Question

Shivaji learned skills of war from:
A. Tanaji Malusare
B. Raghunath Rao
C. Dadaji Kondadev
D. Balaji Rao

Answer 1

Hint: He was the administrator of the Pune jagir and Kondana Fort. He was regarded as Shivaji’s guardian. Weapons that were used to train included muskets, swords, daggers, bows and arrows etc. Their army was mostly land-based.

Complete answer: The Marathas had come to power with the call for a Hindavi kingdom in the 17th century. Their territory was originally limited to the western Deccan plateau, which is present-day Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Option A . Tanaji Malusare belonged to the Koli caste and was Shivaji’s military assistant. His triumphs in war (especially Battle of Sinhagad) had compelled Tulsidas, the revered poet, to write about him.
Option B. Raghunath Rao Bhat was the 11th Peshwa for a year, 1773-1774. He had successful conquests as he jailed the Mughal Emperor Ahmad Shah Bahadur, and also made Alamgir II his puppet ruler.
option C Dadaji Kondadev. He had been appointed in his jagirdari (similar to a landlord) position by Shahaji, a general and noble under the Adilshahi sultanate of Bijapur, who Shivaji went on to fight as they were puppets of the Mughal rule.
Option D. Balaji Rao, also known as Nana Saheb, was the 8th Peshwa from 1740 to 1761 and was the son of Peshwa Bajirao I. His reign, however, saw the duties of the Peshwa become more financial in nature instead of military, and the Chattrapati’s significance was also reduced to symbolism.
Therefore, option C is correct.

Note: The Maratha warrior king was guided by Kondadev, who made the suggestion to his mother to teach him the skill of sword fighting. A notable contribution of the Marathas was their practice of guerilla warfare.