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1672] Ramnagar* which is only sixty miles south of Surat. The Rajah fled with his family (about 19th June 1672) to Chikli, six miles s. e. of Gandavi and 33 m. s. of Surat. Even Gandavi was deserted by the people in fear of the coming of the Marathas. But the invaders speedily retreated from Ramnagar on hearing that Dilir Khan was assembling his forces for a campaign. Heavy rain stopped the activity of the Marathas for a few days. But soon afterwards Moro Pant, with his army raised to 15,000 men, returned to the attack, and took Ramnagar in the first week of July. The annexation of Jawhar and Ramnagar gave the Marathas a short, safe and easy route from Kalian up Northern Konkan to Surat, and laid that port helplessly open to invasion from the south. The city became subject to chronic alarm, whenever any Marathas were heard of even 60 miles off, at Ramnagar.

From the neighbourhood of Ramnagar, Moro Trimbak Pingle sent three successive letters to the governor and leading traders of Surat demanding four lakhs of Rupees as blackmail, and threatening a visit to the city in the case of their refusal. The