Another Maratha fort, Arnala, commanded the coastline north of Bombay and beyond that was Vasi, a Portuguese holding. Perhaps more than any other thing, the ever-changing flags flying from these very forts would have told an onlooker how India fared during the course of the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Despite the epic struggles that took place on land and the changes in events brought about by the advent of artillery, the course of India's history here was dictated by quite a different development, that of what came to be called the East Indiamen. These ships, a combination of merchantman and man-of-war became, with the British tars who sailed them, a bye word for speed and manoeuvrability under sail, their gunners every bit as good as those of the sister navy that in time rifled the waves. 

First chartered in 1600 by Elizabeth I, the captains of the Company were daring and original men, as indeed they all were, whatever their nationality, who ventured far across these seas. The Mughal and Maratha ships were smaller, slower and bore fewer guns, conceived more as a coastal navy and in many cases dependent upon oarsmen rather than on sail. Vijaydurg was the main base for the Maratha navy; according to the East Indian Directory it was 'an excellent harbour, the anchorage being landlocked and sheltered from all winds. There is no bar at the entrance, the depths being from five to seven fathoms; and from three to four fathoms inside at low water.' The navy had been founded in 1659 and grew in size from 50 to 400 vessels within 20 years - many coastal fishermen, familiar with the tricky winds and currents, were very ready to hazard their lives and fortunes with Shivaji, not just to defend their homelands but, like any fighting sailor, in hopes of prize money. The fort protecting the 'excellent harbour' was built on a rocky headland jutting into the sea. Its walls and 27 bastions are even thicker and sturdier than those of inland forts: at high tide the sea batters at Vijaydurg, the constant enemy.