The Military System of the Marathas, with a Brief Account of Their Maritime Activities c7.10

c7.10

Spain had recourse to a somewhat analogous arrangement when adventurers like Cortés and Pizzaro were authorised to equip military expeditions on their own account. The King was occupied with matters nearer home and had neither the time nor the means to undertake distant conquests and private enterprise was encouraged where the State was unwilling to risk men and money on expeditions of doubtful character. The leaders of such expeditions naturally demanded dictatorial powers and were rewarded with rich grants in the newly conquered lands. The State profited without running any risk. But here the Spanish analogy ends; for the extraordinary authority and special powers conceded to the first ‘conquistadores’