Page 15 - SST Class 08

among the British, the Marathas and the Nizam of Second Anglo-Maratha War (1803-05)
Hyderabad. Tipu’s family was exiled to Vellore. A
small portion was given to the Hindu ruler Wadiyar
who had been over thrown by Hyder Ali.
Info Bits
Info Bits
The new king Krishnaraja Wadiyar was only seven
years old and he was totally dependent on the
British for administration.
THE CONQUEST OF MARATHA
The British always played the policy of Divide and
Rule in India. They used one ruler against the
other. The Marathas were also becoming a great
threat to the British. The British was seeking an
opportunity to weaken their power. They got this
opportunity after the death of Peshwa Madhav
Rao in 1772.
First Anglo-Maratha War (1775-82)
The first Maratha war was fought over the issue of
succession to the throne of the Peshwa. After the
death of the fourth Peshwa, Madhav Rao , his
younger brother Narayan Rao became the fifth
Peshwa. But his uncle Raghoba Rao murdered him
and announced himself as the successor of the
throne. The chief Nana Phadnavis along with other
chiefs objects it and claimed Madhav Rao Narayan
the son of Narayan Rao as the next Peshwa.
Raghoba seeked the support of the British and he
signed a treaty with them. The treaty is known as
the Treaty of Surat . By this treaty, the British will
support him in the war and in return Raghoba will
give them the islands of Salsette and Bassein. The
treaty was signed with the governor of Bombay
without the acknowledgment of Governor General
Warren Hastings. When later he came to know
about it, he rejected the treaty. Raghoba fought
with the support of the British. All the Maratha
chiefs were united under the Peshwa and they
defeated the British force. This was the dark hour
for the British power in India. The war ended in
1782 with another treaty known as the Treaty of
Salbai . Madhav Rao got the throne and Raghoba
was granted a pension of 3,00,000 rupees per year
and the English received the island of Salsette.
In 1800, the chief minister Nana Phadnavis died.
After his death, there was a civil war between Baji
Rao II, the Peshwa and Jaswant Rao Holkar, the
Maratha chief of Indore.
Jaswant Rao Holkar attacked and defeated the
combined forces of the Peshwa and Sindia and
drove Peshwa Baji Rao II out of Poona. He went
to the English settlement of Bassein and asked
them to help him recover Poona. Wellesley
agreed to help him to regain his throne on the
condition that he sign a subsidiary alliance with
the company. The British
defeated, Bhonsle and Sindia.
Both the chiefs were left with
no other alternative but to enter
into subsidiary alliance with the
English. The second Maratha
war gave a blow to the power Peshwa Baji Rao II
and prestige of the Marathas.
Third Anglo-Maratha War (1805)
The British wanted to bring the whole of Maratha
territory under their control. However, disunity
prevailed among Maratha chiefs and they did not
utilise this period to strengthen themselves. On
the other hand, the British won the support of a
number of native rulers, and thus won half of the
, war before it actually started. The third war started
when Peshwa Baji Rao attacked the British, but
was repulsed. The power of Marathas could not
be completely broken as wellesley was recalled
from India and the company made peace with
Marathas in 1806. But in the fourth Anglo-Maratha
war, the Marathas were beaten, and their
territories were taken over by the British. Thus, the
Maratha power came to an end forever.
THE CONQUEST OF PUNJAB
Now Punjab was left the
only independent state
of India. It was ruled by
Maharaja Ranjeet Singh ,
popularly known as the
Lion of Punjab . He had a
strong army and friendly
terms with the British. Maharaja Ranjeet Singh
Establishment of Company Power
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