Shivaji

Shivaji Bhonsle, also known as Chhatrapati Shri Shivaji Maharaj (February 19, 1630 - April 3, 1680) was the founder of the Maratha empire in western India in 1674.

Conflict with the Mughals

Shivaji frequently raided the Mughal territory to the north of his small kingdom, as it was seized from his father by Mughals. Mughals were expanding southwards and Shivaji wanted to expand his frontier .So clash was envitable.

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Hence retaliation came quickly in the form of Shahista Khan, Aurangzeb's maternal uncle, who seized Pune and the fort of Chakan after great efforts. The Khan's vast army was more than a match for Shivaji's troops. He was an experienced commander. In this region he had defeated Shahaji in 1636.

Related Topics:
Shahista Khan - Chakan

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During his stay ,he could secure only one victory over above fort. Almost for a year his troops were looting poor peasants and villages as a kind of frustration for want of any kind of success. His one Uzbek general,Kartalab Khan was deputed on a mission to descend in the konkan and reduce Shivaji's forts. This time mughals did not march with their ususal open march, rather they wanted to give a surprise to Shivaji. They selected a pass 'Umber Khind' near present day,Pen. Shivaji took them by surprise near the pass, challenged them for a war which they could not give. They surrendered with their entire baggages and arms. One lady commander, Rai Bagan was present over there. However Shivaji allowed her safe passage including the entire troops. Next to target was the mughal camp at Poona.

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In the guise of a marriage party, Shivaji led a small group to a daring attack on the residence of the Khan in April 1663. Khan was occupying a small palace, Lal Mahal which was Shivaji's childhood place. Mughal troops were at least 50,000 strong if we exclude their stores and ancillary units. Shivaji drew a plan and boldly attacked the person of general. After successfully hitting the general, he managed to escape from the mughal camp. Chasing Mughals were fooled by torches attached to bulls in another pass'Katraj Ghat', near Pune. Next day when they attacked Shivaji at Sinh Garh they were defeated. The Khan somehow managed to escape with the loss of three fingers, cut off by Shivaji as he jumped out of a window. The narrow escape made the Khan give up the fight and withdraw from Pune. He did his best to give a fight , but it was no use.

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Next target was Surat, a port and wealthy town. Mughals were looting maratha countryside for a number of years. Poor peasants were looted of their produce and livestocks. It was necessary to counter it. Surat was giving huge tax to Mughals which was enabling Mughals to organise massive campaings against him. Against this background he arrived at Surat and demanded tribute from the Mughal commander of Surat. It was refused. As a punishment Shivaji defeated Mughals and exacted tribute from the wealthy merchants. It must be noted that poor, ladies or religious places were not harmed, as attested by even foreign travellers.

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There is a view that Shivaji lacked the administrative capacity to build a system of taxation. Probably it arises out of these kind of financial attacks.

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Long back Allauddin Khalji and his general Malik Kafur had defeated the Yadavas, the Hoyasalas and other kingdoms of South India. During that expedition, not only gold and silver was looted, but many women were taken into harems.

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Against this background Shivaji had laid these attacks. There were repeated attacks on the town of Surat, where there was a large Gujarati and Parsi trading community. But their women were neither molested nor taken to harem like earlier invaders. When Shivaji attacked for the second time, Mughals intercepted him at a pass 'Vani Dindori' near Nashik. Shivaji sent certain troops with tribute ahead and himself took the position to fight out. In a pitched battle, Mughals were badly beaten and retreated from there. That's why it was not plundering, it was tribute from a vanquished army.

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The foundations of Bombay as India's commercial capital were laid through this, when after two consecutive attacks on Surat, there was a flight of the business community from Surat to Bombay. Certain islands of Bombay was ruled by the British,and while the British in India were weak at the time, Shivaji was even weaker as far artillery is concerned. The lawlessness on the west coast of mughal possession, with pervasive theft and rapine, coupled with the ability of the British to preserve law and order in certain portion of Bombay, led to Bombay's domination. Moreover the present day Colaba was in possession of Shivaji. Maratha navy under Shivaji and afterwards checked British as well as many other Pirates. It had had an effect on India's west coast. Around same time, Europeans were making Africans as their slaves and they were being sold in united states .

