After his release by the Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah in 1707 AD. Shahu got the loyal and sincere help of a capable officer Balaji Vishwanath. At his coronation in January, 1708, Shahu conferred upon Balaji Vishwanath the title of Sena-Karte (maker of the army) and later on, elevated him to the post of Peshwa in 1713 AD.
With Balaji’s appointment as the Peshwa, the office of the Peshwa became hereditary. Balaji and his successors became the de facto rulers of the Maratha kingdom. Since then, the Chattrapati became just a figure-head. In all, there were seven peshwas. Of these, the ablest was Baji Rao I and the weakest and most incompetent was Baji Rao II
BALAJI VISHWANATH
He began his career as revenue a small official under Shahu in 1708 AD and was appointed as a Peshwa of Maratha empire in 1713 AD. He made the post, the most important and powerful as well as hereditary.
He played a crucial role in the Civil War and was responsible for the final victory of Shahu by winning over almost all the Maratha Sardars to the side of Shahu. Balaji Vishwanath has been rightly called the second founder of the Maratha state.
He concluded an agreement with the Sayyid brothers (1719 AD) by which the Mughal Emperor (Farrukhsiyar) recognised Shahu as the king of the swarajya and allowed him to collect Chauth and Sardeshmukhi from the six mughal provinces of the Deccan.
BAJI RAO I (1720-40 AD)
Baji Rao I, the eldest son of Balaji Vishwanath, succeeded him as Peshwa, at the young age of 20. He formulated the policy of Northward expansion of the Marathas, so that “the Maratha flag shall fly from Krishna to Attock.” He was considered the Greatest exponent of Guerrilla tactics after Shivaji and Maratha power reached its zenith under him.
His period saw the beginning of the system of confederacy and the rise of Maratha chiefs. Under the system, each prominent Maratha chief was assigned a territory as his sphere of influence, which he was supposed to conquer on his own and which he could administer autonomously.
Consequently, several Maratha families became prominent and got themselves entrenched in different parts of India.
- The Gaekwad at Baroda
- The Bhonsle at Nagpur
- The Holkar at Indore
- The Scindias at Gwalior
- The Peshwas at Poona
He led innumerable successful expeditions into North India to weaken the Mughal empire and to make the Marathas the supreme power in India
He said about Mughals “Let us strike at the trunk of the withering tree and the branches will fall of themselves.