In the eighteenth century, Maratha power had established itself in the form of a major power in India but the third battle of Panipat fought on 14 January, 1761 gave a serve set back to their power as the Marathas stood defeated in the battle against Ahmad Shah Abdali and British get a chance to challenge them. Three Anglo – Maratha wars were fought between 1775-1818. As a result of these wars, Marathas were finally destroyed. The main circumstances of these was were

1. The mutual fractions between Maratha chieftains provided the opportunity to the British to attack the Marathas.

2. The ambition of Raghunath Rao to become the Peshwa and the treaty of Surat signed by the British with him made the struggle inevitable. 

3. The deprived peshwa Baji Rao second signed the treaty of Bassein on 31st December 1802 and this ended the Maratha independence. 

4. First Anglo-Maratha (1775-1782 CE) war started because Raghunath Rao wanted the post of Peshwa and British accepted the treaty of Surat and decided to support Raghoba. 

5. However the British were defeated on January 1773 in Wadgaon but they continued the war till the treaty of Salbai (May 1782 CE) with Marathas. 

6. In 1798 CE, Lord Wellesley came to India after becoming the Governor General with the major objective of expansion of the British Empire in India. 

7. According to the treaty signed on 13th June 1817, the Peshwa renounced the post of chairman of the Maratha Union. 

8. In the third Anglo-Maratha war, Holkar and Bhonsle favoured the Peshwa while Sindhiya and Gayakwad remained separate from the war. 

9. In February 1818 CE, the Peshwa was defeated for the last time in the battle of Asti. He was sent to Bithoor (Kanpur) along with a pension of one lakh rupees. The British defeated Bhonsle in the battle of Sitabuldi and Holkar in the battle of Mahidpur. Alongwith the treaty of Mandsaur between the British and Holkar, British dominance was established in India.