Why was Nepal not colonized by the British, like they did to India? 39 Answers Anonymous Updated Aug 26, 2014 some of the other answers of this question seem more like emotional blabbering rather than facts, and comments about those answers being unbiased, precise and true is even more ridiculous. First one needs to analyze the background that lead to the war. The Anglo-Gurkha war started in 1814 A.D. The British crown took direct control over its South Asian colonies only in 1847 A.D. When was the peak of the British Empire? What was going on then? What combination of events caused it to start fading? So, firstly Nepal didn't go into a war with the British during the peak of their dominance. In fact, in 1814 the British were just trying to get a foothold in South Asia. The area under the control of the East India company during 1804 A.D. (just 10 years before Anglo-Gurkha war) is shown in this map: See how the British didn't even have 1/3rd of India under their control. Only areas shown in purple were under the rule of East India Company. All areas shown in green color were independent state. Secondly, Nepal was at the peak of its dominance in South Asia as shown by this map. Nepal extending from Bhutan in the East to Punjab in the West. 1814 Thomson Map of Northern India and Nepal. Secondly, unlike suggested in other answers, Economic cause was infact, one of the main reasons for the war. "The British had made constant efforts to persuade the Nepalese government to allow them their trade to the fabled Tibet through Nepal. Despite a series of delegations headed by William Kirkpatrick (1792), Maulvi Abdul Qader (1795), and later Knox (1801), the Nepalese Durbar refused to budge an inch. " Nepal, at that time, was the largest exporter of Wool, Tea, Raktachandan, Timber, Medicinal herbs and Copper in whole of South Asia. And Nepali coins were the currency of trade for much of Tibet and some parts of Northern India. Nepalese Coins.html Historical money of Tibet In fact, impurity of the Nepalese coin after the Anglo-Gurkha war was one of the reasons for the second Nepalese–Tibetan War. After the war with Tibet, Nepalese coins in Tibet were replaced by coins from China in 1840. Furthermore, all the navigable trans-himalyan passages for trade between Tibet or China with South Asian nations lied within Nepalese territories only. This was a great source of irritation for EIC, as their primary purpose in South Asia was to just extend their trade. ((Despite all this, Nepal was never the economic giant that some of the states in India were; but not because Nepal was poor, compared to contemporary nations Nepal wasn't, but because those states in India, were not just rich in India, they were the richest countries of the world at those times. How many Taj Mahals are there?)) Thirdly, it was not the British that instigated the war. It was the Gurkhas themselves; after Bhimsen Thapa, the ruler of Nepal, started demanding tax from the Nawab of Oudh for the territories of Butwal and Seowraj. The British had to come to the rescue of their protectorate. Anglo-Nepalese War The Gurkha Empire at the time was expanding at a rapid rate and was seriously starting to threaten Company's existence. The expansion of Gurkha Empire can be briefed as: "The Gorkha army invaded Kumaon Kingdom and occupied it in 1790–91. Then the Gorkha army invaded Garhwal Kingdom and occupied it in 1804 after defeating its King Pradyuman Shah. The southern border of Nepal extended to Allahabad after absorption of Palpa Kingdom, including the Terai sector of Butwal taken by the king of Palpa from the king of Awadhon lease in 1801. In 1806, the Gorkha army absorbed all the small kingdoms like Sirmudh state, Hindur and Besahar lying across the Garhwal and up to Satluj River. In this way, the Gorkhas occupied all the hilly regions such as Nainital, Almora and Dehradun without crossing the Satluj River. However, when the Gorkhas crossed the Satluj river, the Gorkha's attack on Kangra and siege of Kangra Fort west of Satluj river was repulsed by the Kangra king with help from Maharaja Ranjit Singh of Punjab in 1809." The British felt that it had become absolutely necessary to thwart rise of Gurkha Empire so as to ensure that its own interests in South Asia aren't hurt. Fourth, The Anglo-Nepalese War was by no means a small scale war. It was a full blown war between two very well armed and ambitious sides that had a point to prove. Also, the war didn't end in weeks or months. It was a prolonged war that extended for 2 full years. The war occured in two phases aka the First Campaign and the Second Campaign. The Nepalese side won a resounding victory over the British at the end of the First campaign as the British had seriously underestimated the Gurkha's military capabilites. After the First Campaign, by mid-February, of the four British commanders the Nepalese army had faced till that time, Gillespie was dead, Marley had deserted, Wood was harassed into inactivity, and Martindell was practically incapacitated by over-cautiousness. It set the scene for Octorloney to soon show his mettle and change the course of the war. The British then actually committed more