Shivaji and His Times c12.s2.1

c12.s2.1

Shivaji's navy had its humble origin in his early conquest of the Thana district. Already in 1659 his first few war-vessels, launched on the creeks near Kalian, Bhivandi and Panvel, are found plying the sea and provoking the alarm and opposition of the Portuguese. With the extension of his power along the entire west coast down to the frontier of Goa, the rapid increase of his navy became not only necessary but also very profitable. With so many naval bases of supply and points of shelter and embarkation in his hands, the entire Malabar coast with its immense riches lay at his mercy. He knew that without naval supremacy his position even as a land power would be precarious. Therefore, as his courtier Sabhasad puts it, "The Rajah put the saddle on the ocean."