Figure 8.13: Precolonial South Asia. By 1700, several European nations had established trading posts along the coast of India and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). After the death of the Mughal ruler Aurangzeb in 1707, the Mughals’ ability to assert strong central rule throughout South Asia declined. A number of emergent regional states competed with one another for territory and power. Among the strongest was the Maratha Confederacy, composed of a number of small states dominated by the Maratha peoples, who were known for their martial skills. Weakness of administrative control at the center and constant rivalries between these South Asian states paved the way for British conquest by the end of the eighteenth century.
[Sources consulted: William R. Shepherd, The Historical Atlas (New York: Henry Holt, 1923–