Shivaji: The Grand Rebel

by Dennis Kincaid

In contrast to the splendour of Shivaji’s court on ceremonial occasions, the Maratha armies presented a disappointing spectacle. Fryer summed them up roundly as “Starved Rascals, accustomed to Fare Hard, Journey Fast and take little Pleasure.” In fact, “they looked like our old Britains, half naked, and as Fierce.” But the same critic admitted their superiority in some respects to the Mussulman armies in being “of a rougher Temper, more Hardy and less addicted to the soft vanities of Musick, Pomp or Stateliness.” Unlike the soldiers of the Mogul armies they were subject to severe discipline, disobedience often entailing death. No women were allowed into the camp, nor was the wife or mistress of any soldier permitted to follow the armies on campaign. This wholesome provision, unprecedented in that age in Asia or (save for the New Model) in Europe, gave to Shivaji’s forces a mobility hitherto unknown in Indian warfare.