Balaji Baji Rao

Balaji Baji Rao (8 December 1720 – 23 June 1761), commonly known as Nana Saheb I, was the eighth Peshwa of the Maratha Empire. He succeeded his father, Baji Rao I, as Peshwa in 1740.

During his tenure, the Chhatrapati (Maratha monarch) served largely as a titular head, while effective power remained with the Peshwa. Under Balaji Baji Rao’s administration, the Maratha Empire evolved into a confederation, with prominent chiefs such as the Holkars, the Scindias, and the Bhonsles of Nagpur gaining semi-autonomous authority. The Maratha domains reached their greatest territorial extent during his period.

Balaji Baji Rao’s administration, assisted by his paternal cousin Sadashivrao Bhau, introduced several fiscal and administrative reforms. Under his leadership, the boundaries of the Maratha Empire extended from Peshawar (in present-day Pakistan) in the northwest to Srirangapatna in Karnataka, and to Midnapore in West Bengal.

Balaji Baji Rao sponsored public works across the empire, including the construction of canals, bridges, temples, and travellers’ rest houses, particularly in Pune, the imperial capital. During his twenty-year reign, he brought under Maratha dominance several major powers of the Indian subcontinent—subduing the Mughals in the north, the Nizam of Hyderabad in the south, and the Nawab of Bengal in the east. He also weakened Afghan control over Punjab, curtailed their incursions toward Delhi, subdued the Rajput and Rohilla states, and effectively neutralized the State of Oudh.

Early years and family

left|thumb|Painting of Balaji Baji Rao riding a horse at [[Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya|Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Museum, Mumbai|220x220px]]Balaji Rao, later known as Balaji Baji Rao or Nanasaheb, was born on 8 December 1720 into the Bhat family to Peshwa Baj Rao I and Kashibai.

After the death of Baji Rao I in April 1740, the fifth Maratha ruler, Chhatrapati Shahu I appointed the 19-year-old Balaji Rao as Peshwa in August of the same year, despite opposition from several Maratha chiefs, including Raghoji I Bhonsle.

When Balaji Rao was ten years old, his grandmother, Radhabai, met Gopikabai—a young girl from the prominent Raste family of Pune—during a family visit. Gopikabai was six years old at the time, and Radhabai was impressed by her orthodox upbringing, piety, and knowledge of religious customs typical of a devout Brahmin household. Impressed by her virtues, Radhabai proposed her marriage to Balaji Rao. The two were married on 11 January 1730.

The couple had three sons: Vishwasrao, who was killed in the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761; Madhavrao I, who succeeded Nanasaheb as Peshwa; and Narayanrao, who later succeeded Madhavrao during his late teens. Nanasaheb’s brother, Raghunathrao, was an able administrator but his ambitions to become Peshwa ultimately proved disastrous for the Maratha Empire.

Rivalry with Raghoji Bhonsle

thumb|[[Parvati Hill in Pune, built by Balaji Baji Rao in 1749]]

thumb|[[Trimbakeshwar Shiva Temple in Nasik, rebuilt by Balaji Baji Rao in 1755]]

In the early years of Balaji Baji Rao’s tenure as Peshwa, Raghoji I Bhonsle played a key role in extending Maratha influence in the southern and eastern regions of the Indian subcontinent. However, his relationship with the Peshwa was strained from the outset.

Shortly before Balaji Baji Rao’s appointment as Peshwa, Raghoji had led a Maratha force to the southern territories to assist Pratap Singh of Thanjavur, a member of the Bhonsle clan, against Dost Ali Khan. Raghoji killed Dost Ali in May 1740 and installed Dost Ali’s son, Safdar Ali Khan, as the Nawab of Arcot. Upon returning to Satara, Raghoji unsuccessfully protested Balaji Baji Rao’s appointment as Peshwa before returning south. There, in March 1741, he defeated Chanda Sahib but was soon forced to retreat due to the intervention of Chanda Sahib’s French allies from Pondicherry. After returning to Satara, Raghoji continued to oppose Balaji Baji Rao’s authority.

