Raja Shivaji (

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India **Marathi people (Uttar Pradesh), the Marathi people in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Mar ...

: तंजावरचे शिवाजी) (

fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

17 March 1832 – 29 October 1855) of the

Bhonsle The Bhonsle (or Bhonsale, Bhosale, Bhosle) are a prominent group within the Maratha clan system of India. History Earliest members The earliest accepted members of the Bhonsles are Mudhoji Bhonsle and his kin Rupaji Bhonsle, who were the vi ...

dynasty of

Thanjavur Thanjavur (), also known as Thanjai, previously known as Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 12th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of southern Indian religion, art ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, was the son of Raja Serfoji II and ruled the fortress of Thanjavur and its surroundings from 1832 to 1855. He was the last Raja of Thanjavur known to wield any authority. Raja Shivaji was the only surviving son of Serfoji II when the latter died in 1832. The missionary Heber describes the young Shivaji as a 'pale and sickly child'. However, his health seemed to have got better as he grew up for he is known for his physical and mental attainments. He contributed to the expansion of the

Saraswathi Mahal Library Saraswathi Mahal Library, also called Thanjavur Maharaja Serfoji's Saraswathi Mahal Library is a library located in Thanjavur (Tanjore), Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of the oldest subsisting libraries in Asia established during 16th century by ...

and gave many useful books. One Varahappaiyar prepared the catalogue for all the manuscripts in the library.

'Arrest' of the Kanchi Mutt

But Shivaji is mostly known for the incident related to the 'arrest' of the Kanchi mutt. The

earrings Earrings are jewelry that can be worn on one's ears. Earrings are commonly worn in a piercing in the earlobe or another external part of the ear, or by some other means, such as stickers or clip-ons. Earrings have been worn across multiple ci ...

(tatankas) of the goddess Akhilandeswari in the Jambukeshwarar Temple were replaced with new ones in 1843–44. Therefore, the Kanchi mutt, then based in

Kumbakonam Kumbakonam (formerly spelt as Coombaconum or Combaconum), or Kudanthai, is a city municipal corporation in the Thanjavur district in the States of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located from Thanjavur and from Chennai and is the hea ...

, shifted to

Trichy Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of T ...

with all its retinue in order to conduct a Tatanka-Pratishta ceremony for consecration of the earrings. However a lawsuit delayed the proceedings and the court case along with the ceremonies that followed incurred such heavy debts on the part of the Mutt that they were unable to return to Kumbakonam. At this juncture, the administrator-in-charge of the ceremonies, a young

Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

, went to the court of Shivaji and requested that the retinue be allowed to stop at

to receive donations from the people. However the Raja staunchly refused. Nevertheless, as the palanquin of the

Shankaracharya Shankaracharya (, , " Shankara-''acharya''") is a religious title used by the heads of amnaya monasteries called mathas in the Advaita Vedanta tradition of Hinduism. The title derives from Adi Shankara; teachers from the successive line of te ...

and his retinue were making their way to Kumbakonam, they were stopped on the banks of the

Cauvery The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery) is a major river flowing across Southern India. It is the third largest river in the region after Godavari and Krishna. The catchment area of the Kaveri basin is estimated to be and encompasses the states o ...

Thiruvaiyaru Thiruvaiyaru (also spelled as Tiruvaiyaru or Tiruvayyaru) is a Municipality in Thanjavur District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Etymology Thiruvaiyaru means ''Five Rivers around the city''. The Five Rivers are Vadavaar, Vennaar, Vetta ...

by the Raja's

sepoys ''Sepoy'' () is a term related to ''sipahi'', denoting professional Indian infantrymen, traditionally armed with a musket, in the armies of the Mughal Empire and the Maratha. In the 18th century, the French East India Company and its Europ ...

, who surrounded them and respectfully escorted them into the city of Thanjavur. At Thanjavur, they were accorded a royal reception by Shivaji and the citizens of Thanjavur. It was later said that the Raja had had a dream a few nights before in which

Lord Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hinduism. Shiva is known as ''The Destroyer' ...

had appeared and ordered him to render due honors to the Mutt. This incident is often referred to as the 'Arrest' of the Kanchi Mutt. Raja Shivaji died on 29 October 1855 after a reign of 22 years. On the death of Shivaji, due to the absence of a legitimate

heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offi ...

to the throne, the kingdom was annexed by the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

as per the Doctrine of lapse.

References

Raja Shivaji in Saraswathi Mahal Library website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shivaji of Thanjavur 1855 deaths Rajas of Thanjavur Year of birth unknown 1832 births People from Tamil Nadu

'Arrest' of the Kanchi Mutt

See also

References