Shrimant Chimaji Appa
We all have heard of the military exploits of Shrimant Peshwa Bajirao Ballal Bhat. Bajirao Peshwa was supported by a multitude of generals and captains like Pilaji Jadhavrao, Malharrao Holkar, Ranoji Shinde and Khanderao Dabhade among others. But his greatest supporter was his younger brother - Chimaji Appa.
Chimaji Appa was the second son of Balaji Vishwanath Bhat, a simple Karbhari from Konkan. He was a Chitpavan Brahman by birth. The Chitpavans were known for their exceptional intelligence and talents while dealing with administrative and military affairs. When Chimaji was still a baby, his family had already migrated out of Konkan and settled in Saswad. Balaji Vishwanath Bhat had brought numerous Maratha sardars to support Shahu Maharaj against Maharani Tarabai. On 12 January, 1708, Shahu Maharaj was crowned as the Chhatrapati of the Maratha Samrajya at Satara. Balaji Vishwanath Bhat was the Senakarte and was promoted to the post of the Peshwa (Prime Minister) of the Maratha Samrajya in 1713. Due to his young age, Chimaji didn't get to accompany his father on military expeditions unlike his elder brother, Bajirao, who received military training from Balaji Bhat himself. Chimaji was more devoted to academic pursuits and to the study of the shaastras (religious scriptures).
Unfortunately, tragedy struck the Bhat family in 1720. Balaji Vishwanath Bhat passed away on 12th of April. There arose a question in the Maratha Darbar about the selection of the next Peshwa. Veteran ministers like Shripatrao Pratinidhi, Chimnaji Damodarpant had their eyes glued on the seat of the Peshwa. But Shahu Maharaj recognized the talents of the young Bajirao who was just 19 at that time! Chimaji stood by his brother at that time even though he was just 13 years old. In a simple ceremony, Bajirao was bestowed with the robes of the Peshwai and Chimaji Appa was given the title of Pandit due to his wisdom.
Bajirao began his career with military expeditions in Karnataka which was a fertile province at that time. Chimaji was left at Saswad to look after the family and serve as Bajirao's deputy in his absence. In 1727, the Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Qamaruddin Khan Asaf Jah I launched an expedition against the Marathas. Peshwa Bajirao set out with his cavalry army and forced the Nizam on a wild goose chase. During these times, the entire Maratha Darbar was shifted from Satara to the mighty fortress of Purandar. Chimaji Appa was given the responsibility of commanding it's defense. Some ministers tried to sway Shahu Maharaj against Bajirao, saying that Bajirao had joined the Nizam. When Chimaji was asked if it was true, the young man replied with a ferocity no one had ever seen in him. He replied that Bajirao was incapable of doing so and even if he did, then Bajirao would have to kill Chimaji before getting to the Maharaj. This impressed Shahu Maharaj and his trust multiplied on the two brothers. Bajirao finally defeated the Nizam at Palkhed on 25 February, 1728, securing a mighty victory for the Marathas.
After silencing the Nizam, Peshwa Bajirao turned his attention towards Malwa, another rich Mughal province. Chimaji Appa was assigned as the Commander of the Maratha forces and was assisted by Malharrao Holkar and Udaji Pawar, the chieftain of Dhar. On November 24, 1728, the army reached the Narmada river. On November 27, they halted at Nalchha. The Mughal governor of Malwa was a Rajput named Giridhar Bahadur. On hearing of the Maratha advance, he rallied his armies along with his brother Daya Bahadur and set camp at Amjhera expecting the Marathas to enter Malwa by that route. But the Marathas did not appear and he decided to move his army towards Dhar. Suddenly, the Maratha cavalry led by Chimaji Appa and Sardar Holkar and Pawar ambushed his army in the valley. To prevent the retreat, another Maratha unit blocked the exit of the valley. The Mughal army was sandwiched and after a six hour long battle, the Mughals were defeated. Giridhar and Daya Bahadur were killed on the battlefield. Malwa was finally captured by the Marathas and they gained the rights to collect chauth and sardeshmukhi from the province.
At the same time, the subedar of Gujarat, Sarbuland Khan complained to Shahu Maharaj about the presence of free Maratha sardars in the province who used to loot and pillage the lands. In return for solving this problem, he promised to grant Marathas the right to collect Chauth and Sardeshmukhi from the region. Bajirao sent Chimaji Appa to look into this matter. Chimaji successfully put an end to these activities and as a reward, Abhay Singh the new Subedar of Gujarat, granted him the rights to collect taxes from the province. This did not sit well with the Sarsenapati of the Marathas, Trimbakrao Dabhade. The captains in Gujarat were vassals of the Dabhade family and this act by Bajirao Peshwa was seen as a method of wrestling control from the Dabhades. Trimbakrao allied with the Nizam and marched against Shahu Maharaj. He was defeated by Bajirao Peshwa in the battle of Dabhoi and was martyred.
In 1733, Chimaji captured the Belapur fort from the Portuguese. He was assisted by Sardar Shankarbuwa Shinde and Jankojirao Shinde. Chimaji Appa had promised to place a garland of Bel leaves at the Amruteshwar temple if he would be succesful in capturing the fort. In honour of that act, the fort was named as Belapur fort.
