(which practically doubled his territory) the Council was further expanded by creating a Surnis and a Waqnis and two distinct commanders for the infantry and cavalry arms (Sabh. 11.) After his return from
Agra (1667) he appointed a Lord Justice to try all suits in the kingdom according to the Sanskrit law- books (Sabh. 57.) By 1674 the number of ministers had risen to eight (Ibid. 83), which continued till his death.
This Council of eight ministers, ashta pradhan, was in no sense a Cabinet. Like Louis XIV and Frederick the Great, Shivaji was his own primeminister and kept all the strings of the administration in his own hands. The eight pradhans merely acted as his secretaries: they had no initiative, no power to dictate his policy; their function was purely advisory when he was in a mood to listen to advice, and at other times to carry out his general instructions and supervise the details in their respective departments. It is very likely that Shivaji never interfered with the Ecclesiastical and Accounts departments, but that was due entirely to his low caste and illiteracy. The Peshwas position at Court was, no doubt, higher than that of the other pradhans, because he was closer to the king and naturally enjoyed more of his confidence ; but they were in no sense his subordinates. The solidarity of the British Cabinet, as well as its power, was wanting in the Maratha Council of Eight.
The eight ministers were the following: —
