British expansion in Maratha territories was a gradual process that culminated in:
The defeat of the Maratha Confederacy and the establishment of British paramountcy in western and central India by 1818.
The expansion occurred mainly through:
Anglo-Maratha Wars + Subsidiary Alliance + Treaties + Political intervention + Military conquest.
The Maratha Confederacy consisted of several powerful houses:
The Peshwa was:
The nominal head of the Confederacy.
However, the major chiefs increasingly:
Pursued independent political interests.
The British had already established strong bases in:
The Bombay Presidency was particularly important for:
British expansion into western India and Maratha territories.
The British aimed to:
The Maratha Confederacy was weakened by:
These divisions provided:
Opportunities for British intervention.
The First Anglo-Maratha War was fought during:
1775–1782.
The immediate issue was:
The succession dispute over the position of Peshwa.
After the assassination of:
Narayan Rao in 1773,
Raghunath Rao claimed:
The position of Peshwa.
He sought:
British military support.
Raghunath Rao entered into:
Treaty of Surat, 1775.
The British agreed to:
Support Raghunath Rao.
In return, they expected:
The Treaty of Surat brought:
The British directly into Maratha internal politics.
This marked:
The beginning of the First Anglo-Maratha War.
The British later concluded:
Treaty of Purandar, 1776.
Madhavrao II was recognised as:
Peshwa.
Raghunath Rao received:
A pension.
In:
1779,
Maratha forces defeated the British at:
Battle of Wadgaon.
The British were forced to:
Negotiate under difficult conditions.
The First Anglo-Maratha War ended with:
Treaty of Salbai, 1782.
The treaty:
The treaty gave:
Temporary peace between the British and Marathas.
It also allowed the British to:
Concentrate on Mysore and other strategic challenges.
The Second Anglo-Maratha War took place during:
1803–1805.
The immediate background was:
Internal conflict among Maratha chiefs.
A major conflict developed between:
Yashwantrao Holkar
and:
Daulat Rao Scindia.
Their rivalry weakened:
Maratha political unity.
In:
1802,
Holkar defeated the combined forces of:
Scindia and the Peshwa.
Peshwa:
Baji Rao II
fled from Pune.
Baji Rao II sought British assistance and signed:
Treaty of Bassein, 1802.
This was:
A major turning point in British expansion over Maratha territories.
The Peshwa accepted:
The Treaty of Bassein effectively brought:
The Peshwa under the British Subsidiary Alliance system.
The Peshwa therefore lost:
Much of his independent political authority.
Scindia and Bhonsle opposed:
The Treaty of Bassein.
They viewed it as:
A threat to Maratha independence.
The British launched simultaneous campaigns:
In the Deccan and northern India.
Important British commanders included:
The British defeated Maratha forces at:
Battle of Assaye, 1803.
Commander:
Arthur Wellesley.
The victory strengthened:
British control in the Deccan.
Arthur Wellesley defeated:
Bhonsle's forces
at:
Battle of Argaon, 1803.
Lord Lake defeated:
Scindia's forces
at:
Battle of Laswari, 1803.
This strengthened British influence in:
Northern and central India.
Following their defeats:
Scindia and Bhonsle accepted separate settlements with the British.
They surrendered:
Yashwantrao Holkar continued:
Resistance against British expansion.
He was one of the strongest Maratha leaders to:
Resist British domination.
The conflict eventually ended with:
Treaty of Rajghat, 1805.
Holkar retained:
Some degree of independence.
However:
Maratha power had been substantially weakened.
The British gained:
The Third Anglo-Maratha War took place during:
1817–1818.
It resulted in:
The final destruction of the Maratha Confederacy as an independent political force.
By 1817:
The Maratha Confederacy had become increasingly weakened.
The Peshwa:
Baji Rao II
attempted to:
Recover his political independence from British control.
Lord Hastings pursued:
A policy of establishing British paramountcy.
The British also sought to:
Suppress the Pindaris.
The British mobilised:
Large military forces against the Pindaris.