Another growing concern for the Peshwa was the rising problem caused by the Siddi of Janjira. The Siddis were Abyssinian commanders who commanded the impregnable fortress of Janjira in the Arabian ocean. They were the Admirals of the Mughals and Janjira had the reputation of being the unconquerable fortress. Even the legendary Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his successor Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj were unsuccessful in wrestling control of this fort from the Siddi. The commander of Janjira was Siddi Sat, a cruel and fanatic warrior. He attacked the Parshuram Temple at Chiplun, harassed the priests and desecrated the temple. The chief priest, Brahmendra Swami was regarded as a spiritual Guru by the Chhatrapati and the Peshwa and this insult to their Guru could not be tolerated. To avenge this, Bajirao sent Chimaji with a strong army to recapture the lost territories and end the tyranny of Siddi Sat once and for all. In 1736, Siddi Sat left his base to attack Manaji Angre. Chimaji Appa was waiting for such an opportunity. He ambushed the Siddi's forces on 19 April, 1736 at Rewas and in the battle that followed, Siddi Sat was killed. The Swami and the Chhatrapati praised Chimaji as the liberator of Konkan from the clutches of Siddis.
In November 1736, Bajirao Peshwa started his most daring campaign against the Mughals. This time, his target was to attack Delhi and get a hold of the treasures of the Mughal capital. On 28 March, 1737 at the Battle of Delhi, Bajirao defeated the Mughal garrison and got a huge tribute from the Emperor. While returning from Delhi, he encountered the Nizam who had prepared a strong army of 80000 soldiers at Bhopal to defeat the Peshwa. To prevent his son, Nasir Jung from reaching Bhopal, Bajirao placed Chimaji Appa on the banks of the Tapi river to check his advance. The Nizam was defeated and surrendered on 7 January, 1738.
On 28 March, 1737, the forces led by Shankarbuwa and Ranojirao Shinde captured the island fortress of Arnala, cutting off the supplies for the Portuguese. This was followed by the capture of Thane and Salsette. In November 1738, the fort of Dahanu was captured, followed by Mahim on 20 January, 1739 by Chengojirao Shinde. This was speedily followed by the capture of the forts of Sirgão – by Ranojirao shinde, Tarapur – by Janojirao shinde, and Asserim on 13 February 1739 by Chimaji Appa himself. On 28 March 1739 Portuguese lost the island and the fortress of Karanja to Ranoji Shinde's forces.
Finally in February 1739, Chimaji Appa invaded the Portuguese stronghold of Vasai (Bassein). He captured Versova fort to prevent any aid from reaching Vasai. In March 1739, Manaji Angre captured Uran from the Portuguese and joined Chimaji Appa by April 1739. The total number of Maratha troops was close to 100,000.
Thane and Dharavi were already under Maratha control and the noose was tightening. No supplies could reach the Portuguese and yet the commander Martinho de Silva wanted to fight the losing battle. Within the fort itself, the towers of São Sebastião and Remedios faced the Marathas at Bhadrapur. The barracks and everything else was inside, with the main gate facing the Vasai creek. Chimaji Appa began the siege on the 1st of May 1739 by laying 10 mines next to the walls near the tower of Remedios. Maratha soldiers charged into the breach caused by exploding four of them. Almost immediately, they came under fire from Portuguese guns and muskets. Next day on 2 May, the tower of São Sebastião and Remedios were repeatedly attacked. More mines were set off during the day, causing large breaches in the walls, between the two towers. Around 4,000 Maratha soldiers tried to pour into the fort, but the Portuguese opposition was fierce. They also managed to defend the two towers by lighting firewood. On 3 May, the tower of São Sebastião was demolished by a Maratha mine. Maratha armies could now easily march into the fort, without the fear of being fired upon from the tower. Manajirao Shinde single handedly killed Martinho de Silva and several top Portuguese officers. The encirclement and defeat of the Portuguese was complete. To prevent further casualties, Chimaji Appa sent an envoy to the Portuguese, asking them to vacate the fort. Failure to do so would result in the complete annihilation of the Portuguese population inside. On 17 May, 1739, the Portuguese surrendered and on 23 May 1739, the Maratha Bhagwa flew proudly on the bastions of the fort.
To celebrate his victory, Chimaji Appa built a temple nearby, dedicated to Devi Vajreshwari. Five huge bells were acquired by the Marathas from the fort. These bells were donated to the temples of Bhimashankar, Omkareshwar (Pune), Menavali Shiva temple, Banshankar temple and Ramlinga temple at Shirur.
Chimaji Appa's health continued to decline after this. He suffered from asthma which affected his strength. But he never let his illness come in the way of his duties. He was married to Rakhmabai of the Pethe family and had a son with her - Sadashivrao. Unfortunately, Rakhmabai died soon after childbirth and her death affected the young general immensely.
Chimaji was also responsible for taking care of the family when Bajirao used to be out on expeditions. When the Brahmin community of Pune decided to boycott the Peshwa family due to the entry of Mastani in Shaniwar Wada, it was Chimaji who tried to act as the peacemaker between the two parties. He even supervised the training of his nephews Nanasaheb and Raghunath. When Bajirao was not allowed to perform his son's thread ceremony, Chimaji got it performed and exercised his duties towards his brother's family.
The biggest blow to this young warrior came on 28 April 1740 when his mighty brother, the Peshwa Bajirao died in his camp at Raverkhedi at the young age of 40. Chimaji could not bear the sorrow and followed his brother in the afterlife within a year. Nowhere in history do we see such an example of brotherly affection! The love between Bajirao and Chimaji was nothing less than the love between Shree Ramchandraji and his brother Lakshman.
His legacy was carried forward by his son, Sadashivrao. Just like his father, Sadashiv remained loyal to his cousin, the Peshwa till the end of his life on the fateful Battle of Panipat.
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