Reign 1753 - 1761 Role Ruler Cousins Sadashivrao Bhau Name Shamsher I Parents Mastani, Bajirao I | Father Peshwa Bajirao I Children Ali Bahadur Died January 14, 1761, Panipat | |
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Successor Ali Bahadur (Krishna Sinh), Nawab of Banda Issue Ali Bahadur (Krishna Sinh) Grandparents Chhatrasal, Balaji Vishwanath, Radhabai Barve Similar People Bajirao I, Mastani, Chhatrasal, Raghunathrao, Balaji Baji Rao | ||
Shamsher Bahadur I (1734 – 14 January 1761), also known as Krishna Rao, was a Maratha ruler of the dominion of Banda in northern India. He was the son of Bajirao I and Mastani.
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Early life and Reign
Shamsher Bahadur was the son of Maratha Peshwa Bajirao I and his second wife Mastani. Bajirao wanted Shamsher Bahadur to be accepted as a Hindu Brahmin, but because of his mother's Muslim ancestry, the priests refused to conduct the Hindu upanayana ceremony for him. His education and military training was conducted in line with other sons of the Peshwa royal family, although Maratha nobles and chiefs didn't recognize Mastani as a legitimate wife of the Peshwa. After the death of both Bajirao and Mastani in 1740, Shamsher was taken into the household of Kashibai, Bajirao's first wife, and raised as one of her own.
Career
Shamsher Bahadur was bestowed upon a portion of his father’s dominion of Banda and Kalpi. In 1761, he and his army contingent fought alongside his cousins from the Peshwa family in the Third Battle of Panipat between the Marathas and Afghans. He was wounded in that battle and died a few days later at Deeg. Shamsher’s successor Ali Bahadur (Krishna Singh) established his authority over large parts of Bundelkhand and became the Nawab of Banda. The descendants of Shamsher Bahadur continued their allegiance towards the Maratha polity and his grandson, Shamsher Bahadur II, fought the English in the Anglo-Maratha War of 1803.