 By the time the British came to power, this region was dotted by the remnants of Maratha empire ruling over their jagirs and states.But the language of the land essentially remained Kannada.This has been summed up by historian and civil servant of the Bombay presidency John Faithfull Fleet in his book "The Dynasties of the Kanarese Districts of the Bombay Presidency" (1894), which forms a part of the Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency (Vol-1, Part-II, Book-III).