This mobilisation created:
A major military presence in central India.
The Maratha chiefs feared:
Permanent British expansion.
Baji Rao II attempted:
To break free from British control.
He attacked:
The British Residency at Pune in 1817.
The British defeated:
Peshwa's forces
at:
Battle of Kirkee, 1817.
British forces defeated:
Holkar's army
at:
Battle of Mahidpur, 1817.
The conflict also included:
Battle of Koregaon, 1818.
It became:
A notable engagement during the final Maratha resistance.
By:
1818,
the major Maratha powers had been:
Defeated, subordinated or brought under British control.
The British:
Abolished the office of Peshwa.
Baji Rao II was:
Pensioned and removed from political power.
The British acquired:
Not all Maratha territories were directly annexed.
Several states survived as:
Princely states under British paramountcy.
These included important Maratha houses such as:
Their rulers retained:
Limited internal authority.
But they lost:
Independent foreign relations.
British territorial expansion significantly strengthened:
Bombay Presidency.
It became:
A major centre of British administration and commerce in western India.
The defeat of Maratha power allowed the British to:
Expand political influence throughout central India.
This helped create:
A connected British political zone between northern, western and southern territories.
The British repeatedly used:
Political divisions + Treaties + Military force + Alliances.
The basic strategy was:
Divide → Isolate → Intervene → Defeat → Impose treaty → Expand.
The Treaty of Bassein demonstrated:
How the Subsidiary Alliance could convert a nominally independent ruler into a British-dependent ally.
The system gave Britain:
The Company possessed:
Large financial resources derived particularly from Bengal.
These resources helped finance:
British forces benefited from:
The Marathas were particularly strong in:
Cavalry warfare.
They possessed:
Their major weaknesses included:
The Treaty of Bassein is considered:
A major turning point in British expansion in western India.
It:
The year:
1818
marked:
The end of the Maratha Confederacy as a major independent political force.
The British emerged as:
The paramount power over most of India.
After 1818:
No major Indian power remained capable of challenging British supremacy across large parts of the subcontinent.
The political order shifted towards:
British paramountcy + Princely states.
The defeat of the Marathas was crucial for:
The establishment of British paramountcy.
The British now possessed:
British expansion followed a broader pattern:
Bengal → Mysore → Maratha territories → Paramountcy.
The acquisition of:
Diwani rights in 1765
provided the Company with:
Revenue resources for military expansion.
The defeat of Mysore in:
1799
removed:
A major military obstacle in South India.
The defeat of the Marathas in:
1818
removed:
The last major Indian political power capable of challenging British supremacy over large parts of India.
British expansion in Maratha territories:
Treaty of Bassein ended the First Anglo-Maratha War.
❌ Incorrect.
Treaty of Bassein:
1802 → Background to Second Anglo-Maratha War.
First War ended with:
Treaty of Salbai, 1782.
Treaty of Salbai brought the Peshwa under British protection.
❌ Incorrect.
The treaty that subordinated the Peshwa to British protection was:
Treaty of Bassein, 1802.
All Maratha states were annexed by the British in 1818.
❌ Incorrect.
Several Maratha states survived as:
Princely states under British paramountcy.
The British defeated the Marathas in a single war.
❌ Incorrect.
British expansion occurred through:
Three Anglo-Maratha Wars over several decades.
British victory was based only on military superiority.
❌ Incorrect.
British success depended on:
Diplomacy + Alliances + Financial resources + Military power + Exploitation of internal rivalries.
British expansion in Maratha territories demonstrates:
How the British transformed internal political divisions into opportunities for territorial expansion.
The decisive combination was:
Political fragmentation + Subsidiary Alliance + Financial resources + Military force.
British expansion in Maratha territories was a gradual process culminating in the defeat of the Maratha Confederacy in 1818. It involved political intervention, military campaigns, diplomatic treaties and the Subsidiary Alliance system.
The expansion into Maratha territories completed a major stage of British territorial consolidation. By 1818, the Company had transformed itself from a powerful regional actor into:
The paramount political power over most of India.
