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Alarmed at the growing power of Shivaji, g Amatya or Majumdar (finance)
Aurangzeb sent Raja Jai Singh to the Deccan. Jai g Pant Sachiv (general secretary)
Singh besieged the fort of Purandhar. Seeing all
g Sumanta (foreign affairs)
roads blocked, Shivaji agreed to sign a peace
g Mantri (head of intelligence)
treaty (Treaty of Purandhar). He agreed to accept
Aurangzeb as his overlord and pay him an g Dandadhyaksha (religious matters)
annual tribute. Sources of Revenue
g To surrender 23 forts to Aurangzeb. Land revenue was the main source of income.
Form the territories directly under him, Shivaji
g To meet Aurangzeb at his court.
collected two-fifths of the produce as land tax.
To honour his word,
From areas not directly under his control, he
Shivaji went to the
collected two taxes. They were as follows :
Mughal court at Agra.
Aurangzeb insulted him g The Chauth was one-fourth of the total land
revenue that farmers paid to the king Shivaji
by making him sit with
collected this tax in return for not raiding
mansabdars of low rank.
these territories.
Shivaji tried to leave the
court, but was put under g The Sardeshmukhi was an additional one-
house-arrest. He escaped, tenth of the land revenue. It was paid to the
as some sources say, by ‘Sardeshmukh’ or chief of the Marathas. It
hiding in a basket filled was a tributary tax.
with sweets and fruits. Chhatrapati Shivaji Military Administration
In 1670, Shivaji renewed hostilities with the Shivaji’s soldiers were well-trained and highly
Mughals. He raided Surat again and captured a disciplined. The infantry and the cavalry were the
huge booty. He also recaptured some forts main divisions of the army. In addition, Shivaji
surrendered earlier. controlled many forts. Special officers were
Last Years appointed to look after these forts. Shivaji also
In 1674, Shivaji crowned himself king. He took had a navy to guard the coast.
the title of Chhatrapati. He died in 1680, leaving Successors of Shivaji
behind a powerful kingdom. Shivaji was followed by weak successors. In the
Shivaji’s Administration eighteenth century, power passed into the hands
of the Peshwas. It was under them that the
Shivaji was not only a fearless soldier, but also a
Marathas became the dominant regional power.
successful administrator. He had a council of
eight ministers, called the ashtapradhan, to THE PESHWAS
advise him. The word comes from Sanskrit and From 1713 to 1761, the Peshwas controlled the
means ‘important eight’. These were : Maratha Empire. In 1713, Shivaji’s grandson
g Peshwa (head of the council and in-charge Shahu appointed Balaji Vishwanath as his
of general administration) Peshwa or Chief Minister. He was an able admin-
istrator and helped Shahu control the Maratha
g Senapati (commander-in-chief of the army)
chiefs. In course of time, the Peshwa became the
g Nyayadhish (justice)
real decision-maker.
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