SHIVAJI AND MARATHA EMPIRE AND COLLAPSE OF MARATHA EMPIRE

Describe Shivaji's achievements, how did this policy help in the expansion of the Marathas? Describe the reason of the collapse of the Marathas.

INTRODUCTION

Shivaji was a qualified general and a skilled politician who laid the foundation for a strong  Maratha  empire through his  efforts.  Shivaji's achievements can be seen in the following forms:

MAIN BODY

o Before Shivaji,  the Marathas were in some small local princely states, but Shivaji's greatest achievement was that they increased the influence of the Maratha empire from Deccan to Karnataka and placed them at the all-India level.

o This achievement of Shivaji can also be considered to be the creation of an efficient administrative system. By appointing administers to help the administration, he increased efficiency in areas like  account, army, intelligence and  behavior.

o Shivaji created a standard revenue system for income and expanded the financial base of the empire through Sardeshmi and Chauth.  

o The creation of a cash-based army was a significant achievement of Shivaji. He increased the effectively of the Maratha army by emphasizing strict discipline. Besides, the development of the policy of efficient guerrilla warfare was also shivaji's major achievement in the military field.

o It was another achievement that Shivaji had arranged for a strong fort to protect his empire. In order to avoid betrayal due to his vision, he adopted the policy of giving the fort to three persons of equal status. 

Shivaji's policies helped in the development of the Maratha Empire. The revenue of the efficient revenue system also increased the military power of the Marathas. At the all India level, due to the rise of the Marathas, they were given adequate importance by the Mughal Empire. This increased the Maratha empire. Using the raid-fighting method developed by Shivaji, Bajirao First tried to expand the Maratha empire from the Krishna River to the stranded.

Reasons for the collapse of the Maratha Empire:

o Lack of skilled leadership: The untimely death of skilled peshwa like Madhavrao had affected the leadership capacity of the Marathas. This reduced the trust of the Marathas. 

o The Maratha warriors struggled for power due to lack of mutual unity among the Maratha warriors, which  the British gained influence over the Maratha Empire.

o The enemies born to the Fourth Tax Collection were not with the Marathas, which led to the collapse of the Maratha Empire. 

o These problems also affected a strong Marathas army and had to face defeat in the event of war.

Apart from these reasons, British diplomacy and military efficiency also fell on the weaknesses of the Maratha Empire and the elections of the Marathas ended by abolishing the post of Peshwa through the Pune Treaty.