than (or about) 40000 troops to fight against the Gurkha's. The Second Campaign was a disaster for Gurkha's as they lost almost all the wars. They were completely out-stretched by the relentless British and suffered an extremely humiliating defeat that ultimately culminated into the Sugauli Treaty. Cost of War: For EIC, the Gurkha War had in reality cost more than the combined cost of the campaigns against the Marathas and the Pindaris for which Lord Moira's administration is better known: Sicca Rs. 5,156,961 as against Sicca Rs. 3,753,789. Fifth, The war was never about annexation of Nepal but was rather about thwarting Nepal's expansionist tendencies. After the war, Sikkim regained its independence (note that it was not annexed by the EIC. Sikkim only became part of india in 1975 after annexation by india). The Chand kings of Kumaon and Garwhal were also given the right to rule their land while they did agree to accept British suzerainty. Essentially, at the end of the war Nepal lost those territories that it had accumulated within the last 3 decades or so, in the first place. Sixth, Topography: Nepal was inconquerable from North during winters ( because it snowed in the mountains) and from South during Summer and monsoon (because of malarial mosquitoes in the Terai). The British in reality lost more soldiers to illness than at the war. Seventh, Before the start of Anglo-Gurkha war in 1814, Nepal actually accepted the suzerainty of Qing Emperor of China in the immediate aftermath of Sino-Nepalese War ( 1788-1792 A.D.) This was another major reason for E.I. Company's decision to not annex main Nepalese territories. The British were just in the process of consolidating their power in South Asia. Annexation of Nepal would had inadvertenly brought them in close confrontation with the Qing Empire, which they tried to avoid at all cost. This was also the reason why the British left not just Nepal, but Bhutan, Kashmir and Sikkim unconquered as well. The annexation campaign of the British Raj started only in late 1800's, once it had fully gained control over much of the indian princely states. but by that time Nepal was already considered to be a British ally, and thus the British felt no need to conquer Nepal. In fact, relationship between Nepal and the British Raj were so good that "Prime-Minister of Nepal and Maharaja of Kaski & Lamjung, Jung Bahadur Rana was the first Rajah and Prime-Minister to get state honors in the court of Queen Victoria in 1850 A.D." He was also the first South Asian head of state to visit Europe. History Lessons Nepal: JUNG BAHADUR RANA AND THE DANCING DAMSELS Accumulation of all these factors were the reasons why Nepal was not occupied by the British. But today, in all reality Nepal is actually controlled by crony indian agents - traitor politicians. Nepal was far more independent during the British era then it is today
_____ · Apr 8, 2018 9:45 AM · 19,738 views
Avishek Adhikari Updated Apr 4, 2016 Because Nepal had some daring and legendary rulers, generals and foot-soldiers who could see what was going on in India and what would happen to the petty himalayan kingdoms when the British would reach Nepal eventually. They were courageous, persistent, doggedly anti-British and were not afraid to pay the ultimate sacrifice. Below are some of their stories which went on to become legends for all time: 1) King Prithvi Narayan Shah, The Man who started it all The founder of the state of Nepal. He foresaw that the British were on a mission to gobble up all the petty states of Indian subcontinent one by one. He ruled from his hilltop fort in the small kingdom of Gorkha (presently a neglected, remote and poor district of Nepal made (in)famous as the epicenter of the recent earthquake). He embarked on an ambitious project of consolidating land along the southern shadows of the entire length of the Himalayas so that it could offer some sort of resistance against the British juggernaut. Being far sighted he expelled all the Jesuit priests from Nepal thinking they could potentially be spies for the British. Then, with whatever meagre resources he had he proceeded over the better part of two decades to acquire half of what is today's Nepal from the Gandaki to the Koshi rivers. He died before he could consolidate his gains. He was the one who set in motion the conquest of territories that formed the basis of the modern day Nepal. The Gorkha durbar, where king Prithvi Narayan Shah was born: The Gorkha district (the approximate kingdom of Prithivi Narayan) of present day Nepal: King Prithvi Narayan Shah was not just a successful conquerer, but was a farsighted and shrewd statesman for his time. He laid down the foundations of foreign policy and governance in his Divyo-Upadesh (Divine Advice) that ring true to this day: “When an old man dies, his words die with him, so they say. What you who are gathered here will hear from me, pass on to your children, and they to ours; and this kingdom will endure.” "This is not the nation gained by my trifle efforts, this is the garden of all kinds of flowers, and may all be aware of this." "Nepal is yam between two boulders (India and China). Maintain a treaty