Shivaji and His Times c14.s1.5

c14.s1.5

This long check by a woman, before a petty mud-fort, greatly lowered Shivaji's prestige. As the English merchants of Rajapur wrote on 28th February, 1678: "He is at present besieging a fort where, by relation of their own people come from him, he has suffered more disgrace than ever he did from all power of the Mughal or the Deccans (=Bijapuris), and he who hath conquered so many kingdoms is not able to reduce this woman desai!" (F. R. Surat, 107.)