New History of the Marathas v1.c16.81

v1.c16.81

"The son of a powerful chief Shivaji had begun life as a daring and artful captain of banditti, had ripened into a skilful general and an able statesman and left a character which has never since been equalled or approached by any of his countrymen....It required a genius like his to avail himself as he did of the mistakes of Aurangazeb by kindling a zeal for religion and through that, a national spirit among the Marathas. It was by these feelings that his government was upheld after it passed into feeble hands and was kept together, in spite of numerous internal disorders until it had established its supremacy over the greater part of India."