- The Battle of Kharda took place on 11 March 1795 between the Maratha
Empire and the Nizam of Hyderabad. The Marathas had a decisive victory. - It is notable because it was the last battle in which the Maratha Confederacy
fought as one. - The Battle of Kharda took place at Kharda which currently lies in
Ahmednagar District in the state of Maharashtra. - The Marathas and the Nizam of Hyderabad had united albeit briefly in their
war against Mysore’s Tipu Sultan. But they had longstanding issues of
Chauth and Sardeshmukhi between them (these were types of taxes collected
by the Maratha Empire). - In 1791, the Marathas have two envoys at the Nizam’s court. They were
Govindrao Pingle and Govindrao Kale. The Marathas led by Nana Phadnavis
pushed for their demands through these envoys. The Nizam gave his word to
talk about it once the war with Tipu Sultan had culminated. - Once the negotiations started, the Nizam did a U-turn and suggested that the
Marathas owed him 2.5 crore rupees. The Nizam had upgraded his army
from 2 battalions to 23 battalions. This infuriated the Marathas. - Talks continued till 1794 and by then both sides realised the futility of talks.
Neither side budged from their demands. - The Maratha Confederacy was led by Sawai Madhavrao Peshwa and Nana
Phadnavis. The entire Maratha Confederacy joined in and fought together.
The Peshwa was supported by the Holkars, the Shindes, the Gaekwads, and
the Bhonsales. Together they had about 100000 troops and 100 guns. - The Nizam’s army marched onwards from Bidar in January 1795. The battle
ensued near the Fort at Kharda. The Nizam was routed and had to retreat to
the Kharda Fort. The Marathas laid siege to the fort and the Nizam
surrendered after holding out for 17 days. - Hyderabad had to surrender its minister as a prisoner. The Nizam also ceded
many territories to the Marathas.
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