Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was the founder of the Maratha Empire. Shivaji Bhonsale was born in the Shivneri Fort in Maharashtra on 19 February 1630 to mother Jijabai and father Shahaji Bhosale. It is said that mother Jijabai prayed to Lord Shiva in Shivneri Fort for a brave son and kept her son name as Shivaji after the Hindu god Shiva.
Shivaji Maharaj is one of the revered historical figures of Maharashtra. He created an independent and sovereign state in the Maharashtra region. In course of time, his prominence in the political sphere of Maharashtra, as a cultural icon of Marathi pride.
Shivaji was born at the Shivneri fort near Junnar in Pune district on 19th February 1630. Shivaji’s mother, Jijabai was the daughter of Lakhuji Jadhavrao of Sindkhed. His father Shahaji Bhonsale was a prominent sardar in the Deccan. He worked under the local Deccan sultanates. At the time of Shivaji's birth, most of the territory in Maharashtra was under the possession of the Nizamshah of Ahmednagar and the Adilshah of Bijapur who were known as the Deccan sultanates. In the coastal belt of Konkan, there were two sea powers fighting for control, the Christian Portuguese and the Muslim Siddi. The British and the Dutch who were engaged in expanding their trade also had their factories on the coast. The Mughals, since the period of Emperor Akbar wanted to expand their power in the South. The Mughals launched a campaign to conquer the Nizamshahi Kingdom. The Adilshah of Bijapur allied with the Mughals in this campaign. Shahaji Bhonsale tried to rebel, but he could not withstand the combined might of the Mughals and the Adilshahi. The Nizamshahi kingdom came to an end in 1636. Thereafter Shahaji became a Sardar of the Adilshah of Bijapur and was posted in Karnataka. The region comprising Pune, Supe, Indapur, and Chakan Parganas located between the Bhima and Nira rivers which were vested in Shahaji as a jagir was continued by the Adilshah. Shahaji was also assigned a jagir of Bangalore. Mata Jijabai and Shivaji, stayed for a few years with Shahaji at Bangalore until Shivaji was twelve years old. Shahaji entrusted the administration of the Lakshmi jagir to Shivaji and Mata Jijabai. Shivaji grew up amidst the hills and valleys of the Pune region under the guidance of his mother Jijabai. His mother Jijabai taught Shivaji the stories of the Hindu epics and scriptures such as Mahabharata and also stories of old mighty Hindu kingdoms such as the Vijayanagara. Shivaji was also trained in guerrilla warfare.