New History of the Marathas v1.c10.34

v1.c10.34

The affairs of the Surves of Shringārpur used to be administered by another chief named Wāghoji Shirke (of Kutre) who was won over by Shivaji and gave his daughter Soyra Bai in marriage to the young hero. This was his second wife, taken no doubt for political motives in order to win the two great ancient Kshatriya families, the Surves and the Shirkes.² Thus the two powerful chiefs of south Konkan, the Shirkes of Kutre and the Surves of Shringārpur, were won over by Shivaji to his service, so that the whole west coast from Bassein to Malwan together with the inland territory stretching up to the Sahyadris came into Shivaji’s possession. The lands east of the Sahyadri range were already in his possession from Junnar to fort Rangna, so that we now get a rough idea of the way in which Shivaji steadily consolidated his possessions,