The Moghul Empire had disintegrated due to a number of factors:
- The Emperors of the Moghul dynasty could not
suppress the rebellions
- The Bhakti Movement brought about a revival of Hinduism
- The rise of the Marathas in Maharashtra and the
Sikhs in Punjab helped the people to acquire independence
- The coming of the Europeans helped in the
decline of the Moghuls.
RISE OF THE MARATHAS
The Marathas originally hailed from Maharashtra. They were
poor and basically agricultural people. The Maratha chiefs became the strongest
rulers in the eighteenth century. The territories which included the modern
states are Bombay, Konkan, Kandesh, Berar, parts of Madya Pradesh and nearly
1/3rd of the Hyderabad state. They were called the Maratha-vad. (Name
the territories – 1 mark).
The rise of the Marathas was the result of the efforts of
the entire Maratha people on the basis of the language called Marathi language.
This literature community homeland gave birth to Maratha nationalism.
Shivaji was a brilliant luminary far ahead of his days who
instilled great confidence among the Marathas and their chiefs. This enabled
them to fight against Aurangzeb for nearly 27 years and helped them to break
the backbone of the Moghul Empire.
SAMBHAJI (3 MARKS)
Sambhaji was the eldest son of Shivaji. At the time of
Shivaji’s death Sambhaji was a prisoner in the Panhala Fort (Give one
word for). The Moghuls then decided to put his step brother Rajaram on the
throne. Sambhaji was then left out of prison and soon appointed as Chatrapati
in July 1680 (event).
Though Sambhaji was a courageous soldier he did not have
the qualities of an able administrator nor did he have the foresight of
politics and thus he failed to strengthen the kingdom which he inherited from
his father.
However, his imprisonment and death united the Marathas who
decided to put up a relentless struggle against the Moghuls under the
leadership of Raja Ram. During the rule of Sambhaji chaos and confusion
prevailed all over the state of Maharashtra. The Maraths faced a number of
problems because several officers changed sides and joined the Moghuls.
Sambhaji spent most of his time at Panhala, Vishalgad and Sanghmeswar. The
confusion that prevailed in the Maratha Empire tempted Aurangzeb to make
another attempt to capture Sambhaji. The death of Sambhaji gave the Moghuls a
victory against the Marathas.
RAJA RAM (short note)
Sambhajis death paved the way for Raja Ram and he was
declared as their Chatrapati at a young age of 20 on the advise of Yesubai,
the widow of Sambhaji (objective). He fled to Vishalgad and Yesubai along
with her son Shahu were taken as prisoners by the Moghul emperors. Nearly the
entire Maharashtra was occupied by Aurangzeb.
The Marathas stood up as one force against Aurangzeb with
the object of regaining the independence of Maharashtra. The Maratha war of
independence started in 1869 and continued till Shahu became the Chatrapati of
the Marathas.
Rajaram encouraged each of his Maratha chiefs to organize
their own army and attack the Moghul territory. He also promised to give jagirs
and by doing this the Maratha chiefs were able to conquer vast pieces of land
from the Moghuls. Aurangzeb made several attempts to capture Rajaram, but
Rajaram fled from place to place and thus escaped capture. The Maratha war of
independence thus succeeded in its aim of regaining the independence of
Maharashtra. This led to the growth of the Maratha power and influenced the
Maratha people.
WAR OF THE MARATHA INDEPENDENCE
What Sambhaji could not accomplish during his lifetime, he
accomplished by his cruel death. The Marathas did away with their differences
and rose as one strong state against the invincible Moghul armed forces. In the
meantime, Raja Ram’s widow Tarabai had declared her son Shivaji II as the King
of the Marathas. She sent Dhangi Jadhav the great Maratha commander
(objective) to tell Shahu that he had no right to the kingdom which had been
lost by his father. Since many Maratha chiefs were convinced by the argument
that Shivaji II was the lawful ruler forced them to fight against each other.
However, Shahu won over Dhangi and this changed the fortune of the Marathas. A
civil war took place between the two rival parties on the banks fo the river
Bhima at Khed. Shahu won this battle and became Chatrapati. His success in the
battle won him the support of several other Maratha chiefs. He had his
coronation at Satara on January 12th, 1708 (objective).
