Maharaja Ranjit Singh

Political Sphere of Influence

• Sikh empire was a considerable power in the earlier 19th century in the north-western part of India. British Crown was wary about the Muslim invaders from the Central Asian region. Therefore, Sikh Empire was utilized as a buffer state.
• In 1806, Ranjit Singh signed a treaty with the East India Company, in which he agreed that his Sikh empire would not expand south of the Sutlej River, and the Company agreed that it would also not attempt to cross the Sutlej River into the Sikh territory.
• The Sikh Empire extended to Multan in 1818, and gradually the whole Bari Doab came under his rule. In 1819, Maharaja Ranjit Singh defeated the Afghan rulers and annexed Srinagar and Kashmir, stretching his rule in the north and the Jhelum valley, beyond the Himalayas.
• After Ranjit Singh’s death, there was confusion in the Sikh state. The English, who were on the lookout for an opportunity to expand their territories, conquered the Sikh kingdom (1839-40).

Religion

• The reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh is known for its secular nature and tolerance towards other religions. Men of different religions and races served in his army and occupied high positions of authority in his government.
• The Sikh army led by Ranjit Singh never indulged in demolishing of the places of worship belonging to the enemy. He also restored and built various historical Sikh Gurdwaras most notably the Golden Temple of Amritsar Maharaja Ranjit Singh gave equal patronage to Hinduism and also visited Sufi mosques and other holy places. His court also reflected the secular pattern, where the Prime Minister was a Dogra Hindu, his foreign Minister was a Muslim, and his finance Minister was a Brahmin. There were no incidents of forced conversions in his time.

Art and Architecture

• Maharaja Ranjit Singh was a great patron of Sikhism. He renovated the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, and much of the present decorative gilding and marble work was conducted under the patronage of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
• In the memory of the Tenth Guru of Sikhism Guru Gobind Singh, he built two of the most sacred shrines of Sikhism. These are Takht Sri Patna Sahib, and Takht Sri Hazur Sahib in Nanded.

Shivaji

• Shivaji Bhonsle founded the Maratha dynasty and is celebrated as a warrior Maratha king. He carved out the Maratha territory by arresting the enclaves of the declining Adilshahi sultanate of Bijapur that formed the foundation of the Maratha Empire. In 1674, he was crowned as the Chhatrapati of his state at Raigad, the capital of Maratha Kingdom.
• Shivaji established an empire with the help of disciplined military and well-structured administrative organizations. He was the pioneer in the innovation in the military tactics, devising various unconventional methods which were hinged on strategic factors like geography, terrain, speed, and surprise often called as Guerilla warfare to defeat his larger and more powerful enemies. He also reversed the progress of Islam and revived many Hindu political traditions and court conventions. He promoted the usage of Marathi and Sanskrit in his administration, in place of Persian.
• The rising power of the Maratha State under Shivaji resulted in the conflict with the Mughal Empire under Aurangzeb. Shivaji caused many reverses to the Mughal army in Deccan, and later peace was established via Treaty of Purnadar. Shivaji was also kept as captive by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, but he managed to escape in disguise.
• Shivaji passed away in 1680, and left behind a state which was always in conflict with the Mughals. Territories exchanged hands repeatedly between the Marathas and the Mughals for the period of 27 years. The conflict finally ended in the conclusive defeat for the Mughals in 1707.

Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath

• After the tragic execution of Sambhaji, there was a battle of succession in Maratha State between Sahuji, grandson of Shivaji, who was released from the captivity by Mughals and Tarabai, the widow of Rajaram who succeeded Sambhaji. Bajirao Vishwanath was instrumental in securing the throne for Sahuji, by hatching the Barabhai conspiracy.
• For his service he was appointed as Peshwa by the young Maratha Emperor to consolidate his grip on Maratha State which was under a civil war and persistent attack by the Mughals under Aurangzeb.
• Balaji Baji Rao (1740-1761) further extended the empire in different directions. Maratha power reached its height under him. The Marathas soon reached Delhi and offered their support to the Mughal emperor. The expulsion of Ahmad Shah Abdali’s agent from Punjab brought the Marathas into an open conflict with Ahmad Shah Abdali. The battle between the two forces was fought in Panipat in January 1761. The Marathas were completely defeated.
• Nearly 28,000 soldiers were killed. The Peshwa died in June 1761. The Battle of Panipat destroyed the possibility of the Marathas emerging as the strongest power in India.
• For the British, this battle was of immense significance. The Maratha defeat cleared the way for the rise of British power in India. It should be noted that the Indian powers were strong enough to destroy the Mughal Empire but not strong enough to unite it to create anything new in its place.
• Possibly the Marathas alone possessed the strength to fill the political vacuum created by the disintegration of the Mughal Empire. But they lacked political vision and succumbed to British power.

Political Sphere of Influence

• At its zenith, the Maratha Empire occupied the territories of Central and Northern Indian sub-continent. They were the sore in the eyes of the Mughal Empire and after their decline; they got the authority to impose tax (Chauth and Sardeshmukhi) on the Mughal territories.
• They were in conflict with the regional powers such as Mysore State in South and Hyderabad State in Deccan. Later, they proved to be the most dominant obstacle in the expansion of the British Empire in India. The 2nd Anglo-Maratha war resulted in the conclusive defeat of the Marathas and their influence and authority declined thereafter.

Religion

• The Maratha state was the symbol of Hindu resurgence after the centuries of the Islamic dominance. As expected, the dominant religion of the State was Hinduism, and most of the official work was also carried out with Hindu traditions.
• In Maratha State, Religious tolerance and religious pluralism were important pillars as these were fundamental beliefs of Shivaji, the founder of the empire. One of the unique features of the Maratha Empire was that it did not adhere to the caste system. It was most notable that the, the Brahmins (priestly class) were the prime ministers of the Kshatriya (warrior class) (Maratha) emperors.
• The policy of religious tolerance provided equal importance to Hindu interests and exerted important backpressure against the expanding Mughal influence.

Art and Architecture

• Due to their protracted wars with the Mughals, the earlier Maratha rulers had neither the time nor the resources for investing in making of buildings or patronizing arts. The characteristic of the Maratha style, can be analyzed from, the later buildings such as forts, palaces and temples. Brick, wood, mortar and stone were the materials used for construction.
• It can be said that the Maratha architecture lacked the beauty and grace of the architecture of the Mughals. But they excelled in the fort architecture. The wood work used for decorating palaces and other civil buildings was intricately done. Maratha art could have further developed and would have attained a distinctive character but it could not be achieved because of the turbulent times.