Jadunath Sarkar

“ Smarting under his master's censure, he threw generalship to the winds, and rushed upon Bahlol followed by only six horsemen, the rest of his army hanging back from the mad charge. The gallant seven were cut down by the swarm of foes, and much havoc was done among the Marathas who were disheartened by the fall of their leader; "a river of blood flowed." Shivaji greatly mourned the death of Pratap Rao and repented of his angry letter. The dead general's relatives and dependents were well provided for, and his daughter was married to Raja Ram, the favourite son of the king. ”

“ Flying columns ravage Shivaji's villages.
The possession of Vajragarh was the stepping-stone to the capture of Purandar, or in Jai Singh's own language, "the key that would unlock Purandar." Dilir Khan now turned to the latter fort, while Jai Singh organised raids into the Maratha country, in order, as he wrote to the Emperor, to convince Shiva and the Sultan of Bijapur that the Mughal army was large enough to be able to spare troops from the siege, and also to prevent any concentration of forces round Shivaji by creating constant terror and disturbance in various parts of his kingdom. ”

“ As Mr. Gerald Aungier, the English President of Bombay, wrote on 16th Sep. 1673, "Shivaji bears himself up manfully against all his enemies...... and though it is probable that the Mughal's army may fall into his country this year and Bahlol Khan on the other side, yet neither of them can stay long for want of provisions, and his flying army will constantly keep them in alarm, nor is it either their design to destroy Shivaji totally, for the Umarahs maintain a politic war to their own profit at the king's charge, and never intend to prosecute it violently so as to end it." (F.R. Surat, 106.) ”

“ And, again, on 26th November, "Deccan [i.e., Bijapur] and all the South coast [i.e., Kanara] are all embroiled in civil wars,... and Shivaji reigns victoriously and uncontrolled, that he is a terror to all the kings and princes round about, daily increasing in strength... He is very nimble and active; imposing strange labour upon himself that he may endure hardship, and also exercises his chiefest men that he flies to and fro with incredible dexterity." (Surat to Co., F.R. Surat 86.) ”

“ Shaista Khan, after throwing up defensive earth- works round the positions taken up by the four divisions of his army, began to run trenches towards the fort- walls, construct raised platforms at suitable points, and mount on them large pieces of artillery brought from the Mughal forts in the Deccan. Though the heavy showers of the rainy season hampered his work and the defenders kept up a galling fire, he pressed the siege vigorously. ”

“ Rich men found shelter in the fort by bribing its commandant. Later in the day a courier brought the intelligence that Shivaji had come still nearer, and at night it was learnt that he had halted only five miles from Surat. Inayet Khan, the governor of the town — who was quite distinct from the commandant of the fort, — had sent out an agent to treat with Shiva for terms of ransom. But when he heard that the Maratha chief had detained the messenger and was approaching with all speed, he himself fled to the fort, leaving the town at the enemy's mercy. ”

“ But the real loss of Surat was not to be estimated by the booty which the Marathas carried off. The trade of this, the richest port of India, was practically destroyed. For several years after Shivaji's withdrawal from it, the town used to throb with panic every now and then, whenever any Maratha force came within a few days' march of it, or even at false alarms of their coming. On every such occasion the merchants would quickly remove their goods to ships, the citizens would flee to the villages, and the Europeans would hasten to Swally. ”

“ This young man had entered the imperial army at Jai Singh's recommendation, but he was discontented with what he considered the inadequate reward of his services in the Mughal invasion of the Gond country. So, he left the Mughal camp on the plea of hunting and made an adventurous journey with his wife tor Maharashtra by obscure and roundabout paths. He offered to serve under Shiva against the Emperor. Shivaji received him with honour, praised his manly spirit, but sent him back with the advice to rise against Aurangzib in Bundelkhand, saying, "Illustrious chief ! conquer and subdue your foes. ”

“ From the neighbourhood of Ramnagar, Moro Trimbak Pingle sent three successive letters to the governor and leading traders of Surat demanding four lakhs of Rupees as blackmail, and threatening a visit to the city in the case of their refusal. The third of these epistles was very peremptory in tone; Shivaji wrote, "I demand for the third time, which I declare shall be the last, the chauth or quarter part of the king's revenue under your Government. As your Emperor has forced me to keep an army for the defence of my people and country, that army must be paid by his subjects. ”

“ Thus, Dilir's enemies found a ready shelter with Muazzam. After sending Dilir Khan away to Bidar, the Prince freely indulged his natural love of hunting and witnessing animal combats, and no attempt was made to crush Shivaji.
But even if the viceroy of the Deccan had been a man of greater spirit and enterprise, it would have been impossible for him for some years from this time to get adequate men and money for an attempt to crush Shivaji. The resources of the empire had to be concentrated elsewhere, to meet more pressing dangers. ”