RISE OF PESHWA
Shahu was the most significant ruler of the Marathas. He
maintained good relations with the Moghuls as well as with other royal Maratha
families at Kolhapur. He appointed capable men and assigned responsibilities
which suited their abilities. He first appointed Balaji Vishwanath as his
Peshwa. After Balaji Vishwanath’s death his on Bajirao was appointed and he was
followed by Balaji Bajirao. Since the power was handed down to the Peshwa’s it
helped them to extend to the Maratha power and by doing this Shahu permitted
the rise of the Peshwa’s on the one hand and caused the decline of the power of
the Marathas. After the death of Shahu, the Peshwas refused to surrender the
power they had acquired.
CAUSES FOR THE RISE OF THE PESHWA
The difficulties of Shahu and the great political unrest of
Maharashtra were the causes responsible for the rise of the Peshwa. The Moghuls
were driven out of Maharashtra and in order to consolidate the Maratha
territory as well as provide a sound and stable administration, Shahu appointed
the Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath the founder of the House of Peshwas
(objective or small answer) made the office of the Peshwa a hereditary post.
The Peshwas took the leadership of the Marathas in their own hands and thus
established peace in the state. The three successive Peshwas did away with the
difficulties of the Chatrapatis and by their diplomacy they made the Marathas
the greatest power of India.
PESHWA BALAJI VISHWANATH (3 marks)
Balaji Vishwanath was appointed the Peshwa in 1713 by
Shahu. He was responsible for consolidating Shahu’s power in Maharashtra. Since
he was an astute diplomat, he was able to convince most of the Maratha chiefs.
His greatest achievement was the treaty that he signed with the Moghuls. Balaji
Vishwanath advised Shahu to accept this ffriendship of Hussain and through this
friendship a treaty was signed whereby the Moghul Emperor would hand over all
the territories and a fort to Shahu. Balaji Vishwanath improved the income of
the state by introducing a number of taxes, a self-made man Vishwanath rose to
the position of Peshwa with his own merit and effort and is rightly called as
one among the great Peshwa.
PESHWA BALAJI (3 marks)
After the death of Balaji Vishwanath his eldest son was
appointed as the Peshwa by Shahu. The 20 years of his active career brought
about a complete revolution in the character of the Maratha state. He aimed at
the establishment of the supremacy of the Deccan. He gave the Marathas an
important position in the Deccan. He made their homeland secure against foreign
aggression. Before Balaji could consolidate his Empire, he passed away and
after his death the administrative duties were handed over to Peshwa Balaji
Bajirao.
PESHWA BALAJI BAJIRAO (3 marks)
After the death of Balaji in 1740 his son Balaji Bajirao
also known as Nanasaheb (objective) was appointed as the Peshwa by
Shahu. He had an excellent personality and was not only a good soldier but also
a fairly good diplomat. He was responsible for extending the Maratha Empire,
far beyond the dreams of Shivaji. He improved the Revenue System by encouraging
agriculture. Although the Marathas reached the heights of glory during his rule
yet failed to give them proper directions. He was also not able to establish a
good administration, and this brought about confusion in the Maratha Empire.
THE THIRD BATTLE OF PANIPAT (3 marks) ***
January 14th, 1761
(objective) Peshwa Balaji Bajirao signed a treaty with the Moghul Emperor in
1752 A.D. Through this treaty the Marathas secured the right to collect Chauth
from all over India and in return the Marathas were to help the emperor
whenever it was needed. During this time the Moghul court was divided into two
rival groups. One consisted of the foreign Muslim nobles and the other Indian
Muslim nobles. The Marathas supported the Indian Muslim nobles and since the
foreign nobles felt left out they sought the help of Ahmedshah Abdali the ruler
of Afghanistan. Abdali agreed to help them as he was interested in securing the
territories of Kashmir, Punjab and Multan. Punjab was occupied by the Marathas
and Abdali had to face a conflict with the Marathas. This resulted in the
famous battle of Panipat which was fought in Jan 1761. Abdali succeeded in
cutting off the lines of communication of the Marathas. In the beginning the
Marathas had an upper hand but later the Afghans saw to the end of the
Marathas. They were badly defeated and this loss was reported to Balaji
Bajirao. Hearing this news he left for Pune where he died heartbroken on 23rd
June 1761 (objective).
CAUSES FOR THE DEFEAT OF THE MARATHAS (3 marks) *
-
Ahmedshah Abdali had a stronger military force
than that of the Marathas.
-
Sadashiv Rao Bhau, the Maratha commander
(objective) was no match for Abdali.
