Bajirao I
Bajirao I
Bajirao I
1 of 9
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao_I
Bajirao I
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Shreemant Peshwa[1]
Baji Rao
Ballal[2]
Contents
1 Early life
2 Early career as a Peshwa
3 Nizam becomes Viceroy of the Deccan
3.1 Nizam blocks Maratha revenues
3.2 Nizam attacks Pune
4 Bajirao I's campaign
4.1 Malwa campaign
4.2 Bundelkhand campaign
4.3 Gujarat campaign
4.4 Campaign against Siddis
4.5 March to Delhi
5 Against the Portuguese
6 Personal life
7 Death
8 Battle tactics
9 In popular culture
10 References
11 Further reading
12 External links
Early life
Chhatrapati Shahu
18 August 1700
Died
Spouse(s)
Kashibai, Mastani
Relations
Children
Parents
Religion
Hinduism
7/16/2016 8:15 AM
2 of 9
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao_I
Bajirao would often accompany his father on military campaigns. He was with his father when the latter was
imprisoned by Damaji Thorat before being released for a ransom.[6] When Vishwanath died in 1720, Shahu
appointed the 20-year old Bajirao as the Peshwa.[7] He is said to have preached the ideal of Hindu Pad
Padshahi (Hindu Empire),[8]
Maratha Emperors
(16741818)
Shivaji
16741680
Sambhaji
16801689
Rajaram Chhatrapati
16891700
17071749
Rajaram II
17491777
Shahu II
17771808
Pratap Singh
18081818
16741689
16891708
Bahiroji Pingale
17081711
Parshuram Trimbak
Kulkarni
17111713
Balaji Vishwanath
17121719
Baji Rao I
17191740
17611772
Narayan Rao
17721773
Raghunathrao
17731774
Sawai Madhavrao
17741795
Baji Rao II
17951818
7/16/2016 8:15 AM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao_I
bravery in the battle, Bajirao was honored with a robe, a mansabdari of 7,000, an elephant and a jewel.
The Nizam was a veteran of Aurangzeb's war against the Marathas, after regaining control in the Deccan,
the Nizam tried to appease the Maratha leader Shahu and as well as to undermine Maratha influence within
the Mughal imperial court.[12] The Nizam succeeded in regaining the confidence of the reigning
Muhammad Shah, their common enemy were now the Maratha.
Malwa campaign
In 1723, Bajirao had organized an expedition to the southern parts of Malwa. The Maratha chiefs such as
Ranoji Shinde, Malhar Rao Holkar, Udaji Rao Pawar, Tukoji Rao Pawar and Jivaji Rao Pawar had
successfully collected chauth from several areas in Malwa. (Later, these chiefs carved out their own
3 of 9
7/16/2016 8:15 AM
4 of 9
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao_I
Bundelkhand campaign
In Bundelkhand, Chhatrasal had rebelled against the Mughal empire and established an independent
kingdom. In December 1728, a Mughal force led by Muhammad Khan Bangash defeated him, and
imprisoned his family. Chhatrasal had repeatedly sought Bajirao's assistance, but the latter was busy in
Malwa at that time. In March 1729, the Peshwa finally responded to Chhatrasal's request, and marched
towards Bundelkhand. Chhatrasal also escaped his captivity and joined the Maratha force. After they
marched to Jaitpur, Bangash was forced to leave Bundelkhand. Chhatrasal's position as the ruler of
Bundelkhand was restored. Chhtrasal assigned a large jagir to Bajirao, and also married his daughter
Mastani to him. Before his death in December 1731, he ceded some of his territories to the Marathas.[6]
Gujarat campaign
After consolidating Maratha influence in central India, Peshwa Bajirao decided to assert Maratha rights to
collect taxes from the rich province of Gujarat. In 1730, he sent a Maratha force under Chimnaji Appa to
Gujarat. Sarbuland Khan, the Mughal Governor of the province, ceded to Marathas, the right to collect
chauth and sardeshmukhi from Gujarat. He was soon replaced by Abhay Singh, who also recognized the
Maratha rights to collect taxes. However, this success irked Chhatrapati Shahu's senapati (commanderin-chief) Trimbak Rao Dabhade. His ancestors from the Dabhade clan had raided Gujarat several times,
asserting their rights to collect taxes from that province. Annoyed at Bajirao's control over what he
considered his family's sphere of influence, he rebelled against the Peshwa.[6] Two other Maratha nobles of
Gujarat Gaekwad and Kadam Bande also sided with Dabhade.[13]
Meanwhile, after the defeat of Girdhar Bahadur in 1728, the Mughal emperor had appointed Jai Singh II to
subdue the Marathas. However, Jai Singh recommended a peaceful agreement with the Marathas. The
emperor disagreed, and replaced him with Muhammad Khan Bangash. Bangash formed an alliance with the
Nizam, Trimabk Rao and Sambhaji II. On 1 April 1731, Bajirao defeated the allied forces of Dabhade,
Gaekwad and Kadam Bande: Trimbak Rao was killed in the Battle of Dabhoi. On 13 April, Bajirao resolved
the dispute with Sambhaji II by signing the Treaty of Warna, which demarcated the territories of Chhatrapati
Shahu and Sambhaji II. Subsequently, the Nizam met Bajirao at Rohe-Rameshwar on 27 December 1732,
and promised not to interfere with the Maratha expeditions.[6]
Even after subduing Trimbak Rao, Shahu and Bajirao avoided a rivalry with the powerful Dabhade clan:
Trimbak's son Yashwant Rao was made the new senapati of Shahu. The Dabhade family was allowed to
continue collecting chauth from Gujarat on the condition that they would deposit half the collections in the
Chhatrapati Shahu's treasury.[6]
7/16/2016 8:15 AM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao_I
March to Delhi
After death of Trimbak Rao, Bangash's alliance against the Marathas had fallen apart. Consequently, the
Mughal emperor recalled him from Malwa, and re-appointed Jai Singh II as the governor of Malwa.
