The Grea t Esca pe

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Do you think that with ca. lmn ess and patience
. , ,·t 1·s poss ,'bl· e to overcome the
toughest of problems? Discuss in class . ep

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Let's Read

Let's now read the st0 ry of a brave Maratha warrior who overcame a tough situation.

The great Maratha king Shivajiraje Bhonsle, better known as

Chhatrapa ti Shivaj i Maharaj , was born on 19 February 1630 in
the hill fort of Shivneri in Maharashtra.

He posed a great threat to the Mughals who dominated

northern India and the Nizams who ruled over southern India.
The Mughals were constantly trying to suppress Shivaj i,
however the Maratha chieftain had inflicted many defeats
on them. Enraged by the defeats, Aurangzeb , the Mughal
emperor sent a large army under the command of Raja Jai
Singh of Jaipur. Although the Maratha garriso n put up a stiff
resistance , the Mughals laid siege on many of the forts. At last,
Shivaji decided to agree to a truce. And to ratify the truce, Shivaji
had to meet Aurangzeb at Agra.
Sbivaj i hesitated to go to Agra but Jai Singh assured him of royal treatment and
personal safety, so Shivaji proceeded to Agra with his son, Sambhaji and a contingen t
of about four thousand men.

threat: a person or thing likely to cause damage or danger 111f11L1cL1. forced someone to experience
something very unpleasant enraged caused someone to become very angry qdr 1:,on a group of
soldiers living in or defending a town or building I e!::>I~tar1Le· the act of fighting against something that 1s
attacking you truce: an agreement to stop fighting for a period of time ratit'7•. to make an agreement
official contingent: a group of people representing an organisation or a part of a military force
 . .. , t'tk~n to the court but hA
<.;h1 vap w,15 ' "'
11 May J 666 . )i·cd by Aurangzeb.
Shivaji reached Agra on . . ' , WU', 1gn< Tr
.J b,1 Jn Smgh ~ son,
and was we lcomco J c. At
Ram Singh. - al1

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He was made to stand
among the courtiers.
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Shivaji was furious with this dishonour Shivaji and has son were arrested and
and he walked out of the royal court. kept captive in the royal guest house.

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 ith er did
Tlu·ee mo nth s pa sse d by an d ne So, on e day, Shivaji feigned sic
kness
wa s he
Aurangz eb me et Sh iva ji, no r and do cto rs we re su mm oned to
alJowed to lea ve Ag ra.
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Shivaji decided to
escape from Agra. IL l t

t he wa s fit. To pr ofe ss his thanks to the gods Shivaji

In a few days, he anno un ce d tha ts to ho ly men and the poor.
'
sir e to dis tri bu te sw ee
expressed his de
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~ day, two large baskets of sweets 1,·

ery
Shivaji 's request wa
of the
s
gu
acce
est
pte
ho
d
us
an
e
d
to
ev
be distributed among the poor.
u
We re se at out
admit openly
hav e a pa rtic ula r feeling, problem profess: declare or
feigned: pretended to
The baskets were checked b.:::pala~e guards e / ~

~ ide \ .,.,, Sir, the baskets

t?-te basket0 ,l coVttaiVt sweets to be
distributed to the
poor o.Vtd ho{ y Me Vt.
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When it became a routine, they let it pass unchecked.

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Shivaji was wait ing for th.1s oppo rtu .
th e guest hou se in the two b ask ets · ntty. One day ,
Sh'ivaJ..I and his son
· escaped from

Shivaji escaped to Mat hura and '

.
1n the disguise of a holy man,
reached Raigad via Prayag,
Bundelkhand and Golconda
two months later. The n, he
reorganised his arm y and his
policies, and set out to win back
the forts and territories he had
lost. On 6 June 1674, he was
crowned as the Chhatrapati.

their true appearance

disguise: some thing that someone wears to hide

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