In the first half of the seventeenth century, an epoch making personality emerged in Maharashtra- Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. He established Swaraj by challenging the unjust ruling powers here.

Most of people lived in villages. A village was also called mauja. The chief of the village was the Patil. He used to try to bring maximum land under cultivation. When there was any dispute in the village, the Patil resolved it and made peace.

The Deshpande was the chief of all Kulkarnies in the Pargana. The Deshpande did all at the Pargana level, the work that Kulkarni did at the village level.

A great famine occured in Maharashtra in 1630 CE. People were greatly distressed due to this famine. People were ready to sell themselves for a piece of Bhakri, but there was nobody to buy them.

In initial days the group of villages were known as Pargana. The headquarter of Pargana was called Kasba. And the village smaller than a Kasba was called Mauja.

There was usually a market adjacent to a Kasba which is known as peth. The Shete and Mahajan were the watandars of the peth. The setting up of a peth was the job of the Shete and the Mahajan. For that, they received some land from the government and some rights from the villagers. The Mahajan maintained the acconts of the Peth.

In Maharashtra, the tradition of Saints which began with Sant Dnyaneshwar and Saint Namdeo was carried on by Sants coming from various strata of the society. People of all strata society were part of Saint tradition.

The Deshmukh was the chief of Patils in a Pargana. The Deshmukh did at the Pargana level what the Patil did at the village level.

The chief of village was the Patil. He used to try to bring maximum land under cultivation. When there was any dispute in the village, the Patil resolved it and made peace. A Kulkarni helped the Patil in his work. The Kulkarni kept the record of the revenue that was collected.

Many villages together made a Pargana, But the numer of villages was not the same in all Pargana. The Pune Pargana was a big Pargana, It consisted of 290 villages. There was 64 villages in the Chakan Pargana. The Shirwal Pargana was small, it had only 40 villages.

Shaistakhan set up his camp at Lal Mahal in Pune where Shivaji Maharaj had lived his childhood. Khan sent his forces in the regions around Pune. These forces looted the people.

Shivaji Maharaj was born at the Shivneri fort near JUnnar in Pune district on the day of Phalgun Vadya Tritiya in the Shaka year 1551, that is on 19 February 1630.

The Marathas asserted their political importance during 700 and 1750 CE period. Chatrapati Shivaji directly challenged the Mughal supremacy.

Shivaji started his conquest in 1646 A.D by conquering the fort of Torna.
In 1646 due to serious illness of the Sultan of Bijapur and the consequent disorders in his kingdom gave Shivaji much desired opportunity and he captured the fort of Torna.

Shahjiraje the father of Shivaji Maharaj was a pre-eminent Sardar in the Deccan. He himself aspired to establish Swaraj by ousting the powers of foreign people. That is why, he is known as Swaraj visionary.