Sarkhel Kanhoji Angre
Kanhoji Angre was
the commander of the Maratha Navy. He fought against the British and Portuguese
on the coast of India. He was nicknamed as ‘𝐏𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞’ by his enemies and was undefeated until his
death. Such was his might that he became the undisputed master of the sea on
the western coast of India, right from Surat up till Vengurla.
As per the official
history of his family, Kanhoji was a Maratha by birth, and his family name was
'Sankpal', which later changed to Angria or Angre, based on the name of their
village 'Angarvadi'. His father Tukoji had served under Chhatrapati Shivaji
Maharaj, and in his footsteps, Kanhoji too joined the service of the Marathas.
The Maratha ruler, Rajaram, appointed him the admiral of the navy in 1698 and
gave him the title of 𝐒𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐡𝐞𝐥.
Kanhoji led the
Maratha navy established by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
He used his ships
to protect Maratha merchants from the pirates operating in the Malabar, and in
securing the sovereignty of the sea for the Maratha state. To fulfill these
aims, Kanhoji set up a base in Kolaba, a small island fort close to Alibag, and
established stations at Suvarndurg and Vijaydurg in Ratnagiri. He compelled the
foreign traders to buy a pass or a license issued by him to enter the Indian
waters. Any failure on their part was met with swift retribution, by way of the
capture of men and the destruction of vessels.
This brought him
into direct conflict with the colonial powers, namely the English at Bombay,
the Portuquese at Goa and the Dutch at Vengurla. In 1718 open hostilities broke
out between Kanhoji and the English. The latter sent many expeditions to
Kolaba, but none were successful. Then the combined forces of the English and
the Portuguese launched an offensive battle against him in December 1721. This
expedition too, came to nought as Kanhoji beat them through both war and
diplomacy.
Not only did he
defend his fort and other inland stations, but he also managed to get the
Maratha army under Pilaji Jadhav to come to his aid. Kanhoji passed away on 4
July 1729, undefeated, unrivalled and unmatched. His might was such that even
when he was fighting his rivals, their subjects continued buying the passes
issued by him.
Kanhoji Angre was
one of the most notable admirals of the Maratha Navy. At the peak of his power,
he was the commander of more than hundred ships, some of which were even
European. He established a township called Alibag towards the end of the
seventeenth century and even issued his own currency in the form of a silver
coin called the Alibagi rupaiya.
He established a
base in the Andaman Islands, and is credited with attaching those islands to
India.
As a tribute to
this hero of India, the shore-based logistics and administrative support
establishment of the Western Naval Command, in Mumbai was named INS Angre, on
September 15, 1951.
