| Bhonsles of Nagpur | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Parent house | House of Bhonsle |
| Country | Kingdom of Nagpur |
| Founded | 1739 |
| Founder | Raghoji I |
| Current head | Raghuji V |
| Final ruler | Raghuji III |
| Titles | Sena Sahib Subah, Sardar , Maharaja of Nagpur |
| Estate(s) | Kingdom of Nagpur |
The Bhonsles of Nagpur were a Maratha royal house that ruled the Kingdom of Nagpur from 1739-1853. [1] They hailed from the Bhonsle clan of Marathas and were one of the most important and powerful Maratha chiefs in the Maratha Empire.
The Bhonsle family branch of Raghoji was known as Hinganikar as they were originally chiefs of Berdi near Hingani in Pune District, established by Bimbaji Bhonsle I. The earliest prominent historically relevant members of the branch were the two brothers Rupaji I and Mudhoji Bhonsle. They served under Shivaji Maharaj, a fellow Bhonsle clansman of the Verulkar branch. Mudhoji was bestowed with Pandogarh mauza in Maharashtra as a jagir for his spectacular exploits and his brother Rupaji I resided at Bham in the district of Yavatmal. [2] Though Chhatrapati Shivaji favoured Rupaji, as Rupaji I was childless, his fiefdom passed over to his brother Mudhoji, which gave Hinganikar Bhonsles a foothold in east Maharashtra for future conquests. Mudhoji had three sons, Bapuji, Sabaji, and Parsoji who were entrusted with high military command and the forcible collection of chauth (tribute) in the Mughal territories of Berar. Mudhoji's son Sabaji was given the villages of Rakhswari and Poorkikotar; however, it was Parsoji who attained the highest position in the family during the Mughal-Maratha Wars. The title of "Senasahibsubha" (meaning Master of provinces and armies) was bestowed on Parsoji Bhonsle by Chhatrapati Rajaram, along with rights to regions of Devgad, Gondwana, Chanda and Varhad from where he could exact tribute and effectively settle. Bapuji only had one son Bimbaji who was the father of Raghuji I. Parsoji had three sons; Santaji, Kanhoji and Ranoji each with a distinguished career. Senasahibsubha Parsoji Bhonsle was among the first Maratha lords to pledge himself and his army of 20,000 to Chhatrapati Shahu I after his escape from Mughal camp. In recognition of these acts of loyalty, Shahu had the title of Senasahibsubha reconfirmed in 1708, along with various sanads for Parsoji.
Parsoji's son, Santaji Bhonsle, was part of various campaigns of Chhatrapati Shivaji and the other commanders, until his murder in Delhi during the 1719 campaign to depose Farrukhsiyar led by Senapati Khanderao Dabhade. Ranoji was given the title of Sawai Santaji (meaning Superior Santaji) along with other compensations for the loss of his brother's life. In 1722, Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj presented Badnera and Amravati to Ranoji, further extending the presence of Hinganikar Bhonsles in the east. Kanhoji went on to secure the family title of Senasahibsubha after the death of Parsoji in 1709 or 1710. Senasahibsubha Kanhoji ruled for twenty years and laid the foundation of a strict rule in east Maharashtra. [3] [4]
After Chand Sultan, the Gond raja of Nagpur's death in 1739, [5] there were quarrels over the succession, leading to the throne being usurped by Wali Shah, [6] [7] [8] an illegitimate son of Bakht Buland Shah. [6] [9] Chand Sultan's widow invoked the aid of the Maratha leader Raghuji Bhonsle of Berar in the interest of her sons Akbar Shah and Burhan Shah. Wali Shah was put to death and the rightful heirs placed on the throne. Raghoji I Bhonsle was sent back to Berar with a plentiful bounty for his aid. The Maratha general judged that Nagpur must be a plentiful and rich country by the magnificence of his reward. [8] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [6] [16] [5] [7] [9] [17]
However, dissensions continued between the brothers and once again, the elder brother Burhan Shah requested the aid of Raghuji Bhonsla. Akbar Shah was driven into exile and finally poisoned at Hyderabad. However this time, Ragoji Bhonsle did not have the heart to leave such a plentiful and rich country, with it being within his grasp. [7] [6] He declared himself 'protector' of the Gond king. Thus in 1743, Burhan Shah was practically made a state pensionary, with real power being in the hands of the Maratha ruler. After this event the history of the Gond kingdom of Deogarh is not recorded. [5] A series of Maratha rulers came to power following the fall of the Gonds from the throne of Nagpur, starting with Raghoji Bhonsle. [18] [19]
The Bhonsles of Nagpur were near relations of Chhatrapati Shahu, who raised them to riches and power. [20] Raghoji I Bhonsle overran Bengal & Bihar during the reign of Alivardi Khan, occupying Orissa from the Nawab. [21] [22] However, they did not play any part in the Third Battle of Panipat and First Anglo-Maratha War, so they gradually sank to a secondary position in the Maratha Confederacy. [20] The reason for their half-hearted cooperation with the other Maratha chiefs was that they were bribed by Warren Hastings. [20] They were generally opposed to the Peshwa , and claimed independent authority as they essentially controlled the Gond king of Nagpur. [21]
Raghuji Bhonsle III died without a male heir in 1853, and the kingdom was annexed by the British under the doctrine of lapse. [23] [1] The territories of the former kingdom was administered as Nagpur Province, under a commissioner appointed by the Governor-General of India, until the formation of the Central Provinces in 1861. [24]
The Maratha Confederacy, also referred to as the Maratha Empire or the Maratha Kingdom, was an early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent comprising the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent Maratha states who were often subordinate to the former. It was formed in 1674 with the coronation of Shivaji of the House of Bhonsle as the Chhatrapati of the Marathas. The Maratha realm was recognised by Bahadur Shah I, the Shahenshah of Hindustan as a tributary state in 1707 after a prolonged rebellion. The Marathas continued to recognise the Shahenshah as their nominal suzerain similar to other contemporary Indian entities.
