Shahu I

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Shahu I (18 May 1682 – 15 December 1749) was the fifth Chhatrapati of Maratha Empire from 1708 to 1749, the longest reign among the Maratha rulers. He was also the last subahdar of the Bijapur Subah, before being annexed by the Maratha Empire. During Shahu's reign, driven largely by the strategic vision and military leadership of his Peshwas, the Maratha Empire expanded across much of the Indian subcontinent and emerged as the leading power in South Asia. Shahu, his father Sambhaji I and his grandfather Shivaji Maharaj, all belonged to the Bhonsle dynasty. He, along with his mother Yesubai Bhonsle, was under the capture of Aurangzeb during the Deccan Wars. For nearly 18 years, Shahu was under captive but was treated with royal courtesy and he was often involved in Mughal politics. By 1707, Shahu was released by Aurangzeb's son Bahadur Shah I, in order to strengthen Mughal relations with the Marathas. Shahu held military and administrative posts during his captive days in the Mughal Empire eventually becoming the governor of the Bijapur Subah. Shahu succeeded his cousin Shivaji II by 1708 at the age of 26, shortly after Aurangzeb's death and his release. Then, Shahu launched military campaigns on the regions of Khed, Adilabad, Konkan, Bengal, Bihar and western Indian subcontinent. He also successfully brought them under control of the Marathas, with the exception of Bengal which was only partly incorporated into the empire. One of his most successful and famous campaigns were during at the Afsharid invasion of India in which the Afsharid Empire, under the rule of Nader Shah, occupied Delhi and the remaining western territories of an insignificant Mughal Empire. Marathas, under the rule of Shahu, helped the Mughals against the Persian Afsharid dynasty. By 1740, the combined forces of the Marathas and Mughals and...