Jankibai

Janki Bhosale (née Gujar) (1675 - 2 March 1700 CE) was Empress consort of the Maratha Empire as the first wife of Rajaram Chhatrapati.

Maharani Janki Bai
Empress consort of the Maratha Empire
Tenure	12 March 1689 - 2 March 1700
Born	1675
Died	2 March 1700
Spouse	Rajaram Chhatrapati
House	Bhosale
Father	Prataprao Gujar
Religion	Hinduism

Jankibai was the daughter of Prataprao Gujar, an aristocratic general, who was the commander-in-chief of the Maratha Empire.[1] Her father died in a battle against the Mughals at Nesari on 24 February 1674. Shivaji, the king of the Marathas upon hearing the solemn news, grieved his general's death. As a result, he married his second son, the ten-year-old Rajaram to the five-year-old Jankibai. They were married in a grand ceremony that took place in Raigad Fort on 7 March 1680. Her father-in-law Shivaji died on 3 April 1680, twenty five days after her marriage.[2]

Death

On 2 March 1700, the thirty-year-old Rajaram died following a brief illness. At his funeral rites, Jankibai committed sati, that is, throwing herself onto her husband's funeral pyre.

References

1. Ranade, Mahadeo Govind. Rise of the Maratha power. Hesperides Press.
2. Mehta, Jashwant Lal. Advanced study in the history of modern India 1707-1813.