-
Before the battle of the Marathas the army was
starving for almost two months
-
The Marathas could not rely on anyones support
-
The troops of Abdali were better armed than
those of the Peshwa
-
The Marathas did not have any idea of discipline.
RESULTS OF THE BATTLE OF PANIPAT
-
The Marathas could not fulfil the dream of
establishing their empire all over India.
-
The death of many Maratha chiefs and statesmen
paved the way for many foreign rulers to establish their empires in India.
-
The power and prestige of the Peshwa was
reduced due to the internal problems in the Peshwa family.
-
Due to the gap of communication the Marathas
and the Moghuls weakened themselves.
PESHWA MADHAVRAO I
He was the son of Peshwa Balaji Bajirao. Soon after his
father’s death he ascended the throne at a very young age. He possessed talents
of both a soldier as well as a statesman. He faced a number of problems but he
was able to consolidate the Maratha Empire. He succeeded in defeating Hyder Ali
of Mysore and Nizam of Hyderabad. He improved the Maratha Administration. He
has been rightly described by Sir Richard Temple as ‘One of the finest
characters that the Hindu Nationality ever produced’.
CAUSES OF THE DECLINE OF THE MARATHA POWER (6 marks) ***
-
The Maratha Empire was so vast and was not well
knit
-
The Marathas were not concerned about the
finance and as a result they began to plunder countries for want of money.
-
Although the Marathas were experts in Gorilla
warfare they had to change their method in order to protect the people from
foreign invasion
-
They had no idea of the geography of the
country and this was a handicap since they could not carry out military
operations.
-
The Marathas failed in this mission because
they did not have proper military training and organization.
-
There was no unity among the Marathas and the
Maratha chiefs never joined with others against their common enemies. As a
result they were individually defeated.
-
The foreign rulers had detailed information
regarding the Marathas, while the Marathas did not have the slightest idea of
foreign attacks.
-
Lastly the Marathas downfall was due to the
untimely and unexpected death of many of its great leaders
RANJIT SINGH (4 marks)
-
Ranjit Singh was born on November 2nd
1780.
-
He took over the rule of Punjab when there was
total confusion
-
He established a strong and efficient system of
administration
-
He disciplined his army on the western model
-
He maintained a standing army of 40,000
infantry
-
He acquired the support of all sections of society
-
He was known as the Lion of Punjab
(objective) and he will always stand in the forefront of the great men of
Indian History.
FILL IN THE BLANKS
-
On Sambhaji’s death Raja Ram was
declared as chatrapati.
-
Balaji Vishwanath was
the founder of the house of peshwa.
-
Ranjit Singh belonged to Sukerchuaia Misl.
-
Tarabai was the widow of Raja
Ram
-
Bajirao became the peshwa in
1680
-
Balaji Bajirao was
also known as Nanasaheb.
-
Madhavrao
became peshwa at the age of 16
-
Sambhaji was the son of Shivaji
-
The Maratha war broke out between Shahu
and Shivaji II
-
Balaji Vishwanath was
the first peshwa
-
The third battle of Panipat was on 14th
Jan 1761
-
The work Misl was taken from Arabic language
-
Maharaja Ranjit Singh established a secular
state
-
The Peshwas had ministers who were mostly Chitpawan
Brahmin
-
The ruler of Hyderabad was Nizamshah
-
The treaty of Bhopal was signed between the Marathas
and Moghuls in 1739
-
Nadir Shah was the king of Persia
-
Bajirao was given the title of creator of
greater Maharashtra.
-
Afghan leader Ahmedshah Abdali invaded
Delhi in 1757-58
-
Madhavrao’s main enemy was his own uncle
-
Hyderali was the main challenge
to the Marathas.
-
Kanoji Angre was
given the title of warden of the west coast.
-
The treaty of Salbai in 1782 brought
peace between the Marathas and the English
-
Shivaji was succeeded by two sons Sambhaji
and Raja Ram
-
Sambhaji was under the influence of tantric Kabaji
Kamusha and became a slave of superstition
-
After Sambhaji’s death Shahu became the
ruler with Raja Ram as the regent.
-
After the death of Chatrapati Shahu the Maratha
kingdom was shifted from Satara to Jinji
-
The Marathas were defeated by the Moghuls in
the battle of Panipat
-
After the death of Balaji Bajirao Madhavrao
became Peshwa
-
The Sikhs emerged as the militant group under
the leadership of the last apostle Guru Gobind Singh
-
Ranjit Singh died in 1839
-
Balaji Vishwanath belonged to the Chitpawan
Brahmin family
-
The peshwa Madhavrao fought the war with
the Nizam
-
The Marathas were defeated in the battle
of Panipat
-
Ragunathrao was
the worst man of the Maratha history
-
Yesubai was the widow of
Sambhaji.