However, the Maratha chief Holkar defeated Jai Singh in the Battle of Mandsaur in 1733. After two more
battles, the Mughals decided to offer the Marathas the right to collect 22 lakh as chauth from Malwa. On 4
March 1736, Bajirao and Jai Singh came to an agreement at Kishangad. Jai Singh convinced the emperor to
agree to the plan, and Bajirao was appointed as Deputy Governor of the province. Jai Singh is also believed
to have secretly informed Bajirao that it was a good time to subdue the weakening Mughal emperor.[6]
On 12 November 1736, the Peshwa started a march to the Mughal capital Delhi from Pune. On hearing
about the advancing Maratha army, the Mughal emperor asked Saadat Khan to march from Agra and check
the Maratha advance. The Maratha chiefs Malhar Rao Holkar and Pilaji Jadhav crossed Yamuna and
plundered the Mughal territories in the Ganga-Yamuna Doab. Saadat Khan led a force of 150,000 against
them, and defeated them. He then retired to Mathura, thinking that the Marathas had retreated. However,
Bajirao advanced to Delhi and encamped at Talkatora. The Mughal emperor dispatched a force led by Mir
Hasan Khan Koka to check his advance. The Marathas defeated this force in the Battle of Delhi on 28
March 1737. Bajirao then retreated from Delhi, apprehensive about the approach of a larger Mughal force
from Mathura.[6]
The Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah then sought help from the Nizam. The Nizam set out from Deccan,
and met Bajirao's returning force at Sironj. The Nizam told Bajirao that was going to Delhi to repair his
relationship with the Mughal emperor. On reaching Delhi, he was joined by other Mughal chiefs, and a
massive Mughal army set out against the Peshwa. The Peshwa also assembled a force of 80,000 soldiers and
marched towards Delhi, leaving behind a force of 10,000 under Chimnaji to guard Deccan. The two armies
met mid-way at Bhopal, where the Marathas defeated the Mughals in the Battle of Bhopal on 24 December
1737. Once again, the Nizam was forced to sign a peace agreement, this time at Doraha on 7 January
1738.[16] The province of Malwa was formally ceded to the Marathas and the Mughals agreed to pay
5,000,000 as indemnity. This time, the Nizam took an oath on Koran to abide by the treaty.[6]
7/16/2016 8:15 AM
6 of 9
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao_I
The Portuguese had captured several territories on the west coast of India. They had violated an agreement
to give the Marathas a site on Salsette Island for building a factory, and had been practising religious
intolerance against the Hindus in their territory. In March 1737, the Peshwa dispatched a Maratha force led
by Chimnaji against them. The Marathas captured the Thana fort and almost all of Bassein, after the Battle
of Vasai. They also managed to gain control of Salsette on 16 May 1739, after a prolonged siege. However,
the Marathas had to turn their attention away from the Portuguese due to Nader Shah's invasion of the
Mughal Empire in the north.[6]
Personal life
Peshwa Bajirao's first wife was Kashibai; they had three sons: Balaji Baji Rao
(aka Nana Saheb), Raghunath Rao and Janardan Rao (who died young).[17]
Nana Saheb succeeded him as the Peshwa in 1740, under the name Balaji Baji
Rao.
His second wife was Chhatrasal's daughter Mastani. He was deeply in love with
Mastani, and built a palace for her in Pune, which was called the Mastani
Mahal. A reconstruction of it can be seen at the Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum in
Pune, including remains from the original palace. The contemporary orthodox
Hindu Brahmin society refused to accept the marriage because Mastani had a
Muslim mother. This led to a crisis in the Bhat family. The historian D. G.
Godse claims that Bajirao's brother Chimnaji Appa and mother, Radhabai,
never accepted Mastani as one of their own. Many attempts were made to take
her life, presumably by Chimnaji Appa; she survived with the help of
Chhatrapati Shahu.
