| Name | Baji Rao I |
|---|
| Birth date | August 18, 1700 |
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| Caption | Peshwa Baji Rao I riding horse |
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| Death date | April 28, 1740 |
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| Occupation | Peshwa (Prime Minister) |
|---|
| Spouse | Kashibai, Mastani |
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| Parents | Balaji Vishwanath |
|---|
| Religion | Hinduism |
|---|
Shrimant Baji Rao Balaji Bhatt () (August 18, 1700 – April 28, 1740), also known as
Baji Rao I, was a noted general who served as
Peshwa (Prime Minister) to the fourth
Maratha Chhatrapati (Emperor)
Shahu from 1719 until Baji Rao's death. He is also known as
Thorale (
Marathi for Elder) Baji Rao. He was also popular with the nickname 'Rau'(In Marathi 'राऊ').
Despite being a Brahmin, he took up leading his troops. He is credited with expanding the Maratha Empire especially in north to help reach its zenith during his son's reign twenty years after his death. Baji Rao is thus acknowledged as the most famous of the nine Peshwas.
Origins
Baji Rao was the son of the first Bhat family
Peshwa,
Balaji Vishwanath. At the tender age of 20, he was appointed by
Shahu Maharaj as
Peshwa upon the death of his father, keeping aside all other claimants. It is quite clear from this appointment that Shahu recognized his talent even as a boy and positioned him as Peshwa. Bajirao was popular with his soldiers and even today his name is an honorable one.
Standing tall, poised and confident before Shahu Maharaj and his court the young new Peshwa Baji Rao is said to have thundered, “Let us transcend the barren Deccan and conquer central India. The Mughals have become weak indolent womanizers and opium-addicts. The accumulated wealth of centuries in the vaults of the north, can be ours. It is time to drive from the holy land of Bharatvarsha the outcaste and the barbarian. Let us throw them back over the Himalayas, back to where they came from. The Maratha flag must fly from the Krishna to the Indus. Hindustan is ours”.
He fixed his piercing gaze on Shahu Maharaj and said, “Strike, strike at the trunk and the branches will fall off themselves. Listen but to my counsel, and I shall plant the saffron flag on the walls of Attock”. Shahu was deeply impressed and exclaimed, “By heaven, you shall plant it on the Himalayas”.
This story itself indicates the vision of Bajirao and Shahu Maharaj's faith in the young man. Shahu Maharaj appointed him as a Peshwa at such tender age, recognising his talents and entrusting to him imperial troops which had recently emerged victorious in the Mughal-Maratha conflict which ended in 1707. Baji Rao's greatness lies in that true to judgment of his master and seasoned troops at his disposal, he struck terror of Maratha armies in the Indian sub-continent.
Accomplishments
Baji Rao, who fought over 41 battles, is reputed to have never lost one. This has also been agreed upon by General Montgomery, British general and later Field Marshall after WWII, in his writings.
He was one of the first to understand and exploit the fragmenting Mughal Empire, following the footsteps of his father. The declining influence of the Syed Brothers at the Imperial court was another factor influencing his decision to attack.
The later Kingdoms of Scindias (Ranoji Shinde) of Gwalior, Holkars (Malharrao) of Indore, Gaekwads (Pilaji) of Baroda, and Pawars (Udaiji) of Dhar were Baji Rao's creation of a Maratha confederacy as he wreaked havoc on the disintegrating Mughal Empire and set up his jagirdars (fiefdoms).
He moved the administrative capital of the Maratha Empire from Satara to the new city of Pune in 1728. His general, Bapuji Shripat persuaded some of the richer families of Satara to settle in the new city, which was divided into 18 peths (boroughs).
In 1732, after the death of Maharaja Chhatrasal, a long-time ally of the Maratha Empire, Baji Rao was granted 1/3 of Chhatrasal's kingdom in Bundelkhand.
An Outstanding cavalry leader, Baji Rao was loved by his troops and his people. He fought for the protection of Hindu Dharma, and freed central and western India from Mughals. Under his command, Marathas defeated the Siddis(moghul Admirals), Portuguese, and Nizam, Bangash and other generals.
Major battles
Malwa - December, 1723
Dhar - 1724
Aurangabad - 1724
Battle of Palkhed - February, 1728
Ahmedabad - 1731
Udaipur - 1736
Firozabad - 1737
Delhi - 1737
Bhopal - 1738
Battle of Vasai - May 17, 1739
Battle tactics
Baji Rao is famous for rapid tactical movements in battle using his cavalry inherited from maratha generals like
Santaji Ghorpade,
Dhanaji Jadhav,
Prataprao Gujar,
Hambirrao Mohite,
Ananadrao Makaji, hence he is often called a cavalry general. Two examples are the
Battle of Palkhed in 1728 when he outmaneuvered the
Mughal Governor of the
Deccan province, and again in the battle against the Mughal Emperor,
Muhammad Shah at
Delhi during 1739. His main focus was always on cutting the enemy supply-lines with the help of rapid troop movement and the local terrain. He followed Maratha traditional tactics of encircling enemy quickly, appearing from the rear of enemy, attacking from the unexpected direction, distracting enemy's attention, keeping enemy in surprise and deciding the battlefield on own terms were his trademark war-winning tactics.
