Peshwas (1714-1818)

Peshwas ( - ) The Peshwa was one of the Ashta Pradhan of Shivaji. This office was not a hereditary one. As the power and prestige of the king declined, the Peshwas rose to prominence. The genius of Balaji Vishwanath ( - ) made the office of the Peshwa supreme and hereditary. The Peshwas virtually controlled the whole administration, usurping the powers of the king. They were also recognized as the religious head of the state. Central Secretariat The centre of the Maratha administration was the Peshwa Secretariat at Poona. It dealt with the revenues and expenditure of all the districts, the accounts submitted by the village and district officials. The pay and rights of all grades of public servants and the budgets under civil, military and religious heads were also handled. The daily register recorded all revenues, all grants and the payments received from foreign territories. Provinces Provinces under the Peshwas were of various sizes. Larger provinces were under the provincial governors called Sar-subahdars . The divisions in the provinces were termed Subahs and Pranths . The Mamlatdar and Kamavistar were Peshwa’s representatives in XI History - Lesson - - The Marathas The administration of justice also earned some income. A fee of % was charged on money bonds. Fines were collected from persons suspected or found guilty of adultery. Brahmins were exempted from duty on things imported for their own use. Police System Watchmen, generally the Mahars, were employed in every village. But whenever crime was on the rise, government sent forces from the irregular infantry to control crimes. The residents of the disturbed area had to pay an additional house tax to meet the expenditure arising out of maintaining these armed forces. Baji Rao II appointed additional police officers to detect and seize offenders. In the urban areas, magisterial and police powers were given to the Kotwal. Their additional duties were to monitor the prices, take a census of the inhabitants, conduct trials on civil cases, supply labour to the government and levy fees from the professional duties given to the Nagarka or police superintendent. Judicial System The