In 1750, while Balaji Baji Rao was campaigning against the Nizam of Hyderabad, Tarabai urged Rajaram II to dismiss him from the office of Peshwa. When the Chhatrapati refused, she imprisoned him in a dungeon at Satara on 24 November 1750, claiming that he was an impostor whom she had falsely presented as her grandson. Tarabai failed to secure support from other Maratha nobles or from the Nizam, Salabat Jung, but she managed to gain the backing of Umabai Dabhade. Umabai was the matriarch of the Dabhade family, hereditary Senapati or commanders-in-chief of the Maratha Empire and controllers of large territories in Gujarat. Her husband had been killed by the Mughals, and her eldest son by Baji Rao I for rebelling against Shahu I. Although Shahu I had pardoned the Dabhades and allowed them to retain their jagirs and titles on the condition that they remit half their Gujarat revenues to the royal treasury, the family had never done so. After Shahu I’s death, Balaji Baji Rao—facing an empty treasury—insisted that they honor this agreement. When Umabai met him in 1750, she argued that the arrangement had been made under duress; the Peshwa rejected her claim.

Relations with Rajputs

thumb|[[Maratha Confederacy at its zenith in 1760 (yellow areas)]]

Balaji Baji Rao’s father, Baji Rao I, had aimed to establish a Hindu Padshahi (Hindu kingship) across the Indian subcontinent and therefore maintained cordial relations with the Rajput rulers. However, during Balaji Baji Rao’s tenure as Peshwa, relations between the Marathas and the Rajputs deteriorated. The prolonged warfare devastated Bengal’s economy and population.

The Maratha forces occupied large parts of western Bengal, advancing up to the Hooghly River. During this period, Maratha raiders known as the "Bargis" committed atrocities against local civilians. The destruction wrought by the Bargis is regarded as among the deadliest episodes of mass violence in pre-colonial Indian history.

The 18th-century Bengali text Maharashtra Purana by Gangaram vividly describes the terror caused by the Bargis. In addition, the Nawab paid ₹3.2 million toward arrears of chauth for previous years. The annual chauth payments continued until 1758, when the East India Company took control of Bengal following the Battle of Plassey.

Conflict with the Durrani Empire

thumb|Balaji Baji Rao's troops under the command of his cousin Sadashivrao Bhau fighting at Panipat

After his initial invasions of India, Ahmad Shah Durrani appointed his son Timur Shah Durrani as governor of Punjab and Kashmir. In response, Balaji Baji Rao dispatched his brother Raghunathrao to check Durrani expansion. In 1758, Raghunathrao captured Lahore and Peshawar, driving Timur Shah out of the region. This marked the high point of Maratha territorial expansion — their influence extended from north of the Sindhu River to northern Kerala. The Marathas had now emerged as the principal rivals of the Durranis in north-western India.

By this time, the Marathas had reduced the Mughal emperor to a mere figurehead, and Balaji Baji Rao even considered placing his son Vishwasrao on the Mughal throne. Alarmed by these developments, Mughal loyalist scholars and nobles in Delhi appealed to Ahmad Shah Durrani to intervene and curb Maratha ascendancy.

Responding to these appeals, Durrani launched a fresh invasion of India, reaching Lahore by the end of 1759. He was joined by key Indian allies, including the Rohilla leader Najib-ud-Daula and the Nawab of Awadh Shuja-ud-Daula. Balaji Baji Rao responded by sending a large army under his cousin Sadashiv Rao Bhau, supported by contingents from the Holkar, Scindia, Gaekwad and Govind Pant Bundele families. The Jat ruler Suraj Mal of Bharatpur initially allied with the Marathas but later withdrew following a dispute with Bhau.

Between 1759 and 1761, the Durrani and Maratha forces clashed in several engagements with mixed outcomes. The prolonged siege of eventually left the Maratha army weakened and undersupplied. Reinforcements from Balaji Baji Rao never reached beyond the Narmada River, and on 14 January 1761, the Durrani forces decisively defeated the Marathas in the Third Battle of Panipat.

According to historian Suresh K. Sharma, Balaji Baji Rao’s preoccupation with courtly pleasures contributed to the debacle:

“It was Balaji Bajirao’s love of pleasure which was responsible for Panipat. He delayed at Paithan celebrating his second marriage until December 27th, when it was too late.”

Death

thumb|216x216px|[[Headstone|Samadhi (memorial) dedicated to Balaji Baji Rao at Pune]]

The defeat at Panipat proved catastrophic for the Marathas and marked a severe personal and political setback for Balaji Baji Rao. He received news of the defeat on 24 January 1761 at Bhilsa, where he was leading a reinforcement force toward the north. Among the heavy casualties were several of his key generals, as well as his own son Vishwasrao and cousin Sadashivrao Bhau.

The loss deeply affected Balaji, who fell into depression following the disaster. He died a few months later, on 23 June 1761, at Parvati Hill near Pune. He was succeeded by his younger son, Madhavrao I.

"Dhurandhar Peshwa Nanasaheb", a Marathi novel written by Kaustubh S. Kasture on the life of Nanasaheb Peshwa.