Maratha Guerrilla Tactics

Timeline

1. 1650–1659Pratapgad · MaharashtraShivaji assembled lightly equipped cavalry and infantry in the Pune–Western Ghats area, using his familiarity with hill-fort roads to launch ambushes and night raids against Bijapur's frontier commanders. In 1659 at Pratapgad he lured and annihilated Afzal Khan, demonstrating that his warfare was not banditry but organized raiding based on fortresses.
2. 1660–1674Surat and the western Deccan · IndiaFacing Bijapur and Mughal sieges and pacification campaigns, Shivaji avoided pitched battles, instead scorching the earth, cutting grain routes, and launching long-range raids: he sacked Surat twice, in 1664 and 1670, showing that light cavalry could penetrate the empire's revenue network. In 1674 he was crowned Chhatrapati at Raigad, elevating the guerrilla-acquired 'Swarajya' into a kingdom with court ceremonial and fort administration, though the core of his field warfare remained raiding rather than linear confrontation.
3. 1680–1700Deccan Plateau · DeccanAfter Shivaji's death, Sambhaji and later Rajaram continued resisting Aurangzeb's personal campaigns with dispersed cavalry and hill forts. The Mughals could capture individual forts but could not force the Marathas into a decisive battle; their supply lines were under constant harassment and the war became one of attrition. By 1700, Ganimi Kava had evolved from one leader's tactics into the collective military tradition of the Maratha confederacy.