Maratha rulers

The Maratha rulers, belonging to the Bhonsale dynasty, from the early 17th century to the early 18th century, built and ruled the Maratha Empire on the Indian subcontinent, mainly corresponding to the modern countries of Bangladesh, India and Pakistan.[1][note 1] Their power rapidly dwindled during the 19th century and the last of the emperors was deposed in 1818, with the establishment of the British Raj. Starting in 1720s, the Peshwa were instrumental in expanding the Maratha Empire to cover large areas of the Indian subcontinent. At their empire's greatest extent in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, they controlled much of the Indian subcontinent, extending from Bengal in the east to Attock and Sindh in the west, Kashmir in the north to the Kaveri basin in the south. Peshwas served as subordinates to the Chhatrapati (the Maratha king), but later, they became the leaders of the Marathas, and the Chatrapati was reduced to a nominal ruler.[3][4][5]

Chhatrapati of Maratha Empire
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
Details
Style	His Imperial Majesty
First monarch	Shivaji
Last monarch	Shivaji III
Formation	1674 CE
Abolition	1818 CE
Residence	Raigad fort
Appointer	Hereditary

List of Maratha Rulers

Portrait	Titular Name	Birth Name	Birth	Reign	Death	Notes
	Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj		19 February 1630	6 June 1674  – 3 April 1680 5 years 9 months	3 April 1680 (aged 53)	Shivaji Maharaj was a Maratha aristocrat of the Bhosle clan who is considered to be the founder of the Maratha empire.
	Chatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj		May 14, 1657	January 16, 1681- March 11, 1689 9 years 4 months 21 days		Chatrapati Sambhaji Raje had himself crowned and resumed his father's expansionist policies. Sambhaji Raje had earlier defeated the Portuguese and Chikka Deva Raya of Mysore.
	Rajaram I		24 February 1670	12 March 1689 – 3 March 1700 11 years
	Chhattrapati Shahu		18 May 1682	12 January, 1708 – 15 December, 1749 41 years	15 December, 1749	This started Satara branch
	Rajaram II of Satara		June 1726	December 15, 1749 - December 11, 1777 28 years	December 11, 1777	Satara branch
	Shahu II of Satara		1763	11 Dec 1777 – 3 May 1808 31 years	3 May 1808	Satara branch
	Pratap Singh, Raja of Satara		18 January 1793	3 May 1808 - 5 September 1839 (31 years)	5 September 1839	He was the nominal emperor of the Maratha Empire, Satara from 1808 to 1819 and Raja of Satara but the main control was under the hands of Peshwas until 1839 when he was deposed by the British. Satara branch
	Tarabai			1765–1771 6 years	1761	She was wife of Chhatrapati Rajaram
	Shivaji II		1698	1700-1707, 1710-1714 11 years		He was son of Maratha ruler Chhattrapati Rajaram and his wife Tarabai of Kolhapur branch
	Sambhaji II			1714 to 1760 46 years		He came to power by deposing his half brother Shivaji II
	Shivaji III			1760–1812 52 years		He was adopted from the family of Khanwilkar which was from Kolhapur branch

• Maratha Empire
• Shivaji
• Mughal empire
• Bhonsle dynasty
• Peshwe
• Bhat family

References

1. An Advanced History of Modern India By Sailendra Nath Sen, p.16
2. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bharatiya Itihasa Samiti, Ramesh Chandra Majumdar – The History and Culture of the Indian People: The Maratha supremacy
3. Pearson, M. N. (February 1976). "Shivaji and the Decline of the Mughal Empire". The Journal of Asian Studies. 35 (2): 221–235. doi:10.2307/2053980. JSTOR 2053980.
4. Delhi, the Capital of India By Anon, John Capper, p.28. "This source establishes the Maratha control of Delhi before the British"
5. An Advanced History of Modern India By Sailendra Nath Sen p.Introduction-14. The author says: "The victory at Bhopal in 1738 established Maratha dominance at the Mughal court"

Notes

1. Many historians consider Attock to be the final frontier of the Maratha Empire[2]

External links