Nepal History

History
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is located mainly in the Himalayas but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. Nepal has a diverse geography, including fertile plains, subalpine forested hills, and eight of the world's ten tallest mountains, including Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth.

The name Nepal is first recorded in texts from the Vedic period of the Indian subcontinent, the era in ancient India when Hinduism was founded, the predominant religion of the country. The Shah dynasty established the Kingdom of Nepal and later formed an alliance with the British Empire, under its Rajput Rana dynasty of premiers.

The country was never colonized but served as a buffer state between Imperial China and British India. Parliamentary democracy was introduced in 1951, but was twice suspended by Nepalese monarchs, in 1960 and 2005. The Nepalese Civil War in the 1990's and early 2000's resulted in the proclamation of a secular republic in 2008, ending the world's last Hindu monarchy.

The Constitution of Nepal, adopted in 2015, establishes Nepal as a federal secular parliamentary republic divided into seven provinces. Nepal was admitted to the United Nations in 1955, and friendship treaties were signed with India in 1950 and the People's Republic of China in 1960. 

Timeline
1767 -The Battle of Kirtipur is also known for its vicious fighting and intense cruelty 1815 - 1816 The Anglo-Nepalese War was the treaty that established the boundary line of Nepal and was signed between the East India Company and King of Nepal 1923 - The United Kingdom and Nepal formally signed an agreement of friendship that superseded the Sugauli Treaty of 1816 1924 - Legalized slavery was abolished in Nepal but an estimated 234,600 people are enslaved in modern-day Nepal 1996 - The Communist Party of Nepal started a violent bid to replace the royal parliamentary system with a people's republic. This led to the long Nepali Civil War and more than 12,000 deaths 2007 - 2008 A bill was passed in parliament to amend the constitution – replacing "Provisions regarding the King" by "Provisions of the Head of the State" – declaring Nepal a federal republic 2015 - A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Nepal and two weeks later, on 12 May, another earthquake with a magnitude of 7.3 hit Nepal, which left more than 8,500 people dead and about 21,000 injured

Sources: The Third World Encyclopedia; Nepal and Bhutan, Country Studies.

Other Websites
Source: Grolier's Encyclopedia
 * Nepal Family History