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The Mughal emperor, Aurangzeb was greatly angered by Shivaji's activities, and he sent a vast army to finish off Shivaji for good.The Mughal army was led by Raja Jai Singh of Amber. Shivaji was outnumbered as usual, and his usual guerilla tactics were successfully repulsed by the experienced Jaisingh. In a heroic battle of Purander, Murar Baji, a brave warrior fought out the Mughals. He laid his life. Shivaji was a brillaint general. Considering all aspects, he prefereed peace and surrendered before Mughals. The peace treaty that he signed extracted a heavy price. He lost about 80% of his territory and 23 of his forts. But he managed to keep strategic forts with him.He also refused to accept mansabdari and instead proposed name of his son,Sambhaji.

Related Topics:
Aurangzeb - Raja Jai Singh - Amber

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Trip To Agra

In 1666, Aurangzeb summoned him, along with his son Sambhaji, who was six years old at the time, to Agra. In Agra, on 12 May 1666 Aurangzeb made Shivaji stand with the lowly commoners in his court, an intended insult for a ruler like Shivaji. Deeply insulted, Shivaji stormed out of court, and was promptly placed under house arrest. From his spies, Shivaji came to know that Aurangzeb planned to soon shift him to a secure location from where his escape would be impossible.

Related Topics:
1666 - Agra

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Great Escape

Shivaji then feigned sickness, and requested to be allowed to have sweets sent to temples in Agra as an offering. After several days of sending out boxes containing sweets, Shivaji and his son got into two of them, and managed to sneak out without being seen. According to some historians, this was possible only because the guards and some influential officials of the Mughal state were heavily bribed. He reached his kingdom in October 1666.

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Even certain officials might have been bribed,but not the entire mughal army or administration.Moreover Aurangzeb was of suspective nature and was strong in intelligence.One can guess from the fact that in future, same Aurangzeb caught hold of Sambhaji from his own territiory near Ratnagiri.One can imagine the dimension of the problems before Shivaji.

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An Alternative Route?

A recent book by Dr. Ajit Joshi debunks the above story, and proposes what it claims are the real facts of the escape.

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Shivaji and Aurangzeb met in Agra, not Delhi on May 12, 1666. Aurangzeb's father and former Emperor Shahjahan died in the Agra fort on 22 January 1666. Aurangzeb and his retinue reached Agra in mid-February 1666.

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Shivaji and his son, Sambhaji were put under house arrest on May 29, 1666 in a large haveli in Agra owned by Jai Singh. He feigned sickness during June 1666, and obtained permission from Aurangzeb (who was also busy with a rebellion in the North West) to distribute sweets to sadhus, fakirs, and general public to get cured from ill health. Shivaji also obtained approval to send some of his courtiers back home since his audience with the Emperor was over. This entailed the procurement of Dastaks (Urdu:Notice) - a travel permit. This enabled these men to establish outposts along the way from Agra in preparation for Shivaji's escape.

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During mid-July, Shivaji received intelligence that Aurangzeb and his courtiers were to depart on a hunting expedition on July 22, 1666. Jai Singh's son Ram Singh requested Shivaji to join the expedition, but Shivaji refused.

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Shivaji had invited Pandit Kavindra Paramananda, of the Sanskrut Pathashala at Varanasi (Kashi) to visit him. This visit took place on July 22, 1666. During this visit, Shivaji shaved his beard, donned the garb of a Pandit and joined the entourage. A Dastak with his new name had already been procured.

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After breaking off from this group outside Agra, Shivaji took to Gwalher (Gwalior), Narvar then straight to Burhanpur! From here Shivaji diverted to Nashik, since he did not want to go to Aurangabad. Sambhaji did not join his father on this escape, but left Agra on August 16, 1666 disguised as another Brahmin boy. He joined his father via Mathura.

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Shivaji's escape was only discovered on August 18, 1666 when Aurangzeb appointed him to the North-West frontier and wanted him to leave for Kabul.

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In the years 1667-69, Shivaji lay low. The Mughals got the impression that he was now a spent force and would not cause them any more trouble. In January 1670, Shivaji's forces launched a concerted attack on Mughal garrisons in Maharashtra. The force of the assault was overwhelming; within 6 months Shivaji had regained most of his old territory. His army muwas also ch larger now: about 40 thousand cavalry, backed by 60 thousand infantry. From 1670-74 Shivaji greatly expanded his territory at the expanse of the Adilshahi and the Mughals.

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