The armies of a Rajput government, fleeing Muslim invaders, invaded Nepal in 1324. According to Andyeducation, their descendants continued to rule until 1768, when the Gurkhas took over the country. After they consolidated their power, they tried to conquer Tibet (1790), but two years later they were defeated by the Chinese army, which briefly occupied Nepal. Relations between the Gurkhas and the British developed according to a treaty signed in 1791. In 1803, due to border conflicts, the British withdrew their representatives from the Nepalese capital. Frictions increased over the next decade and finally, in November 1814 the British declared war on Nepal. The conflict ended in 1815 with the victory of the British. Under the terms of the peace treaty, ratified in 1816, the Nepalese government ceded a considerable part of the Tarai (Terai) and other border territories.
Democracy and civil war
For the next 30 years, pro and anti-British groups vied for power. In 1846, the leader of the pro-British armed group Sir Yung Bahadur of the Rana family seized control of the government and became Prime Minister. Yung Bahadur began a long period of political dominance by the Rana family, in which the position of prime minister became hereditary. In 1854, Yung Bahadur carried out a successful invasion of Tibet. By the peace treaty of 1856, Tibet guaranteed diplomatic and commercial rights to Nepal, and added the payment of an annual tribute.
Nepal supported the British during the Sepoy Mutiny (1857-1859) and during the First World War. The British government reaffirmed the independence of Nepal under the terms of a treaty signed in 1923. Nepal supported the cause of the Allies during World War II.
The hereditary Rana regime came under deep criticism during 1949, particularly by established dissidents in India who had the support of the Indian government and by the newly created Nepalese Congress Party, which won the support of King Tribhuvana Bir Bikram.. Like his predecessors, the monarch possessed nominal powers. However, his intervention in domestic politics deepened the crisis, and on November 7, 1950, Prime Minister Maharaja Mohan Shumsher Rana made him leave the throne. A few days later, the king fled to India and Congress Party insurgents began military operations along the southern border.
Indian Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru refused to acknowledge the overthrow of King Tribhuvana and called for the reorganization of the Nepalese government along democratic lines and the election of a constituent assembly.
In the course of the following weeks, representatives of the Nepalese Congress Party took office. The king returned to the Nepalese capital on February 15 ; In November 1951, differences between the Rana family and the Party culminated in the removal of Prime Minister Rana and the formation of a cabinet chaired by the leader of the Congress Party, Matrika Prasad Koirala.
As a first step towards establishing a constitutional government, the king convened a consultative assembly in Kathmandu on July 4, 1952. The followers of the old aristocratic regime opposed the democratic trend and the new system began to crumble. For the rest of the decade, political unrest continued, with various changes of government and intervals during which the king resumed direct rule. King Tribhuvana passed away in 1955 and was succeeded by his son Mahendra Bir Bikram.
In February 1958, the king promulgated the country’s first democratic constitution, and the following year the first elections were held in Nepal for the formation of a bicameral parliament. The result was the landslide victory of the Congress Party, and Bisheswar Prasad Koirala formed a government.
In December 1960, after declaring the regime corrupt and incapable, King Mahendra dissolved the government and suspended parliament. The monarch, considering the parliamentary system inadequate for the needs of Nepal, proclaimed a new constitution in 1962.
The government then instituted social reforms, including land ownership and modernization of the legal code to avoid caste discrimination. When the king died in 1972, he was succeeded by his son Birendra Bir Bikram, who was officially crowned in 1975. At first, the young king exercised strong control over the government, trying to suppress the reform movement led by Prime Minister Bisheswar Prasad Koirala. In the late 1970s, the king took a less rigid stance as anti-monarchical sentiments began to grow and serious riots broke out that threatened his authority.
In a referendum held in 1980 to form a government, voters decided to maintain the current Panchayat system devoid of parties, but with certain modifications. In 1981 and 1986 elections were held under the new provisions.
Earthquake 2015
The 25 of April of 2015 occurs the devastating earthquake of magnitude 7.8 on the Richter scale in Nepal. Initially, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) documented the earthquake as a movement of magnitude 7.5 being recategorized as 7.9 and finally 7.8. The earthquake was registered at 06:11 GMT, and its epicenter was located in the Lamjung district 81 kilometers northwest of the capital, Kathmandu, and at a depth of 15 kilometers, but it was also noticeable in India, Pakistan, China and Bangladesh. It was followed by more than 50 aftershocks with magnitudes of 4.6 to 5.1 degrees.
A 6.7 magnitude aftershock occurred at 07:09 GMT 65 kilometers east of the Nepalese capital of Kathmandu (23 hours later). It was the largest aftershock, number 31, of the devastating earthquake. The epicenter was found shallow, only 10 kilometers away. The earthquake was followed by another, at 07:26 GMT (20 minutes later), of magnitude 5 whose epicenter was found 10 kilometers deep [5] .
The death toll exceeded 8,700 and the total injured 20,000, not including the total missing, which amounted to 273 people, including 80 foreigners. Most of the deceased were concentrated in the districts of Sindhupalchowk, north of the Nepalese capital, and in the administrative district of Kathmandu, while other people died in Nuwakot [6] [7] [8] . The National Center for Emergency Operations of Nepal indicated that the earthquake totally destroyed 10,744 buildings and partially damaged 14,741. The number of irrecoverable houses exceeded 191,000, while another 175,000 suffered serious damage [9] . The government estimated that some $ 2 billion would be required for reconstruction.
The earthquake caused widespread destruction throughout the country and extensive material damage. A significant part of the most emblematic and historical buildings of the so-called Kathmandu Valley, declared a World Heritage Site, were reduced to rubble. One of the most popular tourist destinations, the city of Kathmandu, lost the Bhimsen Tower, also called Dharahara, the iconic Durbar Square (Palace Square) with several monuments that were there, the Hanuman Dhoka royal palace and the Basantapur palace. The royal palace of the Patan Museum and the Kalmochan Temple were also in ruins. In the historic city of Patan, the Hari Shanker and Uma Maheswar Temples were destroyed [10] [11] .