of friendship with the emperor of China. Keep also a treaty of friendship with the emperor of the southern sea (the Company). He has taken the plains. When they shall become masters of the whole of India, they will come for our forts (hills)"-The foreign policy of measured equidistance is still a feature of Nepal's foreign policy. "The Baadshah of the South (British Empire) is clever ("chatur") ....be aware of it/him ("ghaa rakhnu") " “He, with whom the people are pleased, he it is who is made Kazi (Prime Minister), so the shastras say"- Here he says that leaders need to have popular mandate. “Let the king see that great justice is done. Let there be no injustice in our country. Justice is crippled when bribes are given and when bribes are taken....whoever takes and received bribes are enemies of the state and people....there is no sin in confiscating all their property” “Do not let the merchants of Hinusthana (British- East India Company) come up from the border. If the merchants of India come to our country, they will make the people destitute. Forbid the use of cloth made in India. Show samples to those who know how to make our cloth. Teach them and begin to make clothing. If this is done, our money will not go abroad. Send our herbs to India and bring back money. When you acquire money, keep it. If the citizens are wealthy, the country is strong. The king's storehouse is his people. ” -Ironically during India's independence struggle Mahatma Gandhi employed the tactic of burning British cloth and spinning his own cloth as an act of defiance against the Economic Empire the British had set up which was the basis of their political empire in India. "With the bible comes the bayonet, with the merchant comes the musket" "Muglan (India) is near. In that place there are singers and dancers. In rooms lined with painting, they forget themselves in melodies woven on the drum and sitar. There is great pleasure in these melodies. But it drains your wealth and strength. They also take away the secrets of your country and deceive the poor. Let no one even practice the ragas. Let no one open the mountain trails for these clases of people. If they are needed for Holi, bring a few; but send them away quickly, and they will not discover your country's secrets." "Do not leave your stronghold and invade ("Jai katak nagarnu"), instead draw them into your area and then attack ("Jhiki katak garnu") "- Pragmatic realization of the absolute British technological and numerical superiority in warfare in the plains. Decades later this defensive holding tactic would be used by the hopelessly overstretched Gorkhali army in the Anglo-Nepal war along a frontier stretching from Sikkim in the East to Himachal in the West. Approximate extent of the boundaries of Nepal after the death of King Prithvi Narayan Shah (marked with black perimeter) Here is an excellent article on King Prithvi Narayan Shah King Prithvi Narayan Shah's brilliance as a tactician, conquerer and a leader is further underscored by his victories against two external attacks by vastly superior forces. If Nepal had lost any one of these battles Nepal today would not exist. The first attack was by the Nawab of Bengal Mir Qasim who invaded the infant state of Nepal in 1763 with 2,500 troops under the command of the fierce worrier Gurain Khan. In the ensuing battle of Makawanpur Gadhi 400 Gorkhali troops under Sardar Nandu Shah routed the invading army and captured a large cache of arms and ammunitions which were used in later campaigns. Battle of Makawanpur Gadhi against Mir Qasim's forces: During the unification campaign of Nepal king Prithvi Narayan Shah of Gorkha had laid seize to the rich petty kingdoms of Katmandu valley. King Jaya Prakash Malla of Kathmandu sent an SOS to the British in Calcutta. In 1767 the Company dispatched a force of 3,000 with cannons under Capt George Kinloch to break king Prithvi Narayan's siege and come to the the aid of the king of Kathmandu. But this attacking force of the British was repulsed by Gorkhalis lying in wait at the fort on Sindhuli Gadhi. The British fled, leaving behind a large cache of arms. The British were chastened by the defeat. They didn’t attack Nepal again util much later under the pretext of a border dispute at the onset of the Anglo-Nepal war (below). Prithvi Narayan Shah was clever, far-sighted and seemed concerned about the welfare of the citizenry, as is evidenced by his edicts ("If the subjects are well off the rulers are well off"). But on many occasions he could also be extremely vindictive and cruel. After defeating the hill fortress town of Kirtipur, he cut off the noses of all the male inhabitants of the city as retribution for defeating his Gorkhali forces twice in two successive battles which had claimed the life of his prime minister Kalu Pande and his brother. Prithvi Narayan Shah himself had nearly escaped death in one of the battles. Still overall, Prithvi Narayan Shah, for a man of a country still economically and culturally medieval, was a liberal king. He aware of the diversity of his subjects and was accommodating of other cultures ("Nepal is a flower of 36 ethnicities"). After conquering