The Marathas, an almost unknown political entity in the first half of the seventeenth century AD, suddenly rose to prominence under their great leader, Shivaji around the middle of that century. But within less than two centuries of its establishment, the Maratha Empire fell after offering a brief resistance of just fifteen weeks. In its infancy, the Maratha state was a monarchy, governed by an enlightened aristocracy. Shivaji knew of the evils the feudal ...
