A Short Historical Narrative of the Rise and Rapid Advancement of the Mahrattah State

James Kerr, a captain in the East India Company, translated this Persian text on the history of the Marathas in India. Published in 1782, it was one of the first English works to appear on the subject. Its content was compiled for Kerr by a Hindustani using Persian manuscripts and oral tradition. The Marathas had replaced the Mughal emperors as controllers of a large part of the sub-continent by the beginning of the eighteenth century, and it was inevitable that they would come into conflict with the East India Company. At the time of publication, the first of the three Anglo–Maratha wars had just ended, and interest in Indian affairs was great. Kerr denies any claim to be a historian, or to offer an analysis of his sources. The narrative outlines the growth of Maratha power from the seventeenth century, and concludes with a glossary of Indian terms.