Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad 3

The sprawling cities that we see growing around us nowadays, are actually the results of a long process of evolution, evolution of culture, people, landscape and dynasties. The Baroda that we see today, the cultural capital of Gujarat, is just one example of these processes. Every place passes through the hands of many kings and  dynasties, but every so often a leader is born who leads his place along with it’s people towards prosperity, for Baroda it was Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III.

The Backdrop

The year was 1870, when Maharaja Khanderao Gaekwad II of Baroda, suddenly passed away, leaving behind no male heir, but a pregnant wife, and a power vacuum. It was anticipated that his younger brother, Malharrao Gaekwad would ascend to the throne. But this accession was stalled until, the now widow, Maharani Jamnabai Sahib gave birth to a girl child, as Malharrao had already proven himself unworthy of the throne. At the time of the death of Maharaja Khanderao , Malharrao was already in prison for being involved in a plot to dethrone his elder brother.

As soon as the widowed Maharani Jamnabai Sahib gave birth to a girl child on 5 July 1871, Malhararo was released and proclaimed the king. But he proved himself to be huge problem for the British administrators and his tormenting reign ended within five years of his accession. He lavishly spent the money, imposing taxes whenever possible and nearly emptying the coffers of Baroda State. Finally in April 1875, he was deposed and then later exiled for trying to poison the then resident officer General Phayre with a compound of arsenic.

Search for a “King”

With the throne of Baroda again empty, Maharani Jamnabai Saheb decided to take the matters in her own hands and began her quest to find an heir for the State. She called the heads of the extended branches of the Gaekwad family to Baroda and present their sons, in order to choose upon a worthy successor.

Upon this request, Shrimant Kashirao Gaekwad of Kavlana presented himself at the court along with his three sons, Anandrao (1857–1917), Gopalrao (1863–1939) and Sampatrao (1865–1934). After being presented to the Queen, all the three boys were asked a question which sealed the prosperous future of the Baroda State.

It is reported that the boys were asked the purported reason for presenting themselves at Baroda, to which Gopalrao confidently replied “I have come here to rule” .

Thus, this twelve year old boy born as Shrimant Gopalrao Gaekwad, (11 March 1863 – 6 February 1939) was adopted by the Queen and renamed to be the illustrious Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III.

Making of a King

The little Maharaja ascended to the gadi of Baroda, on 16 June 1875, but being a minor he was still a far way from becoming the king that we know today. Thus as a minor, he reigned under a Council of Regency until he came of age and was invested with full ruling powers only when he became 19 years old, on 28 December 1881.

During his minority he was extensively tutored in administrative skills by Raja Sir T. Madhava Rao who groomed his young protégé into being a person with foresight and with a will to provide welfare to his people. The charge of education of young Sayaji was given to Sir Elliot, who set the rigorous curriculum and teaching standards for him. They helped him complete his formal education within 6 years instead of the usual 9 years.

Sir Elliot along with Raja T. Madhavrao worked tirelessly for shaping this little boy into a visionary future king and became the first of  the strong influences on him.

Rule and modernization

On assuming full powers, some of his first tasks included education of his subjects, uplifting of the downtrodden, and judicial, agricultural and social reforms. Fully aware of the fact that he was a Maratha ruler of Gujarat, he identified himself with the people and shaped their cosmopolitan attitude and progressive, reformist zeal.

His major social reforms included, a ban on child marriage, legislation of divorce, removal of untouchability, development of Sanskrit, ideological studies and religious education, setting up various public welfare departments as well as the encouragement of the fine arts. Along with this, in 1906 he made primary education free and compulsory in all the regions of his state. These educational reforms scaled such heights that, the number of schools which was just 180 at the time of his accession, had gone three times over in just a decade of his rule.

The Maharaja was also the pioneer of the Library movement in India, and set up the first public library of India in Baroda. This library was called the Central Library of Baroda was started in 1931 with the Maharaja’s personal collection as it’s nucleus.

His economic development initiatives included the establishment of a railroad and the founding in 1908 of the Bank of Baroda, which still exists and is one of India’s leading banks, with numerous operations abroad in support of the Gujarati diaspora.

To commemorate his vision and administrative skills, Baroda Management Association has instituted Sayaji Ratna Award in 2013, named after him.

Locking horns with the British “Raj”

Sayajirao was often in conflict with the British on matters of principle and governance, having continuous and longstanding verbal and written disputes with the British Residents as well as with the Viceroy and officials in the Government of India. This finally turned into a full blown wrath of the British officials after the Delhi Durbar incident.

At the grand and historic 1911 Delhi Durbar, attended by George V—therefore the first time that a reigning British monarch had traveled to India, each Indian ruler or “native prince” was expected to perform proper obeisance to the King-Emperor by bowing three times before him, then backing away without turning.
As the third-most prestigious Indian ruler, Sayajirao was third in line to approach the King-Emperor; already, he had caused consternation among the British officials by refusing to wear his full regalia of jewels and honours (to lend a touch of exoticism, it was expected that the rulers on formal occasions would present themselves in jewels). While some accounts state that he refused to bow, Sayajirao actually did bow, albeit perfunctorily and only once before turning his back on the King-Emperor.

