Balaji Vishwanath Bhat (1680 – April 2, 1719), better known as Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath, was the first of a series of hereditary Peshwas (Marathi for Prime Minister) hailing from the Bhatt family who gained effective control of the Maratha Empire during the eighteenth century. Balaji Vishwanath assisted a young Shahu to consolidate his grip on an empire that had been racked by civil war and persistent attack by the Mughals under Aurangzeb. is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... // Events January 23 - The Principality of Liechtenstein is created within the Holy Roman Empire April 25 - Daniel Defoe publishes Robinson Crusoe June 10 - Battle of Glen Shiel Prussia conducts Europes first systematic census Miners in Falun, Sweden find an apparently petrified body of Fet-Mats Israelsson in an unused... The Maratha Empire at its peak in 1760 The Peshwa(Marathi:पेशवे or पेशवा) (also known in Marathi as Peshwe) were Brahmin Prime Ministers to the Maratha Chattrapatis (Kings), who began commanding Maratha armies and later became the hereditary rulers of the Maratha empire of central India from 1749 to 1818. ... Marathi is one of the widely spoken languages of India, and has a long literary history. ... Flag of the Maratha Empire Extent of the Maratha Empire ca. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... The Mughal Empire (alternative spelling Mogul, which is the origin of the word Mogul) of India was founded by Babur in 1526, when he defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last of the Delhi Sultans at the First Battle of Panipat. ... Aurangzeb (Persian: ), also known as Alamgir I (Persian: ), (November 3, 1618 – March 3, 1707) was the ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1658 until his death. ...

Biography

Balaji Vishwanath Rao was born into a Marathi Smartha Brahmin family belonging to the Chitpavan subcaste. The community hailed from the coastal Konkan region of present-day Maharashtra. He was named "Balaji," which is another name for Venkateshwara, a manifestation of Vishnu. His family was of modest means, and Balaji began his career as an accountant for the Maratha general, Dhanaji Jadhav, at Chiplun. Between 1699 and 1703, he served as the Sar-subhedar or head-administrator at Pune. By the time Dhanaji died, Balaji had proven himself as an honest and able officer. Chhatrapati Shahu, ruler of the Marathas, took note of his abilities and appointed Balaji as his assistant (c.1708). Marathi is one of the widely spoken languages of India, and has a long literary history. ... // Introduction The term Smartha refers to those who accept and profess the Advaitha or non-dualistic philosophy propounded by Sri Adi Shankaracharya. ... This page deals with the Hindu varnas. ... // Majority of the Maratha empire Peshwes belonged to this community. ... It has been suggested that History of the Konkan be merged into this article or section. ... , Maharashtra (Marathi: महाराष्ट्र , IPA:  , translation: Great Nation) is Indias third largest state in area and second largest in population after Uttar Pradesh. ... Venkateshwara (Sanskrit वॆन्कटॆष्वरा), also called Venkatachalapathy, is Telugu god believed to be a form of the Hindu deity [[Vishnu]. Venkateshwara has His holy abode in the Venkatam hills (the hills are more often referred to as ThiruVenkatam) in Tirupathi. ... Vishnu (IAST , Devanagari ), (honorific: Sri Vishnu) also known as Narayana is the Supreme Being (i. ... Chiplun railway station Chiplun is situated on the banks of the Vashisti River Bahadur Sheik Naka in Chiplun Chiplun (population 60,000) is a city on the Mumbai–Goa highway (NH-17) in western India. ... , Pune (IPA: , Marathi: पुणे) is a city located in the western Indian state of Maharashtra. ... Chhatrapati also Chatrapati is an honorific or title for a ruler. ... Shrimant Shahu Shivaji Raje Bhonsle Chhatrapati Maharaj (1682-1749) was the fourth ruler of the Maratha Empire created by his grandfather, Shivaji, and was officially the Raja of Satara. ...

Ascent to Peshwa

In the next few years, Balaji by his tactful negotiations became a prominent personality. He is recorded as having participated in the invasion (1708) of the then Mughal city of Ahmedabad^[1] Again, during the Maratha civil war (1707-13) which followed the release of Shahu from Mughal captivity, the maratha general Chandrasen Jadhav, a prominent partisan of the Tarabai faction, (opposed to Shahu), ravaged the southern districts of the state. He was defeated by Balaji after a prolonged engagement. In 1713, Shahu faced personal danger when he was attacked at Khed near Satara by forces loyal to Tarabai. At this critical juncture, Shahuji turned to Balaji, appointed him Senakarta (army commander) and gave him full authority to wage the battle that had become unavoidable. , Ahmedabad (Gujarati: , Hindi: अहमदाबाद ) is the largest city in the state of Gujarat and the seventh-largest urban agglomeration in India, with a population of almost 51 lakhs (5. ... Tarabai (1675-1761) was a queen of the Maratha Empire in India. ... Khed is a town in Ratnagiri District in the Konkan region of Maharashtra, India . ... For the moth genus, see Satara (moth). ... Tarabai (1675-1761) was a queen of the Maratha Empire in India. ...

