Shrivardhan
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Shrivardhan श्रीवर्धन Shriwardhan |
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| City | |
Kondivali beach near Shrivardhan
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 Shrivardhan
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| Coordinates: 18°02′00″N 73°01′00″E / 18.0333°N 73.0167°ECoordinates: 18°02′00″N 73°01′00″E / 18.0333°N 73.0167°E | |
| Country |
 India
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| State | Maharashtra |
| District | Raigad |
| Population (2001) | |
| • Total | 15,123 |
| Demonym(s) | Shrivardhankar |
| Language | |
| • Official | Marathi |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| Vehicle registration | MH 06 |
Shrivardhan/Shriwardhan is a taluka, city and municipal council in the Raigad district of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It has developed into a seaside resort, along with the nearby town of Harihareshwar, which also has a Shiva temple. Located on a peninsula, the town itself boasts many beaches, in addition to proximity to numerous other beach destinations such as Diveagar Beach and Kondivali Beach. People from across Maharashtra come to Shrivardhan and the nearby beaches all year round.
The taluka of Shriwardhan is an ancient place of historical importance and is mentioned as being visited by Arjuna Pandav in his pilgrimage. It was an important port in the past, well known to traders of Ahmednagar and Bijapur in the 16th and 17th centuries. It appears in the accounts of leading European travellers, for example, Ziffardan. In 1538, Dom Joao de Castro described it as having little water under the pier at low tide, but that the interior of the city was large and roomy. It is notable as the birthplace of Balaji Visvanath, the first Peshwa (1713–1720) who was the Deshmukh of the town, where there is now a monument to him. In 1713, Shriwardhan was one of the sixteen fortified places in the Konkan ceded by Balaji Visvanath Peshwa to Kanhoji Angre of Kolaba. Balaji was the first Peshwa of Maratha Empire appointed by Chhatrapati Shahu, grandson of Chhatrapati Shivaji
Shrivardhan is one of the oldest towns in Maharashtra. It is a town of Peshwas. The Bhat Deshmukhs of Shrivardhan - later popularly known as Peshwas - witnessed the rise and the fall of Marathas after the Shivaji period. Though the capital of Peshwas was Pune, the actual institution of Peshwa (prime-ministership under a symbolic king) was born in Shrivardhan in 1713. Balaji Vishwanath (the first Peshwa) took control of the position and gained de facto rule in the Maratha empire under the now-symbolic rule of the Chatrapati king. The Peshwas administered the Maratha kingdom for more than 100 years, a period which ended in 1818 following the defeat of the last Peshwa in the Third Anglo-Maratha War. The third Peshwa, Balaji Bajirao, built a huge house here in 1750, which has recently been renovated. The statue of Balaji Vishwanath was also installed here in 1988.
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Wikipedia