For several years already, Sayajirao had angered the British by his open support for the Indian National Congress and its leaders; the incident before the King-Emperor proved the limit for the officials of the Raj. After this incident the British never fully trusted Sayajirao again, although he was openly forgiven when he was awarded a GCIE (Knight Grand Commander) in 1919.

Public works

Railways : To connect the far flung regions of his vast empire he expanded the already existing narrow gauge railway network, as the Gaekwar’s Baroda State Railways. Even to this day, this remains the largest narrow gauge railway network in the world.

Waterworks : Following frequent outbreaks of cholera, Sayajirao envisioned a water supply scheme that would supply a clean drinking water to the people of the city. Thus it was decided to build a reservoir at Ajwa which would use gravity to supply drinking water to the people of city. To this day, the Ajwa Resevoir serves  a large portion of city with drinking water.

Parks : Opened to the public in 1879 the sprawling Sayaji Baug was actually the  gift of the Maharaja to his people. Originally called the Kamati Baug the park is spread over a massive 113 acres of land and houses the Baroda Museum and Picture Gallery along with a Zoo.

University : Opened as the Baroda College of Science, the foundation of this college was laid by the Maharaja in 1881. After about a 68 years of being established as a college, it  was given the status of a university. The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda as we know today was established in the year 1949, and ever since it continues to be one of the most prestigious universities in the country.

Philanthropy

He recognized talent from among his people and encouraged innovators and artists to come to his state and work under his patronage. In a short period of time, Baroda accumulated a pool of genius academicians, reformists and artists, philosophers who made Baroda into a melting pot of innovation.

Some of the famous philosophers and reformists of India who were patronised by the Maharaja included, Dr. Babasaheb Alies Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, the architect of Indian Constitution; Dadabhai Naoroji, the first Asian Member of the British House of Commons, and Sri Aurobindo Ghosh who worked at the Baroda College as a professor and went on to become one of the influential leaders in Indian’s struggle for freedom.

Apart from these reformists , he also harbored innovators and supported there research. On these tracks, he sent his agriculture commissioner Chintaman Vishnu Sane to The United States of America for research in agricultural studies.

It was also under his patronage , that a the successful flying of an unmanned aircraft was witnessed, constructed by Dr. Talpade in 1895, almost eight years before the Wright brothers took to the skies.

Culture Curry

The Maharaja was a noted patron of the arts. During his reign, Baroda became a hub for artists and scholars. The celebrated painter, Raja Ravi Varma, was among those who spent substantial periods of time at his court.

Indian classical Music : It was under the patronage of Sayajirao that Ustad Moula Bux founded the Academy of Indian Music, the first of it’s kind in India. Great artists like Ustad Inayat Khan, Ustad Faiyaz Khan and Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande were also the part of this institute. The institute even held the first All India Music Conference in 1916. This institute later was assimilated in the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda and is now known as the Faculty of Performing Arts.

Jewellery : Sayajirao had a splendid collection of jewels and jewellery. This included the 262 carat (52.4 g) “Star of the South” diamond, the “Akbar Shah” diamond and the “Princess Eugenie” diamond.

Dance :  As a part  of the dowry of his marriage with Maharani Chimnabai I, the state received a troop of Bharatnatyam dancers. This troop along with the other dancers of the State were given a high status and a department was setup to look after their needs and to regulate their practice regime.  This department of state artists was called the “Kalavant Karkhana”.

Family and Successor

In all the Maharaja had three daughters and four sons. Initially married to Chimanbai I of Tanjore, he had two daughters and a son, namely Bajubai, Putlabai, and son Fatehsinhrao. Both of the daughters from his first queen passed away at an early age. And in a tragic turn of events, the much-loved wife of Maharaja,  Maharani Chimnabai I too passed away just after five years of marriage.

In December 1885, the Maharaja married Shrimant Lakshmibai Mohite (1871–1958), who became Chimnabai II upon their wedding. A strong proponent of rights for Indian women, she proved every bit as willful and capable as her husband for the 53 years of their marriage, becoming equally well known throughout India. They had three sons and one daughter together, who were Jaisinhrao, Shivajirao, Indira Devi and Dhairyashilrao.

Rajkumari Indira Devi went on to become the Maharani of Cooch Behar after her marriage to Maharaja Jitendra Narayan.

Despite of having four sons, Pratapsinhrao, the grandson of Maharaja and son of Fatehsinhrao succeeded to the throne . This was because three out of his four sons passed away in young ages and Dhairyashlirao the only surviving son of Maharaja, could not succeed to the throne because of the succession protocol.

Titles

He an impressive list of titles which amounted to a mouthful. Following is his name with all his titles : H.H. Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, Shrimant Maharaja Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III (29th December 1876), Sena Khas Khel Shamsher Bahadur, Maharaja of Baroda, GCSI (15th February 1887), GCIE (1st January 1919).

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Even after so many years, his reforms still live in the form of the various institutes and buildings commissioned by him. And to this date, almost a century later after his rule began, the Maharaja is celebrated as the most visionary and foresighted ruler of the city so much so that the city is called the “Sayaji Nagari” after him.

Partial Sources: Wikipedia & Gaekwads of Baroda