Administrative System of the Marathas c18.s2.1

c18.s2.1

Next in importance to the Maratha records are the published and unpublished English records. To the unpublished English papers in the Imperial Records Department I can here make only a passing reference. We get there a detailed account of the Peshwa's revenue compiled by no less a personage than Elphinstone about four years before the final collapse of the Peshwa's powers. We may sometimes learn a good deal about the popular superstitions of the times from the confidential reports of the English diplomats. But for our purpose the most important document is Elphinstone's *Report on the Territories recently conquered from the Paishwa*. This is a veritable mine of information and as Elphinstone had personal knowledge of the Maratha administration, his views command our greatest respect. But unfortunately he saw the Peshwa's government at its worst and probably all his remarks were not equally applicable to the better days of Nana Fadnavis and Madhava Rao I. Jenkins's *Report on the Territories of the Rajah of Nagpore* is an official document of great interest and equally interesting is the second volume of Malcolm's *Central India*. Wellington's and Wellesley's published despatches throw only occasional sidelight on the administrative system of the Marathas and so do the works of those English travellers and officials who had occasion to pass through the Maratha country. Fitzclarence's *A Journey through India*, Broughthon's *Letters written in a Maratha Camp*, Moor's *A Narrative of the Operations of Capt. Little's Detachment* and Valentia's *Voyages and Travels* may be mentioned in this connection, but it is impossible to mention here all works of this nature. Forbes's *Oriental Memoirs*, however, is too important to be silently passed over. He spent the major part of his life in Western India and was a keen observer of human affairs. The Maratha records generally lay down the principles, but they do not always inform us to what extent these principles were respected in practice. This deficiency is made up by the accounts of such foreign observers as Moor and Forbes, although we have to make some allowance for their obvious bias and prejudice. For the military organisation of the Marathas we get invaluable information from such English writers as Thorn, Blacker, Prinsep, Compton and Lewis Ferdinand Smith, while a very interesting account of the Angria's navy has been supplied by Clement Dunning, whose *History of the Indian Wars* was published as early as 1737. Space does not permit me to enter into a critical examination of these works here and I can only barely mention such well-known works as Grant Duff's *History of the Mahrattas*, Forrest's *Selections from Statepapers* and Ranade's *Introduction to the Satara Rajas' and Peshwas' Diaries*.