Balaji Bajirao (8 December 1720 – 23 June 1761), also known as Nana Saheb I, was the 8th Peshwa of the Maratha Confederacy in India. He was appointed as Peshwa in 1740 upon the death of his illustrious father, the Peshwa Bajirao I. During his tenure, the Chhatrapati (Maratha Emperor) was a mere figurehead. At the same time, the Maratha empire started transforming into a confederacy, in which individual chiefs—such as the Holkars, the Scindias and the Bhonsles of Nagpur kingdom—became more powerful. During Balaji Rao's tenure, the Maratha territory reached its zenith. A large part of this expansion, however, was led by the individual chiefs of the Maratha Empire. Balaji Bajirao was an astute strategist, a shrewd diplomat and an accomplished statesman. He, along with his cousin Sadashivrao Bhau, introduced new legislative and financial systems in the state. Under his leadership, the borders of the Maratha Empire expanded to Peshawar in present-day Pakistan, Srirangapatna in the South, and Medinipur in present-day West Bengal. Nanasaheb built canals, bridges, temples and lodges for travellers in the capital city of Pune and in other parts of the Maratha Empire. In his twenty-year reign as the Peshwa, Nanasaheb subdued three major powers under his tenure, viz. Mughals in the North, the Nizam in the South and the Bengal Sultanate. Along with that he also weakened the Afghan control over Punjab, stopped their repeated invasions on the imperial capital of Delhi, subdued the Rajputs and Rohillas and neutralized the state of Oudh. He greatly improved the condition of peasants and brought remarkable changes in the state of agriculture. Many successful economic changes took place during his tenure. Early years and family Balaji Rao was born in the Bhat family, to Peshwa Baji Rao I, on 8 December 1720. After Bajirao's death in April 1740, Chhatrapati Shahu appointed 19-year old Balaji as the Peshwa in August 1740, despite opposition from other chiefs such as Raghoji I Bhonsle. Radhabai, the Grandmother of Balaji bajirao Gopikabai, a noble girl aged 6, during her visit to the Raste family. She was impressed by Gopikabai's Orthodox Hindu upbringings as she was well versed in priestly religious matters and the prevailing customs followed in priestly Brahmin families. Despite her young age, Radhabai proposed the marriage of Gopikabai to her Grandson Balaji Bajirao, who was 10 at the time. The two eventually got married on 11 January 1730. The couple had