Ahilyabai holkar

Ahilyabai Holkar is a feminist figure who devoted her life to defeating patriarchal aggression and establishing women’s rights at a time when women were confined to the four walls of their houses. Ahilyabai was the hereditary nobleQueenof theMarathaEmpire, who created history by establishing an ideal leadership for her kingdom during her three-decade reign over Malwa. During her reign, the region flourished and reached new heights. Not only was Holkar a prudent ruler, but also a bastion of women empowerment. She is fondly referred to as “ Rajmata Ahilyabai Holkar”. “In latter days from Brahma came, To rule our land, a noble Dame, Kind was her heart, and bright her fame,And Ahlya was her honoured name,” writes Joanna Baillie. Image: Young Ahilyabai’s tryst with destiny Ahilyabai Holkar was born on May 31, 1725, in the village of Chondi near Jamkhed, Ahmednagar, into an ordinary family of Indore. Despite the fact that women’s education was a far-fetched idea in the village, Ahilyabai’s father, Mankoji Rao Shinde home-schooled her to read and write. She had been a visionary since she was a child. Despite the fact that Ahilyabai was not born into a royal family, her ascension to the throne was nothing short of a miracle. It was on his way to Pune that Malhar Rao Holkar, a renowned lord in the Malwa kingdom observed an eight-year-old Ahilyabai at a temple service feeding the hungry and needy. He decided to ask the young girl’s hand in marriage for his son Khanderao Holkar after...

Overcoming the 18th-century disadvantage of gender, Ahalyabai Devi stands out as a strong ruler spreading the message of dharma, rejuvenating Hinduism, and promoting the relatively modern virtues of small-scale industrialisation. Devi Ahilyabai guided a fledgeling kingdom ably, rising far above the contemporary standards of administration and governance. Hatshepsut is famous as the Egyptian queen who patronised arts. The Assyrian queen Sammuramat is known for fighting many wars, building a new capital and influencing lands far and wide. Isabella, the queen of Spain, is famous for bringing together an empire full of noblemen and streamlining the government machinery. These names, from times distant and lands far, get repeated in listicles and history throwbacks. Devi Ahilyabai Holkar, who had most of these achievements to her repertoire and then some more, is a name largely unknown to most Indians, let alone to global history compilations. 13 August 2019 marks the 224th death anniversary of Ahilyabai. She ruled the province of Malwa for 28 years before she died, and created a strong local administration, overcoming the 18th-century disadvantage of gender. Taking over as the Queen of Malwa after all the male claimants to the throne had died, she stands out as a strong ruler spreading the message of dharma, rejuvenating Hinduism, and promoting the relatively modern virtues of small-scale industrialisation. Ahilyabai was born in 1725 in a shepherd family in the district of Ahm...

Ahilyabai Holkar was one of India’s most renowned female leaders. She reigned for nearly three decades and reached unprecedented heights of prosperity. Maharani Ahilya Bai Holkar was bestowed upon the title ‘The Philosopher Queen’ by British historian John Keyes. This blog is a small tribute to the life of Ahilyabai Holkar and his endless contribution to the thriving of Malwa! This Blog Includes: • • • • • • • Ahilyabai’s Early Life and Education Ahilyabai was born on May 31, 1725, in the Maharashtra hamlet of Chamundi. Her father, Mankoji Sindhia (Shinde), was the district chief. He made certain that his child could read and write, especially because people weren’t allowed to attend school years ago. Ahilyabai did not come from a royal family, yet her rise to the throne was nothing short of a miracle. On his journey to Pune, Malhar Rao Holkar, an acknowledged Malwa lord, noticed an eight-year-old Ahilyabai at a religious ceremony serving the starving and destitute. He decided to seek permission to marry his son Khanderao Holkar after being deeply affected by the little girl’s deed of compassion and dignity. At the early age of eight, Ahilyabai wedded Khanderao Holkar in 1733. The young girl’s groom was slain at the war of Kumbher in 1754, rendering her a widow at the age of 29. Her father-in-law, who became her most steadfast supporter at the moment, forbade her from doing Sati. She redirected her sadness when she chose to take issues into her arms for the benefit of the ...

