In the previous two parts of this series, we saw how the Marathas came to influence Bundelkhand right from the time of Chhatrapati Shivaji. The article on Chhatrapati Shivaji showed the first instance of contact between the two far flung people in the 1660s. Fast forward to the 1730s and this time Peshwa Bajirao appeared as the saviour of Bundelkhand against Afghan aggression which I had covered in second part.
Bajirao Peshwa assumed control of a third of Bundelkhand, which was bequeathed to him by Maharaja Chhatrasal Bundele. From about 1733 to 1740, things were more or less smooth in the province with the various Bundele chieftains accepting Peshwa Bajirao’s suzerainty. But cracks started developing almost immediately after the Peshwa’s death in April 1740. Nanasaheb, the new Peshwa, was merely twenty years old and still coming to grips with the wide spread domains he had gained from his illustrious predecessor. He never commanded authority over even other Maratha sardars the way Bajirao did. And so, not believing much in the new Peshwa’s authority, chauth and other sources of tribute from Bundelkhand came down to a trickle. Although Maratha authority in Bundelkhand still held, it was getting difficult to manage affairs from Pune.
In 1742, Nanasaheb Peshwa undertook one of his rare journey’s to the north. With the aid of Naro Shankar Motiwale, order was restored to large swathes of Bundelkhand. Naro Shankar was put in charge of Jhansi, and after that fort had come under the firm control of the Marathas, he strengthened it appreciably. Many new ramparts, walls etc. were built. Much of what we see today as the fort of Jhansi is Naro Shankar Motiwale’s work. Elsewhere, such as Orccha, where the king had openly defied Maratha authority, Nanasaheb Peshwa attacked and reduced the place to submission. In fact, at Orchha, a pair of donkeys was made to plough the land once Maratha control had been re-imposed.
From then on, for the next decade or so, there was not much tumult in Bundelkhand. A small innocuous event happened in 1756 – Naro Shankar Motiwale was transferred to Malegaon by the Peshwa. It was a typical sarkari transfer, which showed that the Marathas could also juggle subhedars and sardars like the Mughal Empire of yesteryears. Raghunath Hari Newalkar was appointed in his place. It would have been a forgotten footnote in history, but for events that happened almost exactly a century later – when Manikarnika Tambe married into the Newalkar clan! More of that in Part IV.
But the events that would link Bundelkhand to Panipat were centred around a different person – Govindpant Bundele.
Govindpant Bundele was born as Govindpant Ballal Kher in the Konkan region of Maharashtra. It was his long association with Bundelkhand that got him the nickname “Bundele”. His abilities with civil administration and finances impressed Peshwa Bajirao, who gave him a position of responsibility in Bundelkhand around 1735/36. Bundele ensured that large amounts of tribute regularly reached Pune from Bundelkhand. He also established the town of Sagar. In fact, by the time the latter half of the 1750s dawned, he was already in the province for over twenty years! The amount of experience coupled with his natural talents for administration had made him indispensable to the Peshwa and others at Pune and had also generated a lot of respect in the minds of Hingane, Antaji Mankeshwar and other Maratha sardars stationed for lengthy periods of time in the north. His younger brother being present in Pune, communication between the two was smooth and tributes in the region of ten lakh per annum regularly reached Shaniwarwada.
The importance of Bundelkhand
As described in part II, Bundelkhand was situated in an extremely strategic location in the Indian plains. It formed a “pivot” for various regions and stood right between Malwa, where Maratha control was strong, and Delhi – Punjab region, where Maratha control was so – so. Thus, the importance of Bundelkhand as a region, which could readily supply provisions, money, and soldiers to armies stationed north