Sadashivrao Bhau was the Peshwa’s Diwan who served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Maratha army in the Third Battle of Panipat (1761). He is also known as Bhau and Bhausaheb.
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Wiki/Biography
Sadashivrao Bhau was born on Friday, 4 August 1730 (age 30 at the time of death) in Saswad, Pune. His zodiac sign is Leo. He completed his education in Satara, Maharashtra under his guru, Ramchandrababa Shenvi.
Family, Caste and Wife
Bhau was born in a Maratha family. His father was Chimaji Appa, who died when Bhau was 10 years old. His mother Rakhmabai died when Bhau was one month old and his father later married Annapurnabai. Bhau was brought up by his grandmother Radhabai and his aunt Kashibai. Peshwa Bajirao was his uncle and Nanasaheb Peshwa was his cousin.
Sadashivrao Bhau’s father-Pandit Chimaji Saheb
Peshwa Bajirao
Kashi Bai
Nanasaheb Peshwa
Bhau married twice. His first wife was Umabai and he had two sons from her. After her death, he married Parvatibai, who accompanied him at the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761.
Sadashivrao’s wife – Parvati Bai
Early life of Sadashivrao Bhau
In 1746, Babuji Naik and Fateh Singh Bhonsle were assigned a task in Karnataka in which they failed, which was later assigned to Sadashivrao Bhau. On 5 December 1746, Bhau left Pune with his political advisors, Mahadoba Purandare and Sakharam Bapu and launched his first campaign in the Karnataka which continued till May 1747. In January 1747, Bhau won his first battle at Ajra, south of Kolhapur which included 36 Parganas. Captured by Marathas. He captured the cities of Kittur, Parasgarh, Gokak, Yadwad, Bagalkot, Badami, Nawalgund, Umbal, Giri, Torgal, Haliyal, Harihar and Basavapatna.
After the resignation of Mahadjipant Purandare, Bhau became the Diwan of Peshwa. He won several battles in which he rebelled against Yamji Shivdev, won the Battle of Udgir (1760) and captured the fort of Daulatabad. One of the most notable battles under his leadership was the ‘Third Battle of Panipat (1761)’.
Daulatabad Fort
Third Battle of Panipat (1761)
In January 1760, Nanasaheb Peshwa received news that Ahmed Shah Abdali (leader of the Afghan army) had invaded the Punjab region of India. All the Muslims of North India formed an alliance with Abdali in the name of religion. Nanasaheb chose Sadashivrao to lead the Maratha army in Delhi and fight against Abdali.
On 14 March 1760, his army of 45,000–60,000 men began their journey from Patdur, later joined by non-combatants including family members who wanted to make pilgrimages to Hindu holy sites in North India. Subsequently, his army was joined by the Marathas of Holkar and Scindia.
Bhau adopted hit and run tactics which also helped him win the last battle. He formed a unit consisting of 10,000 infantry and 50 artillery pieces. Holkar and Scindia tried to influence Bhau to ally with the Rajputs, Sikhs, Shuja-ud-Daula and Muslim leaders in North India. The Rajputs refused to support him in the war; Because the Marathas had interfered a lot in the internal and political affairs of Rajputana.
Holkar and Scindia requested Surajmal, the powerful leader of Rajasthan, to join the war. Surajmal did not trust Bhau, therefore, Holkar and Scindia gave Surajmal a word of honor for their personal safety. Surajmal accepted his proposal and agreed to join the Maratha army. Non-cooperation of Jat and Rajput kings led to shortage of food and other supplies. Bhau’s obstinate attitude made the situation more difficult as he failed to convince the regional kings to support him in the war. He also decided to arrest Raja Surajmal who was ready to make an alliance with the Marathas. Surajmal withdrew to Ballabhgarh fort and refused to support them further.
Maharaja Surajmal
Bhau also rejected the Sikhs’ proposal for an alliance, hence, he did not receive any supplies from Punjab either. The Maratha camp reached Delhi on 1 August 1760, but due to shortage of food, thereafter, they moved to Karnal, about 110 km north of Delhi and captured the village of Kunjpura on the west bank of the Yamuna River, where Bhau defeated the Afghans. Killed the entire battalion. At Kunjpura Fort. Abdali had already crossed the Yamuna River on the east bank, therefore, he could not save his battalion; Because there was flood in Yamuna river.
paintings of ahmed shah abdali
Abdali could not tolerate this setback and decided to cross the river at any cost. On 17 October 1760, he started moving from Shahdara with his army and troops. In return for money, a village man showed them the way to cross the Yamuna river at Baghpat (a small town on the eastern bank of the Yamuna, midway between Delhi and Panipat). The Marathas failed to stop them and establish defensive forces at Panipat.
Abdali managed to block the Maratha route south towards Delhi. By the end of November 1760 Abdali cut off almost all food supplies from the Maratha camp. On 13 January 1761, the Maratha chief requested Bhau to allow him to die on the battlefield rather than die of hunger. The next day the Marathas left their camp and marched towards the Afghan camp. On 14 January 1761, the armies of Marathas and Afghans came face to face.
A picture depicting the third battle of Panipat
By afternoon the Marathas were almost winning the battle, but when Vishwasrao (Bhau’s nephew) died on the battlefield, the whole scenario changed. Seeing his nephew dead, Bhau moved towards the enemy army. The Afghans attacked him and he too was killed on the battlefield by Abdali’s forces.
Map of India in 1760
Aftermath of the fight
According to some sources, three days after the war, Bhau’s headless body was found in a pile of corpses. Later his head was found which was kept hidden by Afghan soldiers. His body was cremated as per Hindu rituals and his ashes were taken to Kashi for immersion.
While according to some other sources, perhaps, Bhau survived the war and lived his life secretly at some other place. Bhau’s wife Parvatibai refused to believe that her husband had died as his body was never found. She never lived the life of Bhau’s widow.
Death
Bhau died on 14 January 1761 (on the day of Makar-Sankranti) in the battlefield of ‘Third Battle of Panipat’ in Panipat, Haryana.
Facts/General Knowledge
- In 1770 a man claimed to be Sadashivrao, but he turned out to be a fraud.
- There is an area in Pune named ‘Sadashiv-peth’ in Bhau’s honour.
- A memorial park has been built in Kala Amb, Panipat, Haryana in honor of the ‘Third Battle of Panipat’.
Memorial of the Third Battle of Panipat
- In 2019, a Bollywood film ‘Panipat – The Great Betrayal’ was released on the ‘Third Battle of Panipat’, in which Arjun Kapoor played the role of ‘Sadashivrao Bhau’ and Sanjay Dutt played the role of ‘Ahmed Shah Abdali’.
Arjun Kapoor as Sadashivrao Bhau
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Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn