The
Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817–1818) was the final and decisive conflict between the British
East India Company (EIC) and the
Maratha Empire in
India. The war left the Company in control of most of India. It began with an invasion of the Maratha territory by British East India Company troops, the largest such British controlled force massed in India. The troops were led by the
Governor General Hastings (no relation to
Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of Bengal) supported by a force under
General Thomas Hislop. Operations began against the
Pindaris, a band of Muslims and Marathas from central India.