This increased the confidence that Shahu had in him. Balaji was appointed as Shahu's plenipotentiary to negotiate with Kanhoji Angre, admiral of the Maratha navy, who was allied with Tarabai. Before Balaji took up this assignment,^{[citation needed]} he requested Shahu to appoint him Peshwa or prime minister. Shahu conceded this request, and on November 16, 1713, Balaji became the Shahu's first Peshwa. Kanhoji agreed to become the Sarkhel (admiral) of Shahu's navy. The term plenipotentiary (from the Latin, plenus + potens, full + power) refers to, as a noun, a person who has, or as an adjective that confers, full powers. ... Kanhoji Angre or Conajee Angria or Sarkhel Angre (? – 1729) was the first notable chief of the Maratha Navy in 18th century India. ... is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1713 (MDCCXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ...

Attack on the Mughal empire

 There existed a power vacuum in the Mughal empire, caused by the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, subsequent intenecine conflict within the imperial family and civil war. Farrukhsiyar came to the throne in 1713 with the help of the Sayyid brothers, who had turned king-makers in the anarchy following the death of Aurangzeb. Differences soon arose between them and the Emperor. 

In 1716, Shahuji's army chief Dabhaji Thorat arrested Balaji. The reason for this two-year imprisonment is unknown. Capital Delhi / Agra Language(s) Persian (initially also Chagatai; later also Urdu) Government Monarchy List of Mughal emperors  - 1526-1530 Babur  - 1530–1539 and after restoration 1555–1556 Humayun  - 1556–1605 Akbar  - 1605–1627 Jahangir  - 1628–1658 Shah Jahan  - 1659–1707 Aurangzeb History  - Established April 21, 1526  - Ended September 21... Aurangzeb (Persian: ), also known as Alamgir I (Persian: ), (November 3, 1618 – March 3, 1707) was the ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1658 until his death. ... Furrukhsiyar (or Farrukhsiyar, 1683–1719) was the Mughal emperor between 1713 and 1719. ...

After his release as directed by Shahu, in 1718 Balaji negotiated a treaty with the Sayyid brothers, which the Mughal emperor later refused to ratify. With the help of Maratha troops commanded by the gallant Parsoji Bhosale, Husain Ali (one of the Sayyid brothers) marched on Delhi, dethroned Farrukhsiyar, and substituted in his place a more pliable puppet, Rafi-ul-darjat in February 1719. The Marathas also supplied a 15,000 strong army to enforce the Mughal Empire's authority in the Deccan. In exchange for the help thus rendered to Husain Ali, Balaji extracted a formal recognition of the autonomy of the Marathas in the territories held by them and the right to collect chauth (literally: "one-fourth," a basic tax) in the six Deccan provinces. The following list of Indian monarchs is one of several Wikipedia lists of incumbents. ... Furrukhsiyar (or Farrukhsiyar, 1683–1719) was the Mughal emperor between 1713 and 1719. ... Rafi-ul Darajat, son of Rafiu-Shan (Azimu-sh-Shans brother) was the tenth mughal emperor and succeeded Furrukhsiyar in 1719, proclaimed Badshah by the Sayyid brothers. ... The Marāthās (Marathi: , also Mahrattas) form an Indo Aryan group of Hindu warriors and peasants hailing mostly from the present-day state of Maharashtra, who created a the expansive Maratha Empire, covering a major part of India, in the late 17th and 18th centuries. ... Chauth (from Sanskrit meaning one-fourth) was a tax or tribute imposed by the Maratha Empire in India, from early in the eighteenth century. ... The Deccan Plateau is a vast plateau in India, encompassing most of Central and Southern India. ...

Personal life

Balaji married Radhabai (1700 – 1752) and had two sons, Bajirao and Chimnaji Appa. Balaji's health suffered considerably as a result of the campaign against the mughals, and he died on April 2, 1719. He was succeeded by his elder son, the celebrated Balaji Bajirao I, who was anointed Peshwa by Chattrapati Shahu in April 1719. A statue of Balaji Vishwanath stands at his ancestral village of Shrivardhan near Raigad in coastal Maharashtra. Please wikify (format) this article as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... // Events January 23 - The Principality of Liechtenstein is created within the Holy Roman Empire April 25 - Daniel Defoe publishes Robinson Crusoe June 10 - Battle of Glen Shiel Prussia conducts Europes first systematic census Miners in Falun, Sweden find an apparently petrified body of Fet-Mats Israelsson in an unused... Bajirao (1700-1740), was a powerful 18th century Maratha general. ... Shrivardhan is a city and a municipal council in Raigarh district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. ... Raigad was the capital of Shivajis kingdom. ... , Maharashtra (Marathi: महाराष्ट्र , IPA:  , translation: Great Nation) is Indias third largest state in area and second largest in population after Uttar Pradesh. ...

An Estimate

Balaji Vishwanth rose from ordinary background to become prime minister of Marathas due to sheer merit.It indicates the social mobility and recognition of talent in the maratha empire.Secondly he devised means to keep together warring generals.Through his astute diplomacy he did great service to the nation for which he is recognised.

Notes

1. ^ Invasion of Ahmedabad

References

• Imperial Gazeteer of India, v.2, Pg 441
• Cox, Linda. The Chitpavans, Illustrated Weekly of India, February 22, 1970