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The Maratha Empire or the Maratha Confederacy was an Indian imperial power that existed from 1674 to 1818. At its peak, the empire covered a territory of over 2.8 million km². The Marathas are credited to a large extent for ending the Mughal rule in India.〔〔(Delhi, the Capital of India By Anon, John Capper, p.28. "This source establishes the Maratha control of Delhi before the British" )〕〔(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''" )〕〔http://tribune.com.pk/story/444417/is-the-pakistan-army-martial/〕 This was termed as Hindavi Swarajya a term for sociopolitical movements seeking to remove foreign military and political influences from India by Shivaji, founder of the Maratha Empire since 1645. The Marathas are the Hindu warrior group from the western Deccan Plateau (present day Maharashtra) that rose to prominence by establishing a Hindavi Swarajya. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, "The Maratha group of castes is a largely rural class of peasant cultivators, landowners, and soldiers". The Marathas became prominent in the 17th century under the leadership of Shivaji who revolted against the Adil Shahi dynasty and the Mughal Empire and carved out a rebel territory with Raigad as his capital. The Marathas had learned Mughal military skills from Shivaji's father who acquired this knowledge and skills through his time serving as a mandsabdar under Mughal Emperor, Shah Jahan. Known for their mobility, the Marathas were able to consolidate their territory during the Mughal–Maratha Wars and later controlled a large part of India. Chhattrapati Shahu, a grandson of Shivaji, was released by the Mughals after the death of Emperor Aurangzeb. Following a brief struggle with his aunt Tarabai, Shahu became ruler. During this period, he appointed a Chitpavan Brahmin,〔The Journal of Asian Studies The Journal of Asian Studies / Volume 21 / Issue 04 / August 1962, pp 577-578Copyright © The Association for Asian Studies, Inc. 1962〕 Balaji Vishwanath, and later, his descendants, as the ''peshwa''s or prime ministers of the empire. Balaji and his descendants played a stellar role in expansion of maratha rule. The empire at its peak stretched from Tamil Nadu in the south, to Peshawar (modern-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa〔(An Advanced History of Modern India By Sailendra Nath Sen, p.16 )〕 ) in the north, and Bengal and Andaman Islands in the east.〔(Andaman & Nicobar Origin | Andaman & Nicobar Island History ). Andamanonline.in. Retrieved 12 July 2013.〕 In 1761, the Maratha army lost the Third Battle of Panipat to Ahmad Shah Durrani of the Afghan Durrani Empire which halted their imperial expansion in northwestern India. From 1785 to 1787 the Marathas engaged in a war with the Sultanate of Mysore under Tipu Sultan which resulted in significant territories of the Maratha Empire being taken over by the Mysoreans and a halt to much of their ambitions in South India. In a bid to effectively manage the large empire, he gave semi-autonomy to the strongest of the knights, which created a confederacy of Maratha states. They became known as the Gaekwads of Baroda, the Holkars of Indore and Malwa, the Scindias of Gwalior and Ujjain, the Bhonsales of the Nagpur and the Puars of Dhar & Dewas. In 1775, the East India Company intervened in a Peshwa family succession struggle in Pune, which became the First Anglo-Maratha War. The Marathas remained the preeminent power in India until their defeat in the Second and Third Anglo-Maratha Wars (1805–1818), which left the East India Company in control of most of India. A large portion of the Maratha empire was coastline, which had been secured by a potent navy under commanders such as Kanhoji Angre. He was very successful at keeping foreign naval ships, particularly of the Portuguese and British, at bay. Securing the coastal areas and building land-based fortifications were crucial aspects of the Maratha's defensive strategy and regional military history. == Nomenclature == The Maratha Empire is also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy. The historian Barbara Ramusack says that the former is a designation preferred by Indian nationalists, while the latter was that used by British historians. She notes Although, at present the word ''Maratha'' refers to a particular caste of warriors and peasants, in the past the word has been used to describe Marathi people, including Marathas themselves.,〔(〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Maratha Empire」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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