Sadashivrao Bhau (3 August 1730-14 January 1761) was Finance Minister of the Maratha Confederacy from 1760 to 14 January 1761.
Biography[]
Sadashivrao at the Battle of Udgir
Sadashivrao Bhau was born in Satara, Maharashtra, Maratha Confederacy in 1730, the son of Chimaji Appa, the nephew of Bajirao I, and the cousin of Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao, Raghunath Rao, and Shamsher Bahadur. He was raised by his grandmother Radhabai and was well-educated, and he first fought in battle in Karnataka in 1746, leading 20,000 men in battle. In 1760, he distinguished himself at the Battle of Udgir, conquering Hyderabad State and unifying Hindustan under Marathi rule. Balaji Bajirao's jealous wife Gopikabai saw to it that Sadashivrao was relegated to the position of Finance Minister to prevent Sadashivrao from attaining any more glory, lest he begin to entertain thoughts of seizing power for himself.
As Finance Minister, Sadashivrao learned that Mughal vassal Najib ad-Dawlah had failed to pay taxes for several years, and he dispatched the veteran general Dattaji Rao Shinde to collect the taxes by force. Najib persuaded his king Alamgir II to seek the aid of Ahmad Shah Durrani, the Afghan emperor, in overthrowing Marathi rule and ending the Mughal vizier Imad-ul-Mulk's usurpation of power at court. Shinde was killed at the Battle of Buradi Ghat, forcing Sadashivrao to take command of 40,000 soldiers and march north to confront Durrani and Najib's Afghan and Rohilla army. Along the way, Sadashivrao obtained the support of the confederacy's northern generals and local rulers opposed to the Muslim invasion (such as King Karamveer, Araadhak Singh, and Suraj Mal), although Najib enlisted the help of rulers such as Madho Singh, Bijay Singh, and Shuja-ud-Daula after promising them greater autonomy.
Sadashivrao's death
Sadashivrao succeeded in capturing Delhi from its Afghan garrison and retaining Shah Jahan III as Imad-ul-Mulk's puppet ruler, and he also defeated the Afghans at the Battle of Kunjpura while Durrani's main army was trapped on the other side of the Yamuna River due to fierce storms. An infuriated Durrani forced a crossing of the river, engaging Sadashivrao's army at the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761. In the ensuing battle, Araadhak Singh withdrew his men from the Marathi army at a critical juncture, and several Marathi commanders were either killed or captured. Sadashivrao was mortally wounded as his wife Parvatibai watched from a distance, and a dying Sadashivrao assured Durrani that his victory was pyrrhic, and that he would not conquer India.