The Anglo-Maratha Wars (1775 to 1818)

The three Anglo-Maratha Wars ended the Maratha confederacy, and after the Third (1817 to 1818) the British became the paramount power in India.

The First Anglo-Maratha War (1775 to 1782)

• Cause: After Narayan Rao was murdered (1773), his uncle Raghunath Rao (Raghoba) claimed the Peshwaship and sought British help. The Bombay Council signed the Treaty of Surat (1775) with Raghoba. The Calcutta Council later cancelled it and signed the Treaty of Purandar (1776) with the Poona government.
• War: The British were defeated at Wadgaon (1779) by Mahadji Sindhia and signed the Convention of Wadgaon. Warren Hastings sent armies, and Goddard and Popham took Ahmedabad and Gwalior.
• Treaty of Salbai (17 May 1782): Mahadji Sindhia acted as mediator. The British kept Salsette, Madhav Rao II was recognised as Peshwa, Raghunath Rao got a pension, and the Marathas promised to make Haidar Ali return captured British territory. The treaty brought 20 years of peace.

The Second Anglo-Maratha War (1803 to 1805)

• Cause: Quarrels among Maratha chiefs. Yashwantrao Holkar defeated the Peshwa and Sindhia at Poona (October 1802). Baji Rao II fled and signed the Treaty of Bassein (31 December 1802), accepting a Subsidiary Alliance. The other chiefs saw this as a surrender of independence.
• War: Arthur Wellesley won at Assaye (23 September 1803) and Argaon, and General Lake won at Delhi (September 1803) and Laswari (November 1803).
• Treaties: Deogaon (1803) with the Bhonsle of Nagpur (Cuttack and Balasore ceded) and Surji-Anjangaon (1803) with Sindhia. Holkar later fought the British for a time (1804 to 1805) and made peace by the Treaty of Rajpurghat (1805).
• Wellesley was recalled in 1805 for his expensive wars.

The Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817 to 1818)

• Cause: Lord Hastings (Governor-General 1813 to 1823) wanted to end the Pindari raids and the Maratha chiefs' independence. The Peshwa's forced Treaty of Poona (June 1817) made him give up leadership of the Maratha confederacy and cede territory.
• War: The Peshwa attacked the British Residency at Poona but lost at Kirkee (November 1817). The Bhonsle was defeated at Sitabuldi (November 1817) and the Holkar at Mahidpur (December 1817). The Battle of Koregaon (1 January 1818) is remembered for the courage of a small British force with many Mahar soldiers.
• Result: Baji Rao II surrendered (June 1818) and was pensioned off at Bithur (near Kanpur). The Peshwaship was abolished and most Peshwa lands formed part of the Bombay Presidency under Mountstuart Elphinstone. A small state of Satara was given to a descendant of Shivaji. The Pindaris were wiped out, and the Rajput states accepted British protection.

Why the Marathas lost

1. No unity: the Peshwa, Sindhia, Holkar, Bhonsle and Gaekwad competed with each other.
2. Weak leaders after Nana Phadnavis (died 1800) and Mahadji Sindhia (died 1794).
3. Old military methods, mixed armies, and no steady revenue.
4. Poor intelligence and diplomacy, compared with the British.
5. Weak economy, based on raids (chauth) and not on a steady administration.