The%20Deccan%20in%20the%20last%20days%20of%20Mughal%20rule

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The Deccan in the last days of Mughal rule
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The Deccan Under Aurangzeb

• Aurganzebs protracted war had already alienated
  many local groups
• Mughal nobles were developing local connections,
  but not necessarily for the Empire
• Fort commanders on reduced Jagirs preferred not
  to send out men to combat Maratha raids
• Marathas move easily through countryside
  demanding Chauth or a quarter of Mughal revenue.

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New Maratha Kingship

• Network of support from maratha deshmukhs
  (revenue collectors/lineage heads)
• Administrative links through Brahmins in Deccan
  courts
• Temporary alliances with Bijapur and Golconda,
  against Mughals

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Use of religious ideology

• Re-invention of Bhonsle family as high-caste with
  help of Brahmin from Benaras
• Political goals reformulated within the rubric of
  Hindu Kingship
• Public patronage of Hindu temples, particularly
  Bhavani, the fierce war goddess and Shiva
• Note this occurred along with alliances with the
  Decanni sultanates and muslim groups

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Internal Tensions among Marathas

• Shivajis eldest son Shambhaji not universally
  popular
• Several Maratha chiefs are indedependent
  operators, not fully incorporated into Bhonsle
  kingdom
• Shivaji dies in 1680, succession struggle prompts
  Aurangzeb to move south.

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The Bhonsle Marathas
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Evaluating Deccan Policy

• A paradoxpossible to win every battle, but still
  loose the war. Why?
• Aurangzeb had to fight multiple chiefs after
  Shivajis death, not just one
• Shambhajis death did not stop raids
• Shahuji (the captive son) treated with suspicion
• Rejected Tarabais offer and made a formidable
  foe
• Parallel system of revenu allowed both Mughals
  and Marathas to suvive, but not thrive. Had a
  bad impact on local agrarian economy
• Marathas simply had to dig in and survive until
  Aurangzebs death (1707).

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End of Mughal Rule in Deccan

• When Aurangzeb dies in Deccan his sons are in
  their 60s
• Muazzam, most likely to succeed is near Kabul,
  but his son is governor of Bengal and ready to
  help
• Azam Shah and Kam Baksh are in the Deccan but
  have little real experience
• By June Muzzam defeats his brothers and becomes
  the next Emperor as Bahadur Shah

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Aurangzebs Successors
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Bahadur Shah

• Brief reign due to old age, but vigorous attempt
  to retain empire
• Successful containment of Rajput rebellion and
  attempt at reconciliation
• Active campaign against Bandas rebellion in
  Punjab
• Zulfikar Khan appointed Mir Bakshi, but also
  Viceroy of the Deccan

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Bahadur Shahs Deccan Policy

• Zulfikar Khan already had contacts in Deccan and
  appointed the Afghan Daud Khan Panni as deputy
• Marathas are caught in the rivalry between
  Shahuji and Tarabai, both seek contracts of
  Sardeshmukhi (10) and Chauth (25)
• Bahadur Shah grants equal rights to each hoping
  they would limit each others power
• His own attention fully occupied by events in
  north until his death of natural causes in 1712

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Nature of Maratha Power

• Very de-centralized with a number of chiefs who
  had been under the service of the Bijapur sultans
• Even after the 1660s when Shivajis Bhonsle
  lineage becomes pre-eminent, the Maratha chiefs
  continue as independent confederates
• This pattern of leadership would last until their
  defeat in the Third Maratha War in the 19th
  century to the British East India company

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Advantages to Marathas

• Decentralized power lessens need for massive
  investment
• Raids and piracy supplement income
• Favors guerilla tactics with fast cavalry units
  rather than organized battles
• Territories include massive forts in hills and on
  coast as safe-havens, but disposable
• A mixture of sympathy and coercion ensure local
  support

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Golconda and Jinji Forts
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The evolution of the Peshwas

• By the early 18th century the Chitpavan Brahmin
  ministers of the Bhonsles began to be the real
  power behind the Marathas
• Under these ministers (Peshwas) the marathas
  became a confederacy under different
  chiefsHolkar, Bhonsle, Gaekawad, Sindhia
• After Aurangzebs death in 1707 the Maraths began
  raiding larger areas

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Original Maratha territories
Martha raids into Golconda, Southern Peninsula Fo
rts set up on Eastern edge Such as Jinji
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Why did Marathas Succeed?

• A policy based on mobile units and individual
  commanders making decisions at the local level
• Favored slow conquest with a pattern changing
  from raid to conquest (see Gordon reading for
  next class)
• Individual rivalries between Maratha chiefs
  sorted out by Peshwas, however, this did limit
  the possibility of united campaigns

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Maratha Expansion by 1750s