Born ( 1725-05-31)31 May 1725 Died 13 August 1795 (1795-08-13) (aged70) Spouse Muktabai (daughter) Names Ahilya Bai Sahiba Holkar Father Mankoji Shinde Mother Sushila Shinde Religion Ahilya Bai Holkar (31 May 1725 – 13 August 1795) After the demise of her husband Ahilya Bai was a great pioneer and builder of Early life [ ] Ascent [ ] After her husbands Khande Rao's death, Ahilya Bai had given up all desires of life and decided to perform "Daughter, my son left me whom I raised with a hope that he would support me in my old age. Now, will you also leave me, an old man, alone to be drowned in the fathomless ocean? ... Will you also leave me without any support? Still, if you don't want to change your mind, let me die first." A letter to her from Malhar Rao in 1765 illustrates the trust he had in her ability when sending her on a military expedition to Gwalior with a huge artillery: " ...proceed to Gwalior after crossing the Chambal. You may halt there for four or five days. You should keep your big artillery and arrange for its ammunition as much as possible... The big artillery should be kept at Gwalior and you should proceed further after making proper arrangements for it's expenses for a month. On the march you should arrange for military posts being located for protection of the road." This letter clearly shows that not only was Ahilya Bai militarily trained, she was also considered capable enough to run civil and military affairs. When Already trained to be a ruler, Ahi...

Punyaslok Rajmata Ahilyadevi Holkar was born in 1725 at Chondi in Maharashtra's Ahmednagar district. Her father, Mankoji Shinde, was the patil (chief) of the village. Ahilya bai did not come from a royal lineage; she belonged to Dhangar (dhangad or shephered community. Now considered a nomadic tribe, the community is agitating for Scheduled Tribe status). Ahilyabai’s father taught her to read and write. Malhar Rao Holkar,the Commander of Peshwa Bajirao and also the Lord of the Malwa territory stopped in Chaundi on his way to Pune. He spotted Ahilyabai at the temple service feeding the poor and hungry. Impressed by the young girl’s religiosity and strong character he decided to get his only son married to her. She married Khande Rao, son of Malhar Rao Holkarwho had both name and fame. Her doorway in history was accidental and unplanned. In 1754 her husband was killed, by a stray shot fired from the walls of Kumbher, in the Battle of Kumbher. Thus, she became a widow at 21. She had offered to do Sati on the death of her husband but was dissuaded by her grief-stricken father-in-law. Instead he trained her to handle affairs of the State, governance and other political aspects. Malhar Rao Holkardied in 1766. The son of Khande Rao and grandson of Malhar Rao, Male Rao became the ruler under regency. Male Rao sank into insanity and died within a year of succession. This resulted in a huge void in the power structure of the kingdom. It was then that Ahilya Bai (also called Ahalya B...

Ahilyabai Holkar, queen of the Malwa kingdom in north-west central India, part of the Maratha empire, died on 13 August 1795, having reigned for nearly 30 years. She came to power in 1767, after the death of her father-in-law, Malhar Rao Holkar, and her young, sickly son. (Her husband had died in battle in 1754.) Today, her reputation is reputedly akin to that of a saint; one late 20th-century biography styles her as a philosopher queen. But surprisingly, perhaps, one of those leading the way in memorialising her reign as a golden age was Sir John Malcolm, the Scottish diplomat, administrator and soldier, who seized the province from Ahilyabai’s successors in 1818. Malcolm’s Memoir of Central India devotes fully 21 pages of unstinting tribute to Ahilyabai’s reign. Initially disbelieving of the praise heaped on her by dynastic friends and allies, Malcolm went searching ‘among all ranks and classes’, he said, for a more balanced assessment. He failed to find one. ‘The more enquiry is pursued’, he wrote, ‘the more admiration is excited.’ His own final assessment? ‘In the most sober view that can be taken … [she was] one of the purest and most exemplary rulers that ever existed.’