Eighteenth-Century Political Formations — Social Science STD 7 — Question
Rajasthan BoardEnglish MediumSTD 7Social ScienceEighteenth-Century Political Formations5 Marks
Question
How did Maratha become a force to reckon with?
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Answer
Under the Peshwas, the Marathas developed a very successful military organisation.
Their success lay in by-passing the fortified areas of the Mughals.
They raided cities and engaged Mughal armies in areas where their supply line and reinforcements could be easily disturbed.
Between 1720 and 1761, the Maratha empire expanded.
It gradually chipped away at the authority of the Mughal Empire.
Malwa and Gujarat were seized from the Mughals by ]the 1720s.
By the 1730s, the Maratha king was recognised as the overlord of the entire Deccan peninsula.
He possessed the right to levy chauth and sardeshmukhi in the entire region.
After raiding Delhi in 1737 the frontiers of Maratha domination expanded rapidly.
into Rajasthan.
into Punjab in the north.
into Bengal and Orissa in the east.
into Karnataka and the Tamil and Telugu countries in the south.
These were not formally included in the Maratha empire. They were made to pay tribute as a way of accepting Maratha sovereignty.
Expansion brought enormous resources but it came at a price.
These military campaigns also made other rulers hostile towards the Marathas. This resulted in the reduced support to the Marathas during the third battle of Panipat in 1761.
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