REALM 08 — BHAGWA DHWAJ VS CROWN
Anglo–Maratha Wars (1775–1818)
From the Five-House Confederacy to British Paramountcy Across India
CONFEDERACY →
1ST WAR →
SALBAI (1782) →
INTERNAL RIVALRY →
BASSEIN (1802) →
2ND WAR →
PINDARIS →
3RD WAR →
1818 PESHWA ENDS → PARAMOUNTCY
MICRO-REALM 08.01
Maratha Power After Shivaji
- Shivaji's legacy & Peshwa system
- Expansion of Maratha power
- Confederacy structure & Major houses
- Post-Panipat recovery
MICRO-REALM 08.02
The Maratha Confederacy
- Peshwa · Scindia · Holkar
- Bhonsle · Gaekwad
- Confederacy vs central authority
- Internal political competition
MICRO-REALM 08.03
Maratha–British Strategic Rivalry
- British rise from Bengal & Madras
- Maratha hold in West & Central India
- Bombay Presidency ambitions
- Rivalry over territory & revenue
MICRO-REALM 08.04 · 1775–1782
First Anglo–Maratha War
- Post-Madhavrao I succession dispute
- Raghunath Rao & Treaty of Surat
- Maratha resistance & Treaty of Purandar
- Treaty of Salbai (1782)
MICRO-REALM 08.05 · 1782
Treaty of Salbai
- Settlement & Political recognition
- 20-year peace & stabilisation
- Allowed British to focus on Mysore
MICRO-REALM 08.06
Politics Before the Second War
- Peshwa Baji Rao II & Nana Fadnavis
- Bitter Scindia–Holkar rivalry
- Internal fragmentation
- Opening for British diplomacy
MICRO-REALM 08.07 · 1803–1805
Second Anglo–Maratha War
- Baji Rao II & Treaty of Bassein
- Scindia, Bhonsle & Holkar campaigns
- Decisive British military success
MICRO-REALM 08.08 · 1802 TURNING POINT
Treaty of Bassein
- Subsidiary Alliance imposed on Peshwa
- Peshwa's political dependence
- Outrage of other Maratha chiefs
- Transformed all-India balance
MICRO-REALM 08.09 · BATTLEFIELD VICTORIES
Second War: Major Battles
- Battle of Assaye & Battle of Argaon
- Battle of Laswari
- Defeat of Scindia & Bhonsle
- Major British territorial gains
MICRO-REALM 08.10
Holkar–British Conflict
- Yashwantrao Holkar's resistance
- British military campaigns
- Final negotiated settlement (Rajpurghat)
MICRO-REALM 08.11 · 1817–1819
Third Anglo–Maratha War
- Pindari question & Lord Hastings
- Peshwa's final bid for independence
- Maratha chiefs & British encirclement
MICRO-REALM 08.12 · FINAL CLASHES
Major Events of the Third War
- Battle of Khadki & Battle of Koregaon
- Battle of Mahidpur
- British advance & Defeat of Peshwa
MICRO-REALM 08.13 · 1818
End of the Peshwa
- Fall of Peshwa Baji Rao II (1818)
- Abolition of Peshwaship & Pension
- Dissolution of Maratha political centre
- Reorganisation of territories
MICRO-REALM 08.14
What Happened to Maratha Houses?
- Scindia · Holkar · Bhonsle · Gaekwad
- Subordinate princely-state treaties
- Locked under British paramountcy
MICRO-REALM 08.15 · 4 ANALYTICAL DIMENSIONS
Why Did the Marathas Lose?
- Political: Internal rivalries & weak unity
- Military: British drill & strategy
- Diplomatic: Separate chief treaties
- Institutional: Weak Peshwa centre
MICRO-REALM 08.16 · BRIDGE TO REALM 10
Subsidiary Alliance Connection
- Treaty of Bassein & Garrison troops
- Political dependence via diplomacy
- Bridge to Realm 10 (Expansion Policies)
MICRO-REALM 08.17 · SPATIAL MEMORY
Western & Central India Map
- Poona → Peshwa · Gwalior → Scindia
- Indore → Holkar · Nagpur → Bhonsle
- Baroda → Gaekwad · Bombay → British
MICRO-REALM 08.18 · MASTER TIMELINE
Three Wars: Master Timeline
- 1775–82: 1st War (Treaty of Salbai)
- 1803–05: 2nd War (Treaty of Bassein)
- 1817–19: 3rd War (End of Peshwa)
MICRO-REALM 08.19 · THE LARGER ARC
Marathas vs British Transformation
- Confederacy → Diplomatic intervention
- → Treaty system & Internal divisions
- → Military defeat → Paramountcy
MICRO-REALM 08.20 · ANALYTICAL LANTERN
UPSC Analytical Questions
- 8 core UPSC analytical questions
- From Bassein to 1818 Paramountcy
- Mastered in the checkpoint below
CHECKPOINT · ✓ 08.01–08.20 COMPLETE
Anglo–Maratha Wars: 8 UPSC Analytical Answers
Q1. Structural Causes?
Clash between Bombay Presidency's desire for cotton/revenue territory and the Maratha Confederacy's fractured succession politics.
Q2. Why Bassein (1802) Mattered?
By signing Subsidiary Alliance with Baji Rao II, Wellesley stationed British troops at Poona—surrendering Maratha sovereignty.
Q3. Internal Maratha Politics?
Raghunath Rao's ambition (1775) and Baji Rao II's feud with Yashwantrao Holkar (1802) drove Peshwas straight into British arms.
Q4. Compare the 3 Wars?
1st War (1775–82) ended in stalemate (Salbai); 2nd (1803–05) broke Scindia/Bhonsle; 3rd (1817–19) abolished the Peshwaship.
Q5. Diplomacy + Military?
Wellesley & Hastings signed separate treaties with Gaekwad, Scindia, Bhonsle & Holkar so they could never fight as one army.
Q6. Why No United Resistance?
Feudal Saranjami chiefs distrusted each other after Nana Fadnavis died (1800) and lacked modern scientific artillery & finance.
Q7. End of Peshwa (1818)?
Removed the symbolic unifying head of the Maratha Empire, merging Poona into Bombay Presidency and exiling Baji Rao II to Bithoor.
Q8. Emergence of Paramountcy?
Defeating the Marathas—the only indigenous power capable of ruling all India—made the EIC the undisputed master south of the Sutlej.
← REALM 07: ANGLO–MYSORE
08 ✓ ANGLO–MARATHA COMPLETE · NEXT: REALM 09 — ANGLO–SIKH: THE EXPANDING EMPIRE MAP
Proceed to REALM 09 → ANGLO–SIKH