At the time of publishing this, no book on Shivaji, the great chieftain of the Maratha Empire, was available in English. Fortunately, materials for such a compilation were abundant as the great families of the Deccan all have their bakhars or family chronicles, which are replete with information. This book traces the boyhood of Shivaji who had Rajput ancestors, his military exploits, his killing of Afzal Khan, their most dreaded enemy, his Bijapur campaign, his campaign against Aurangzeb, his escape from Delhi, till his death.