Mastani
In 1734, Bajirao and Mastani had a son, who was named Krishna Rao at birth. Bajirao wanted him to be
accepted as a Brahmin, but because of his mother's Muslim faith, the priests refused to conduct the Hindu
upanayana ceremony for him.[6] The boy was brought up as a Muslim, and came to be known as Shamsher
Bahadur. Kashibai took the six-year-old boy, also named as Krushnarao, under her care and raised him as
one of her own. He was bestowed upon a portion of his fathers dominion of Banda and Kalpi. In 1761 he
and his army contingent fought alongside the Peshwa in the Third Battle of Panipat between the Marathas
and Afghans and he died during the same battle[18] at the age of nearly 27. Shamsher Bahadur's own son,
Ali Bahadur, later ruled over Bajirao's lands in Bundelkhand, and founded the state of Banda.
Death
Bajirao died on 28 April 1740, at the age of 39 of a sudden fever,
possibly heat stroke, while inspecting his jagirs. At that time, he was
on route to Delhi with 100,000 troops under his command at his
camp in the district of Khargone, near the city of Indore. He was
cremated on 28 April 1740, at Raverkhedi on the river Narmada.
The Scindias built a chhatri as a memorial at this place. The
memorial is enclosed by a dharmashala. The compound has two
temples, dedicated to Nilkantheshwara Mahadeva (Shiva) and
Rameshvara (Rama).[19]
7/16/2016 8:15 AM
7 of 9
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao_I
Battle tactics
7/16/2016 8:15 AM
8 of 9
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao_I
Bajirao concentrated on using local terrain to cut the enemy supply-lines with the help of rapid troop
movement. He followed Maratha traditional tactics of encircling the enemy quickly, appearing from the rear
of enemy, attacking from the unexpected direction, distracting the enemy's attention, keeping the enemy off
balance, and deciding the battlefield on his own terms.
In popular culture
A Marathi television serial, Rau, was produced in the 1990s about the story of Bajirao and It was
based on the book of the same name by Nagnath S. Inamdar.
In 2010, ETV-Marathi, a Marathi entertainment channel, began a daily serial Shrimant Peshwa Baji
Rao Mastani, produced by Nitin Chandrakant Desai Production. It was telecast Monday to Friday at
2100 hrs.
In the 2015 drama film Bajirao Mastani directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Bajirao I was portrayed
by Ranveer Singh.[22]
References
1. Arvind Javlekar (2005). Lokmata Ahilyabai. Ocean
Books (P)Ltd.
2. James Heitzman (2008). The City in South Asia.
Routledge.
3. Sandhya Gokhale (2008). The Chitpavans: social
ascendancy of a creative minority in Maharashtra,
1818-1918. Shubhi. p. 82.
ISBN 978-81-8290-132-2.
4. Why Bajirao is India's greatest cavalry general
(http://www.rediff.com/news/column/why-bajiraois-indias-greatest-cavalry-general/20151223.htm)
5. Valentine, Sir Chirol (7 February 2012). Indian
Unrest. tredition. p. 72. ISBN 978-3-8472-0599-9.
6. G.S.Chhabra (1 January 2005). Advance Study in
the History of Modern India (Volume-1:
1707-1803). Lotus Press. pp. 1928.
ISBN 978-81-89093-06-8.
7. Shripad Rama Sharma (1951). The Making of
Modern India: From A. D. 1526 to the Present Day.
Orient Longmans. p. 239.
7/16/2016 8:15 AM
9 of 9
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao_I
14. https://books.google.com.sg
/books?id=AZdCrUxFAHEC&pg=PA23&
dq=maratha+attack+delhi&hl=en&
sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi0pLr8ejNAhXKNI8KHa_hBIUQ6AEIPjAH#v=onepage&
q=replace%20the%20Mughal%20Empire%20HinduPat-Padshahi&f=false
15. Kosambi, Meera (1989). "Glory of Peshwa Pune".
Economic and Political Weekly 24 (5): 247.
16. S.R. Bakshi and O.P. Ralhan (2007). Madhya
Pradesh Through the Ages. Sarup & Sons. p. 384.
ISBN 978-81-7625-806-7.
17. B. P. Saha (1997). Begams, concubines, and
memsahibs. Vikas. p. 88.
18. Henry Dodwell (1958). The Cambridge History of
India: Turks and Afghans. CUP Archive. pp. 407.
GGKEY:96PECZLGTT6.
Further reading
Palsolkar, Col. R. D. Bajirao I: An Outstanding Indian Cavalry General, India: Reliance Publishers,
248pp, 1995, ISBN 81-85972-93-1.
Paul, E. Jaiwant. Baji Rao - The Warrior Peshwa, India: Roli Books Pvt Ltd, 184pp, ISBN
81-7436-129-4.
Dighe, V.G. Peshwa Bajirao I and the Maratha Expansion, 1944
N. S. Inamdar, Rau (1972), a historical novel about Baji Rao and Mastani. (Marathi)
Godse, D. G. Mastani, Popular Prakashan, 1989 (Marathi)
External links
Shaniwar Wada - the Peshwa palace at Pune
(http://art.virtualpune.com/HISTORY/html/shaniwar.shtml)
Preceded by
Balaji Vishwanath Bhat
Peshwa
17201740
Succeeded by
Balaji Baji Rao
7/16/2016 8:15 AM