Angré

The Angré family, part of the Maratha clan, dominated the Konkan navy in the 17th and 18th centuries and became famous for resisting Portuguese and British forces.

The Angré were a Maratha lineage specialised in naval command, with their most famous member being Kanhoji Angré (1669‑1729), the admiral of the Maratha navy. Their influence centred along the Konkan coast in present‑day Maharashtra, where they controlled strategic ports such as Kolaba (Alibag) and Suvarnadurg.

Under Kanhoji and his successors, the Maratha fleet effectively defended Maratha interests against Portuguese, British, and Dutch colonial powers, while collecting maritime taxes from merchant vessels passing through their waters.

The Angré combined innovative naval tactics with an intimate knowledge of the coastline, favouring swift raids, control of anchorages, and the use of coastal fortresses over unfavourable pitched battles.

After Kanhoji’s death, the family maintained a degree of maritime power but faced internal divisions and mounting British pressure. By the late 18th century, their autonomy was reduced, and their holdings were absorbed either into the Maratha power structure or under colonial control.

Their legacy endures in coastal forts and Maratha naval history, making the Angré emblematic of pre‑colonial India’s maritime resistance.

India • |1674/1761| • Maratha dynasty

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