MATCH (Solved Answers)
-
Shahaji Bhosale – father of Shivaji
-
Kavi Kulesh – friend of Sambhaji
-
Hyder ali – king of Mysore
-
Ranjit Singh – son of Mahasangh
-
Kanoji Angre – naval commander
-
Madhavrao Holkar – Maratha chief
-
Ranjit Jadhav – military commander
-
Peshwa – Bajirao I
-
Fighting Peshwa – Defacto ruler of Maharashtra
-
Yesubai – Shahu’s mother
-
Hind Pad Patshah – Hindu state
-
Amar Singh Abdali – Afghan
ANSWER IN ONE SENTENCE:
What was the outstanding feature of Shivaji’s
swaraj?
The outstanding feature of Shivajis Swaraj was
to liberate the Marathas and to establish a Hindu raj in the Deccan.
Which war is called the war of Maratha
independence?
The war between Aurangzeb and Shivaji and its
continuation with Shahu is called the war of Maratha Independence.
When was Bajirao Vishwanath appointed Peshwas
by Chatrapati Shahu?
Bajirao Vishwanath was appointed Peshwa by
Chatrapati Shahu in 1713 A.D.
What was the policy of Peshwa Balaji I to the
Moghul empire?
It was to establish only Hindy states and drive
the enemies out
When was the third battle of Panipat held?
The third battle of Panipat was held on 14th
January 1761.
Who was the Peshwa at the time of the battle of
Panipat?
Peshwa Balaji Bajirao was the Peshwa at the
time of the battle of Panipat
What was the special contribution of Guru Arjun
Singh to the Sikhs?
The special contribution of Guru Arjun Singh to
the Sikh unity was that he compiled a book called Adhigranth or Granthsaheb.
What was the special feature of the Sikh King
done under Maharaja Ranjit Singh?
The special feature of the Sikh King done under
Maharaj Ranjit Singh was to follow the policy of neutrality.
How did Ranjit Singh deal with the British
rulers?
Maharaj Ranjit Singh dealt with the British
rulers by signing the treaty in 1809 and agreed to confine his kingdom to West
Sutlej.
When was the first Anglo Sikh War fought?
The first Anglo Sikh War was fought in 1855.
Which treaty brought peace between the English
and the Marathas?
The Treaty of Salbai brought peace between the
English and the Marathas.
Of which army was Hyder Ali a commander?
Hyder Ali was the commander of the Mysore army.
Who was Nadir Shah?
Nadir Shah was the King of Persia.
What is meant by Hindu Pach Path?
Hindu Pach Path meant that the Hindu state
could be established right from Central Asia to Orissa and Bengal.
What was the importance of the Treaty of Warna?
It created the Kholapur state and Tarabai held
the riots in South Maharashtra.
What is meant by confindi?
Balaji advised his king to give the nobles land
From which family did the Peshwa appoint his
ministers?
The Peshwa appointed his ministers from the
Brahmin family
State one feature of the treaty of Shivgaon? *
By this treaty the Nizam had to pay certain consolation
Which famous throne was taken away by Nadir
Shah?
The Throne of Delhi was taken away by Nadir
Shah
Who was known as the ‘fighting peshwa’?
Bajirao I was known as the ‘fighting peshwa’.
What was Maharashtra first called?
Maharashtra was first called Marathawad.
By whom was the Bhakti Cult preached?
The Bhakti cult was preached by saint Tukaram,
Namdev and Meera bai.
What was the aim of the Maratha War of
Independence?
The aim of the Maratha War of Independence was
to regain the independence of Maharashtra and it lead to growth of the Maratha
power and influence.
Who won the civil war between the Marathas in
November 1707?
Shahu won the civil war between the marathas in
November 1707
How was sambhaji put to death?
Sambhaji was imprisoned and tortured in the
most inhuman way and thus put to death.
Who had taken Shahu as prisoner?
The Moghul Emperor Aurangzeb had taken Shahu as
prisoner.
How did Ranjit Singh lose his left eye?
Ranjit Singh lost his left eye due to small pox
at the age of ten
Who was Banda Bahadur?
He was a ploughman who changed into a Sadhu and started living on the river Godavari.
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