Battle of Kathmandu
Battle of Kathmandu/siege of Kathmandu | |||||||
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Part of Unification of Nepal | |||||||
Pagoda-studded skyline of Kathmandu in 1811 | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Gorkha Kingdom |
Kantipur Kingdom East India Company | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Prithvi Narayan Shah Tularam Pande † Vamsharaj Pande Surapratap Shah |
Jaya Prakash Malla and his nobles Captain Kinloch | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
18,000 | 7,000 |
The Battle of Kathmandu (Nepali: काठमाडौंको युद्ध) or siege of Kathmandu or siege of Kantipur occurred during the Unification of Nepal.[1] It was fought in Kathmandu in 1768, and resulted in the defeat of its king Jaya Prakash Malla by conquerors Prithvi Narayan Shah, king of the adjoining Gorkha Kingdom.
Shah's victory marked the establishment of the
The blockade
Kathmandu (alternative names: Yen Desa येँ देस, Kantipur) was one of the three capital cities in the
The Gorkhalis desired the Kathmandu Valley due to its rich culture, trade, industry and agriculture.
His son Prithvi Narayan Shah became king in 1742 and resumed the campaign.[7][8] Convinced he would not be able to take Kathmandu with strength, Shah sought to subdue the valley by choking its commerce and supply lines. His forces occupied strategic passes in the surrounding hills, and strangled the vital trade routes linking Tibet and India.
In 1744, he took Nuwakot, which gave him a foothold in Nepal and allowed him to stop its trade with Tibet as it lay on the trans-Himalayan trade route.[9] In 1762 and 1763, the Gorkhalis overran Makwanpur and Dhulikhel respectively, surrounding the Kathmandu Valley from the west, south and east.[10]
British expedition
The prolonged siege forced the Malla king to appeal to the British East India Company for help against the invading Gorkhalis. News of incoming English assistance raised the spirits of the Newars.[11][12]
In August 1767, Captain George Kinloch led a British force towards Kathmandu to rescue its beleaguered inhabitants.[13] He reached within 75 km (47 mi) of Kathmandu and captured the forts at Sindhuli and Hariharpur, but was forced to retreat by a two-pronged attack from Kaji Vamsharaj Pande and Sardar Banshu Gurung.[14][15] Captain Kinloch sent a message of his inability to reach Kathmandu which disheartened Jaya Prakash. However, the local traders saw the British failure as a relief due to the detrimental effect of British on the trade of Bihar and Bengal.[16]
Thamel Capture
King
On early September 1768, Prithvi Narayan began to analyze the strength of Kantipur forces. He captured the Thamel region which was outside the walled city of Kathmandu.[17] Jaya Prakash did not resist the Gorkhali invasion of Thamel.[18] People began to look upon Prithvi Narayan as the savior since he defeated the British forces who were detrimental to the agriculture, trade, and handicrafts.[18] Meanwhile, Jaya Prakash was unpopular among the local Newars due to his lavish misuse of the wealth of temples.[18] Finally, Jaya Prakash had only a few Maithil Brahmin citizens in his support as other inhabitants had changed their allegiance from Jaya Prakash to Prithvi Narayan.[18]
The Invasion
With the siege of Kathmandu continuing, the Gorkhalis took Kirtipur in the Battle of Kirtipur in 1767. The fall of the hilltop town located to the west of Kathmandu, which was marked by bloody fighting and savagery, was a setback for the valley's defense.
On 13th
In the following months, the Gorkhalis also conquered Lalitpur. The three kings of Nepal then gathered in Bhaktapur for a final stand against the aggressors.[22] Shah conquered Bhaktapur in 1769, thus completing his conquest of Nepal. He established the Shah dynasty which remained until 2008 when Nepal became a republic.[23]
Comments on the Invasion
Historian Baburam Acharya writes "None of the inhabitants of Kathmandu lost anything as a result of the occupation of their town by Prithvi Narayan Shah. In fact, the occupation of a capital by an army without bloodshed and plunder had few parallels in the history of the world."[24] He further argues that:
Prithvi Narayan Shah had no imperialistic ambition. His sole aim was to unify Nepal. This explains why he did not treat Kathmandu as a vanquished city and plunder it. He not only reassured the people of Kathmandu through his amicable treatment, but also chose Kantipur as his capital.
— Annexation of Malla Kingdoms by Baburam Acharya[24]
See also
References
- ^ Hamilton, Francis Buchanan (1819). An Account of the Kingdom Of Nepal and of the Territories Annexed to This Dominion by the House of Gorkha. Edinburgh: Longman. Retrieved 11 November 2012. Page 7.
- ISBN 9780813191003.
- ^ Brown, Percy (1912). Picturesque Nepal. London: Adam and Charles Black. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
- ^ Giuseppe, Father (1799). Account of the Kingdom of Nepal. London: Vernor and Hood. p. 308. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
- ISBN 9789937851800.
- ISBN 9788120615779. Pages 30-31.
- ^ Stiller, Ludwig F. (1968). Prithwinarayan Shah in the light of Dibya Upadesh. Catholic Press. p. 39.
- ISBN 9788170248477. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
- ISBN 9788170248477. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
- ISBN 9789937851800.
- ISBN 9789937851800.
- ISBN 9780415336475.
- ^ Chatterji, Nandalal (1939). "The First English Expedition to Nepal". Verelst's Rule in India. Indian Press. p. 21. Retrieved 14 November 2013.
- ISBN 9789937851800.
- ^ Giuseppe, Father (1799). Account of the Kingdom of Nepal. London: Vernor and Hood. p. 320. Retrieved November 12, 2012.
- ^ a b Acharya 1973b, p. 54.
- ^ Acharya 1973b, pp. 54–55.
- ^ a b c d Acharya 1973b, p. 55.
- ^ a b Acharya 1973a, p. 25.
- ^ Giuseppe, Father (1799). Account of the Kingdom of Nepal. London: Vernor and Hood. p. 320. Retrieved November 12, 2012.
- ^ Acharya 1973b, p. 25.
- ^ Giuseppe, Father (1799). Account of the Kingdom of Nepal. London: Vernor and Hood. p. 322. Retrieved November 12, 2012.
- ^ "Nepal's Gorkha kingdom falls". The Times of India. 2 June 2008. Archived from the original on 11 April 2013. Retrieved 11 February 2013.
- ^ a b Acharya 1973b, p. 56.
Books
- Acharya, Baburam (February 1, 1973a) [1972], "Chronology Of Events During King Prithvi Narayan Shah's Campaign Of Territorial Expansion" (PDF), Regmi Research Series, 5 (2): 21–27
- Acharya, Baburam (March 1, 1973b), "Annexation of The Malla Kingdoms" (PDF), Regmi Research Series, 5 (3): 54–61