Balaji Baji Rao, often referred to as Nana Saheb I, was the 8th Peshwa of the Maratha Confederacy. He was appointed as Peshwa in 1740 upon the death of his father, the Peshwa Bajirao I.
Shahu I was the fifth Chhatrapati of the Maratha Empire founded by his grandfather, Shivaji I. He was born into the Bhonsle family, and was the son of Sambhaji I and Yesubai. At a young age, he was taken into custody at the Siege of Raigad by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, and held captive by the Mughals. He was released from captivity after the death of Aurangzeb in the hope of engineering an internecine struggle among the Maratha factions of Tarabai and Shahu. Raja Shahu emerged victorious in the bloody Battle of Khed and was crowned as Chhatrapati.
Rajaram Bhonsle I was the third Chhatrapati of Maratha Empire, who ruled from 1689 to his death in 1700. He was the second son of the Shivaji, the founder of the empire and younger half-brother of Sambhaji, whom he succeeded. His eleven-year reign was marked with a constant struggle against the Mughals. He was succeeded by his infant son Shivaji II under the regentship of his dowager Maharani Tarabai.
The Kingdom of Nagpur was an Indian kingdom within the Maratha Confederacy in the 18th and 19th centuries. It came under the rule of the Marathas of the Bhonsle dynasty in the mid-18th century. The city of Nagpur was the capital of the state.
Raghoji I Also known as RaghojitheGreat was a Maratha general of the Bhonsle dynasty who established the Nagpur Kingdom in much of east-central India during the reign of Chhatrapati Shahu I. His successors ruled the kingdom until 1853.
Raghuji II or Raghuji was the Maratha ruler of the Kingdom of Nagpur in Central India from 1788 to 1816.
Narnala Fort or Narnala Qila Sarkar, also known as Shahnoor Fort, is a hill fortress in the Satpura Range of Vidarbh, Maharashtra, India, named after the Rajput Solanki Chaulukya Ruler, Raja Narnal Singh, also known as Narnal Singh Swami. It was renamed as "Shahnoor" by Islamic rulers but again acquired, rebuilt and got its name "Narnala" by ruler Rao Rana Narnal Singh Solanki, who migrated from Patan in Gujarat.
The history of Nagpur, in central India, spans over 5,000 years, including the Kingdom of Nagpur in the 18th and 19th century. Human existence around present-day Nagpur city can be traced back 3,000 years to the 8th century BC. Menhir burial sites at Drugdhamna indicate megalithic culture existed around Nagpur and is still followed in present times.
The Battle of Pachgaon was fought on 26 January 1775 for accession to the throne of the Nagpur Kingdom in central India. Mudhoji Bhonsle killed his brother and rival Sabaji, securing the undisputed regency for Mudhoji's infant son Raghoji II. The battle ended a struggle begun when their brother, the ruler Janoji Bhonsle, died in 1772 after adopting Raghoji II as his heir.
Mudhoji I was the ruler of the Nagpur kingdom from 1772 to 1788. During his regency the Maratha kingdom remained peaceful and prospered.
Chand Sultan (1706-1739) was a Gond king of Nagpur. He was the eldest son and successor of Bakht Buland Shah of Deogarh. He ascended the throne of Deogarh in 1706 and shifted his capital from Deogarh to Nagpur. He carried out further reforms in his kingdom and planned layout of the new city of Nagpur and under him, the kingdom prospered. He was a kind ruler who loved his people and extended his territory considerably to the east of the river Wainganga.
The Gonds of Deogarh were a Gond royal house that ruled large parts of the Vidarbha region and parts of present-day southern Madhya Pradesh. Their Kingdom consisted of the area which later became the Nagpur Kingdom. They made Nagpur region a prosperous and plentiful kingdom, founding the city of Nagpur and building further infrastructure. However, internal bickering led to their decline and they were practically made state pensioneries by the Maratha general Raghoji I Bhonsle in the 1743.
Raghunath Singh was the Diwan of the Gond king of Deogarh. He tried to unsuccessfully overthrow Raghuji Bhonsla's sway with the help of the Gond king of Chandrapur, Nilkanth Shah.
The Kingdom of Chanda was one of the main Gond kingdoms, ruling parts of central India. In 1751, it was conquered by the Maratha ruler of Nagpur, Raghoji I Bhonsle.
Bimbaji Bhonsle was the youngest son of Raghoji I Bhonsle, the Maratha ruler of Nagpur. Bimbaji was the ruler of Chhattisgarh on behalf of the Raja of Nagpur. However, he was only nominally subordinate to the Raja of Nagpur, as he had a separate army and court with ministers at his capital of Ratanpur.
Mohan Singh was the last ruler of the Haihaiyavanshi Kingdom, the dynasty which ruled Chhattisgarh for over 700 years. He ruled Chhattisgarh under the suzerainty of the Bhonsles of Nagpur Kingdom.
Baka Bai (1774-1858) was a Maratha stateswoman and favourite wife of Raghoji II Bhonsle, the king of Nagpur. After her husband's death, she played a key role in the intrigues at the royal court of Nagpur.
The Bhonsle dynasty is a Hindu Indian Marathi royal house. The Bhonsles claimed descent from the Rajput Sisodia dynasty, but were likely Kunbi Marathas.
The Bhonsles of Nagpur were clearly subordinate to the Satara rulers. An important ruler from this line was Raghuji Bhonsle (c.1727–55 CE), who was responsible for the Maratha incursions on Bengal and Bihar in the 1740s & early 1750s. He occupied Orissa from Nawab Alivardi Khan.