Family
Baji Rao was married to Kashibai, and had three sons of whom,
Nanasaheb, was appointed
Peshwa by Shahu in 1740. His second son from Kashibai was named
Raghunathrao and the third son's name was Samsher Bahadur from Mastani.
Mastani
Mastani was the wife of
Bajirao. She bore him a son, named Krishnarao at birth, but the Brahmins did not accept him as a pure Hindu Brahmin since his mother was a Muslim, (the daughter of
Maharaja Chhatrasal of Panna by a Muslim wife) Mastani was also the single biggest complication in Bajirao's personal life. Their love affair caused much rift in the orthodox
Pune society of the time and led to a major crisis within the royal Peshwa family.
Bajirao ardently desired that his son by Mastani be invested with the sacred thread and be declared a Brahmin. But even the powerful Bajirao could not get the orthodox Pune Brahmin priests to agree. With a heavy heart he had to bring up the lad as a Muslim. Renamed Shamsher Bahadur, Bajirao and Mastani's son died, aged barely 27, fighting valiantly for the Marathas in the Battle of Panipat 1761. Shamsher Bahadur's son, Ali Bahadur, ruled over Baji Rao's lands in Bundelkhand, and founded the state of Banda, UP.
Historian D. G. Godse claims that Baji Rao's brother Chimnaji Appa and mother, Radhabai, never accepted Mastani as one of their own. Many attempts were made on her life, presumably by Chimaji Appa and she was able to survive these attempts only at the interference of Chattrapati Shahu. A recreation of the 'Mastani Mahal', the palace Peshwa Bajirao had built for her can be seen at the Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum in Pune. Parts from the original palace that Bajirao had built.
Death
Bajirao died on April 28, 1740 still in his prime. He died of a sudden fever, possibly heat stroke, while inspecting his jagirs and en route to Delhi with one lakh (100,000) troops under his command at his camp in the district of Khargon, near the city of
Indore. He was cremated on April 28, 1740, at Raverkhedi on the river,
Narmada.
Trivia
Baji Rao built the palace, Shaniwar Wada in the city of Pune. A statue of Baji Rao stands in front of the palace.
Media
*A leading Marathi entertainment channel, ETV-Marathi has launched a daily serial "Shrimant Peshwa Baji Rao Mastani" being produced by Nitin Chandrakant Desai Production from 14 June 2010. It will be telecast Monday to Friday at 2100 hrs.
A Bollywood Hindi movie, Bajirao Mastani the romance between Baji Rao and his wife, Mastani is currently being planned. The movie is to be directed by director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and is slated to star Rani Mukherjee as Kashibai, Kareena Kapoor as Mastani and Salman Khan or Abhishek Bachchan as Baji Rao Peshwa. The movie has drawn the ire of Hindus as they feel instead of highlighting his revival of Hindu society and values, the movie depicts a questionable affair.
A Marathi serial "Rau" was made on the story of Bajirao and Mastani in the 90s. It was based on the book of the same name by N. S. Inamdar.
Quotes
-
English historian Sir
Richard Carnac Temple,
Shivaji and the rise of the Mahrattas
-
British Field Marshall Bernard Law Montgomery,
The Concise History of Warfare, 132
- Bajirao was said to have told his brother Chimaji Appa.
- Author Sir Jadunath Sarkar, foreword in V.G. Dighe's,
Peshwa Bajirao I and Maratha Expansion
References
External links
Shaniwar Wada - the Peshwa palace at Pune
Additional 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
The Marathi historical novel "Rau" (1972) by historical novelist N. S. Inamdar also deals with the story of Bajirao and Mastani and the later part of Bajirao's life. It also tells of the Peshwa's relations with his mother Radhabai, his wife Kashibai, his son Nana Saheb (later Balaji Baji Rao) and his sickly but brilliant brother Chimaji Appa.
"Mastani" by D. G. Godse
A History of Marathas - By Grantt Duff (Online book which mentions history from Shahaji Bhonsle till end of Peshwa regime.)
PRATAP-SURYA "THORALE BAJIRAO PESHWE" by DR. P.V.VARTAK (In MARATHI)
"Peshwa Pahila Bajirao (Purvardha)" by Prof. S.S.Puranik (in Marathi)
"Peshwa Pahila Bajirao (Uttarardha)" by Prof. S.S.Puranik (in Marathi)
Category:Peshwa dynasty
Category:Marathi people
Category:1699 births
Category:1740 deaths
Category:Hindu monarchs
