period, the Maratha kingdom regained its prosperity and all forms of art and architecture once again received patronage. Pune, Satara and Nashik developed into big cities. These cities had well paved roads, wadas on both sides of the road and arched gates at intervals.
The construction of temples began on a large scale during the later Peshwa period. These temples were of three types. Examples of the temple architecture of this period are found at Saswad ('Vateshwar', 'Sangameshwar'), Mahuli (*Vishweshwar'),
Jejuri etc. These are huge in size. The plan of these temples is in star shaped design, the foundation of the temple was multi layered, and were named accordingly. The construction of shikhara is made in bricks and stucco method. The 'Kalaram', 'Goraram' and 'Sundarnarayan' temples at Nashik and 'Mahadev' temple at Trimbakeshwar, 'Mohiniraj' temple at Nevasa were similar to the temples in Malwa and Rajasthan. The temples were constructed in stone. These temples were embellished extensively with sculptures as compared to other contemporary temples. In the third type of temples, the temples at Pune, Satara, Wai, etc. were built in independent style. It included arches, wooden hall (sabhamandapa) and sanctum sanctorum (gabhara). The Shikhara slopes inwards at the top. In the small niches of the Shikhara, beautiful sculptures are made of stucco. It includes images of dashavataras and other deities as well as male and female figures. The stone deepmala is a remarkable feature of these temples. The stone deepmalas at Jejuri were built by Shahajiraje. Since most of the villages and temples were located on river banks, stone steps (ghats) were also built on the river. Such extensive ghats are seen at Nashik, Puntambe, Wai, Menavali, Mahuli etc. The Chhatris (Samadhis) built at various places are noteworthy.
Literature : Marathi literature developed greatly during this period. Sant Tukaram of this period was a poet of the warkari sect. Samarth Ramdas wrote 'Dasbodh' and 'Manache Shlok' in Marathi. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj got the 'Rajyavyavaharakosha' prepared which was a compilation of Sanskrit lexicon for Persian terms. Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj was a great writer and Sanskrit scholar. The Sanskrit text 'Budhabhushan' was written by him. This text is an overview of ancient texts on polity. Apart from Sanskrit, he also knew many other languages. He wrote texts in Brij language namely 'Nayikabhed', 'Nakhshikh' and 'Satasattak'. Muhammad Qasim Ferishta wrote the history of India in 12 volumes named 'Gulshane-i-Ibrahimi'.
In the 18th century well-known literary works were composed such as, 'Yatharthdeepika' by Vaman Pandit, 'Naladamayanti Swayamvara' by Raghunath Pandit, Pandavapratapa, Harivijay, Ramavijay by Shridhar Pandit and the translation of Mahabharata by Moropant. Bakhar literature is important among the historical literature in Marathi. It contains eulogies of the heroes and stories of historic events, battles, lives of great men. Sabhasad Bakhar, Bhausahebanchi Bakhar, Panipatchi Bakhar, Bhausahebanchi Bakhar, Panipatchi Bakhar are some of its examples. Krushna Dayarnav and Shridhar were the main poets during the Peshwa period. Poet Mahipati composed 'Bhaktivijay' in this period.
16.7 Trade, industries and social life Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was aware of the importance of a flourishing trade for the economic well being of the state. He encouraged the traders and merchants by creating Peths (market places). 'Shete' and 'Mahajan' were the officers who supervised the transaction of these Peths. Chaul, Rajapur, Dabhol, Kelshi, Ratnagiri were some of the important ports and trade centres of this period. Commodities like black pepper and lac* etc. were exported from Dabhol. Silk, opium, and indigo were exported from Chaul. Black pepper, cardamom, cotton cloth were the items of trade in Rajapur. Foreign traders procured required goods from Rajapur and transported them on ships to the Red Sea and Iran.
*Lac is a resinous substance used for sealing, varnish, making ornaments, etc.
A self-sufficient village was the basic unit of the Swarajya. The economic system of the village was never affected greatly by external political changes. Every village had 12 'balutedars' (service providers in the village). Their occupations were hereditary in nature. Every occupation in this system had a specific status in the social hierarchy. The balutedars, for example goldsmiths (sonar), blacksmiths (lohar), braziers (tambat) etc. practiced their hereditary occupations. Weekly markets were set up in big villages. Such villages were known as 'Kasba'. People visited weekly markets to buy daily provisions and other goods. Some industries of this period include textile industry, metallurgy, sugar industry etc.
The rural Maharashtra of Maratha period was organised into different social classes such as nobility (sardars), landlords (watandars), Balutedars and Ryot (rest of the subjects).
There were traditional schools (pathshalas) established in cities like Wai,
Nashik, Paithan, etc. Traditional festivals (utsavas), pious observances (Vrata vaikalye) were celebrated with great enthusiasm 1n the society. Celebrating the festivals was encouraged by the State, as such celebrations help to create joyous and hormonius society.
The journey from the founding of Swarajya to the expansion of the Maratha empire, is an important part of Indian history of mediaeval times. The Maratha power came to an end and the British brought most of India under their dominance. The transition took place in various sectors. It marks the onset of modern era.
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