Kathmandu Valley he immediately touched the feet of the Kumari as a symbolic gesture that tradition of the Newar kings would continue. This continues to this day with heads of state of Nepal, kings or presidents, seeking the blessing of the Kumari each year. He shifted the capital to Kathmandu and did not rename the country as "Gorkha," keeping the old Newar name Nepal. He also allowed the Limbus and Rais of the East, who had most ferociously resisted the Gorkhalis, to continue with their own ways unmolested. Otherwise a country as incredibly diverse as Nepal would not have held on as a single entity for much long. Illustration of the Prithvi Narayan Shah kneeling before the Kumari and being crowned immediately after the battle of Kathmandu: Part of the reason the Gorkhalis lost the lands between the Mahakali river and Sutlej is because the descendants of Prithvi Narayan Shah did not rule the subjects there justly. The Kumaonis, Gharwalis and Himachalis had to live under an extremely cruel Gorkhali rule. They had to pay unjust taxes and many were sold into slavery. When the British invaded, the people there rebelled and simply sided with the British. Perhaps if the successors of Prithvi Narayan Shah had been more conscious of justice as well as congizent of diversity like him, then the Kumaonis, Gharwalis and Himachalis would have also been successfully integrated into a Nepali nationhood like other ethnicities of Nepal. But I am getting head of myself here. More on this later. 2) Bahadur Shah, Son of Prithvi Narayan Shah, Regent of Nepal The younger son of King Prithivi Narayan Shah was not the actual king, his elder brother was. When King Pratap Singh Shah died he was made the regent of his baby nephew who would grow up to become the actual king after he came of age. It is said that Bahadur Shah inherited his father Prithvi Narayan Shah's acumen for strategy and conquest. Under his leadership Nepal expanded from Gandaki to Kaali river (the Western boundary of today's Nepal), then from Kaali to Ganga then to Yamuna in Uttarakhand state of India: But his miscalculations and overstretch in Tibet caused Nepal to face a massive Chinese invasion by the huge Qing Empire Led by the legendary Chinese general Fuk'anggan, the Chinese army had reached to within 30 kilometre of Kathmandu and posed a threat to the very existence of the nascent state of Nepal. Bahadur Shah had to sue for peace. The results of the war with the Chinese were thus: Before, Nepalese coins circulated in Tibet and was the de facto currency of exchange there. After the Defeat to China, Nepal would have to forgo all ambitions in Tibet, accept Chinese control over Tibet, and (in principle) accept Qing suzerainty over Nepal as well. It would be more than half a century later (see below) when Nepal again invaded Tibet, effectively marking the end of Chinese control over Tibet. Then again, it would take the Chinese another century until the 1950s when they invaded, annexed and sealed off Tibet, this time completely ending two millennia of contacts between Nepal and Tibet for good. A Chinese artist's depiction of the Sino-Nepalese war, in what is known in Chinese history as the "1st and 2nd pacification of the Gorkhas" Eventually Bahadur Shah's nephew would come of age and became king. He accused Bahadur Shah of being the cause of defeat against the Chinese and embezzling state funds. Bahadur Shah was also accused of being far too friendly to the British because he had allowed a British Resident in Kathamandu as well as signed a treaty of Commerce with the British, two things that inevitably proceeded a full scale British invasion of the princely states of India. Bahadur Shah, chose not to follow the dictums of maintaining normal but distant relationship with the British given by his father Prithvi Narayan Shah. That would prove to be his downfall in the anti-British durbar of Nepal. Bahadur Shah was imprisoned and brutally killed. Bahadur Shah would be the first in line of a long list of Nepal's aristocracy that would meet a tragic death either from factional infighting or at the hands of the enemy in the battlefield. Despite his other failings, Bahadur Shah was perhaps the second most important figure behind his father king Prithvi Narayan Shah in the expansion of the boundaries of Nepal and its survival against the British. The expansionist tendencies of the Gorkhali empire would inevitably put it in direct conflict with the other expansionist empire at that time-- the British Empire. The map beloww shows how things stood at that time in the subcontinent on the eve of the Anglo-Nepal war. Nepal stretched from Bhutan to Himachal. British Possessions in India at that time were: The Gangetic plains (UP, Bihar, Bengal, parts of Madhya Pradesh), down to the lands along the eastern coasts (Carnatic) of India and extending to the western coast of Malabar surrounding that other enemy state of the British- Mysore. States like Awadh (Oudh) in the north, Nizam of Hyderabad in the south and several smaller states were British protectorates. <div class="ui_qtext_image_outer" sty
_____ · Apr 8, 2018 12:21 PM
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