Thread by @MarathaEpoch

📌 Did you know? Chatrasal Bundela took inspiration from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja to revolt against the Mughals.

✍🏻 Let us explore how a Bundela, a product of Mughal servitude, drew inspiration from the Marathas.

Thread 🧵—

Who are the Bundelas? If we ignore their fabricated genealogies, they were generations of loyal servants to the Mughals, starting from the time of Jahangir.

Chatrasal Bundela was a Mughal Mansabdar who, in 1665, came with Mirza Jai Singh to destroy the Hindu empire of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja. However, he deserted the Mughals in 1670 and met Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja in the Deccan.

Mirza Jai Singh, the slave of Aurangzeb, requested him to grant Chatrasal Bundela a mansab of 300 zats/150 sawar.

Mirza Jai Singh explicitly calls himself a slave, and as you can see, Chatrasal Bundela was nothing but a low-ranking mansabdar under Aurangzeb.

The meeting between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja and Chatrasal Bundela is documented in 'Chatraprakash,' a court poem commissioned by Chatrasal himself. Therefore, it serves as a firsthand and irrefutable source for this historical event.

In 'Chatraprakash,' the 11th chapter is dedicated to the meeting between Chatrasal Bundela and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja was Chatrasal's revered hero, and he demanded the right to serve under him!

According to 'Chatraprakash,' Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja instructed Chatrasal to fight against Muslim rulers in his native land, safeguarding cows, the Vēdas, and Brāhmaṇas.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja gifted Chatrasal a sword and sent him back to fulfill his mission.

Bhimsen Saxena, in his 'Tarik-i-Dilkasha,' accused Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja of not placing full confidence in Chatrasal and sending him back.

However, a firsthand poem commissioned by Chatrasal himself makes no such accusations.

Quite the contrary, according to 'Chatraprakash,' none of the Bundelas assisted Chatrasal in his mission.

Instead, Chatrasal's brother Ratan Shah and other prominent Bundela chiefs, such as Subhkaran and Sujan Singh, advised him to surrender to the Mughal emperor.

Chatrasal got inspired by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja and became a minor rebel in the small territory of Bundelkhand.

Chatrasal turned out to be a coward; he started this rebellion, only to be suppressed easily.

During Aurangzeb's reign, he managed to secure a 4k Mansabdari, but under Farrukhsiyar, his sense of entitlement led him to receive an increased but still paltry 6k Mansabdari.

Our Bundel Kesari Chatrasal was enjoying his Mansabdari and Mughal service until Muhammad Bangash invaded Bundelkhand.

In 1729, Chatrasal had to beg for help from the Maratha Pradhan Bajirao to save his precarious existence.

The historical appeal to save the honor of Bundeli Hindus showed that Chatrasal knew only the Marathas could save him.

This is the poetic letter sent by the once insignificant Chatrasal Bundela to Bajirao Ballal Bhatt, the Pradhan of the Maratha Empire.

This letter shows that the Marathas were not just expansion-hungry; instead, it was the weak Rajputs in the north who invited the Marathas to save them from the Mughals because they could not do so themselves.

Bajirao helped Chatrasal and defeated Bangash's army. In return, Chatrasal promised Bajirao one-third of the territory for selfish reasons, so that after his death, Bajirao and his descendants would safeguard his lineage.

What happened next will shock you. This is the ultimate example of why no one should ever trust a Rajput.

Even though Chatrasal promised one-third of his territory to Bajirao, in reality, he never intended to give it to Bajirao and provided a false estimation of the land holdings.

Chatrasal advised his son Harde Sah to avoid giving away any one-third share of the territory. Whenever anyone comes asking for their share, just give them a small sum to shut them up.

Some Rajput chauvinists might call it a diplomatic move, but how can that justify promising something in return for saving the honor of your land and then secretly not fulfilling that promise? This is nothing but pure treachery!

Key points of this thread :-

1. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja was the inspiration for the insignificant Chatrasal Bundela.
2. Chatrasal Bundela was advised by Chhatrapati Shivaji to keep fighting for the Hindu faith but miserably failed, eventually surrendering to the Mughals.

3. Chatrasal Bundela enjoyed Mughal royal favors until Muhammad Bangash's invasion.
4. Chatrasal had to beg for help from the mighty Marathas; Rajputs were the ones who used to beg for Maratha assistance.
5. Bajirao was the true lord and savior of Bundelkhand.

6. Chatrasal Bundela promised Bajirao one-third share of Bundelkhand but secretly had no intention of sharing it.
7. 'Namak-Haram' Chatrasal Bundela is not worthy of any respect from any honorable Individual.