Gwalior State was an Indian kingdom and
princely state during the
British Raj. It was ruled In
subsidiary alliance with the British by the
Scindia dynasty of the
Marathas and was entitled to a 21-
gun salute. The state took its name from the old town of
Gwalior, which, although never the actual capital, was an important place because of its strategic location and the strength of its fort. The state was founded in the early 18th century by
Ranoji Sindhia, as part of the
Maratha Confederacy. Under
Mahadji Sindhia (1761–1794) Gwalior State became a leading power in northern India, and dominated the affairs of the confederacy. The
Anglo-Maratha Wars brought Gwalior State under British
suzerainty, so that it became a princely state of the
British Indian Empire. Gwalior was the largest state in the
Central India Agency, under the political supervision of a
Resident at Gwalior. In 1936, the Gwalior residency was separated from the Central India Agency, and made answerable directly to the
Governor-General of India. After Indian Independence in 1947, the Sindhia rulers
acceded to the new
Union of India, and Gwalior state was absorbed into the new Indian state of
Madhya Bharat.