Bajirao I | |
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![]() Portrait of Bajirao I | |
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In office 17 April 1720 – 28 April 1740 | |
Monarch | Shahu I |
Preceded by | Balaji Vishwanath |
Succeeded by | Balaji Bajirao |
Personal details | |
Born | Visaji Bhat 18 August 1700 Dubere, Sinnar, Maratha Kingdom[citation needed] |
Died | 28 April 1740 Rawerkhedi, Maratha Confederacy | (aged 39)
Spouses | |
Children | 5, including Balaji Baji Rao, Shamsher Bahadur and Raghunath Rao |
Parents |
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Relatives |
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Signature | ![]() |
Military career | |
Service/ | ![]() |
Rank | Peshwa |
Unit | Peshwa's Cavalry |
Battles/wars | See list
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Bajirao I (Visaji Bajirao Ballal;[1][2] Marathi pronunciation: [bad͡ʒiɾaːʋ bəlːaːɭ]; 18 August 1700 – 28 April 1740) was the 7th and most powerful Peshwa of the Maratha Confederacy. He, after Shivaji, is considered to be the most charismatic and dynamic leader in Maratha history. He was just twenty years old and already had a reputation for rapid decisions and a passion for military adventure.[3]
During his 20-year tenure as Peshwa, his strategic prowess and ceaseless military expeditions expanded Maratha influence in the Indian subcontinent. He engaged in several military conflicts against Nizam, Mughals, Siddis and Portuguese. In the Deccan region, the Nizam of Hyderabad emerged as a significant threat. Bajirao then led a campaign against the Nizam in which Nizam suffered a decisive defeat at Palkheda. This victory solidified the Marathas’ authority in the Deccan region. In Bundelkhand, he rescued the Bundela ruler Chhatrasal from a Mughal siege, gaining independence for Bundelkhand. Gratefully, Chhatrasal granted Bajirao a jagir and his daughter's hand in marriage.[4]
In the 1730s, Bajirao asserted Maratha tax rights in Gujarat, defeating rebel Trimbak Rao Dabhade in 1731 at Battle of Dabhoi; he also engaged in a diplomatic mission to persuade Rajput courts for chauth payments. Further efforts to establish Maratha dominance saw him responsible for the Battle of Delhi (1737) which may be said to mark the pinnacle of his military career.[5] He secured the important territory of Malwa after defeating the combined forces of Mughal-Nizam-Nawab of Awadh in Battle of Bhopal (1737).[6] Bajirao achieved victory over the Siddis during his Janjira campaign of 1733-36.[7] His reign also saw conflicts with the Portuguese such as the Luso–Maratha War of 1729–1732[8] and the Capture of Bassein in 1739.[9] The Maratha invasion of Deccan in 1739 marked Bajirao's final military engagement before his passing in April 1740.[10]
Bajirao's adventurous life has been picturized in Indian cinema and also featured in novels.[11][12][13] Bajirao had two wives Kashibai and Mastani. Bajirao's relationship with his second wife Mastani is a controversial subject; very little is known with certainty about it.[14][2] She was generally referenced cryptically in books, letters or documents from that era.
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