Editing Nepal (section)

== History ==
{{Main|History of Nepal}}

=== Ancient Nepal ===
[[File:Birth of Buddha at Lumbini.jpg|thumb|This painting in a [[Laos|Laotian]] temple depicts a legend surrounding the birth of [[The Buddha|Gautama Buddha]] {{circa|563}} BC in [[Lumbini]], Western Nepal.]]

By 55,000 years ago, the first modern humans had arrived on the Indian subcontinent from [[Africa]], where they had earlier evolved.<ref name="Dyson2018">{{cite book |last=Dyson|first=Tim |title=A Population History of India: From the First Modern People to the Present Day|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3TRtDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA1|year=2018 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|isbn=978-0-19-882905-8|page=1}} Quote: "Modern human beings—''Homo sapiens''—originated in Africa. Then, intermittently, sometime between 60,000 and 80,000 years ago, tiny groups of them began to enter the north-west of the Indian subcontinent. It seems likely that initially, they came by way of the coast. ... it is virtually certain that there were ''Homo sapiens'' in the subcontinent 55,000 years ago, even though the earliest fossils that have been found of them date to only about 30,000 years before the present. (page 1)"</ref><ref name="PetragliaAllchin">{{cite book |author1=Michael D. Petraglia |author2=Bridget Allchin |author-link2=Bridget Allchin |title=The Evolution and History of Human Populations in South Asia: Inter-disciplinary Studies in Archaeology, Biological Anthropology, Linguistics and Genetics |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qm9GfjNlnRwC&pg=PA10 |publisher=[[Springer Science + Business Media]] |page=6 |isbn=978-1-4020-5562-1|date=22 May 2007 }} Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by modern humans originating in Africa. ... Coalescence dates for most non-European populations average to between 73–55 ka."</ref><ref name="Fisher2018">{{cite book |last=Fisher|first=Michael H.|title=An Environmental History of India: From Earliest Times to the Twenty-First Century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kZVuDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA23|year=2018|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|isbn=978-1-107-11162-2|page=23}} Quote: "Scholars estimate that the first successful expansion of the ''Homo sapiens'' range beyond Africa and across the Arabian Peninsula occurred from as early as 80,000 years ago to as late as 40,000 years ago, although there may have been prior unsuccessful emigrations. Some of their descendants extended the human range ever further in each generation, spreading into each habitable land they encountered. One human channel was along with the warm and productive coastal lands of the Persian Gulf and the northern Indian Ocean. Eventually, various bands entered India between 75,000 years ago and 35,000 years ago (page 23)"</ref> The earliest known modern human remains in [[South Asia]] date to about 30,000 years ago.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Petraglia|first1=Michael D.|last2=Allchin|first2=Bridget|author-link2=Bridget Allchin|editor=Michael Petraglia|editor2=Bridget Allchin|title=The Evolution and History of Human Populations in South Asia: Inter-disciplinary Studies in Archaeology, Biological Anthropology, Linguistics and Genetics|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qm9GfjNlnRwC&pg=PA6|year=2007|publisher=[[Springer Publishing]]|isbn=978-1-4020-5562-1|chapter=Human evolution and culture change in the Indian subcontinent|page=6|access-date=7 October 2020|archive-date=29 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240329124221/https://books.google.com/books?id=Qm9GfjNlnRwC&pg=PA6#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> The oldest discovered archaeological evidence of human settlements in Nepal dates to around the same time.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Corvinus |first=Gudrun |author-link=Gudrun Corvinus |title=The Prehistory of Nepal (A summary of the results of 10 years research) |publisher=[[Department of Archaeology (Nepal)|Department of Archaeology]] |journal=Ancient Nepal |location=Kathmandu |number=154 |date=March 2004 |via=[[University of Cambridge]] |url=https://himalaya.socanth.cam.ac.uk/collections/journals/ancientnepal/pdf/ancient_nepal_154_02.pdf |access-date=3 March 2020 |archive-date=3 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220603155105/https://himalaya.socanth.cam.ac.uk/collections/journals/ancientnepal/pdf/ancient_nepal_154_02.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

After 6500 BC, evidence for the domestication of food crops and animals, construction of permanent structures, and storage of agricultural surplus appeared in [[Mehrgarh]] and other sites in what is now [[Balochistan]].<ref name=coni>{{cite book|last1=Coningham|first1=Robin|last2=Young|first2=Ruth|title=The Archaeology of South Asia: From the Indus to Asoka, c. 6500 BC – 200 AD|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hB5TCgAAQBAJ|year=2015|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|isbn=978-0-521-84697-4|pages=104–5|access-date=6 March 2020|archive-date=29 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240329124236/https://books.google.com/books?id=hB5TCgAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> These gradually developed into the [[Indus Valley Civilisation]],<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kulke|first1=H.|last2=Rothermund|first2=D.|author1-link=Hermann Kulke|date=1 August 2004|title=A History of India|series=4th|publisher=[[Routledge]]|isbn=978-0-415-32920-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V73N8js5ZgAC|pages=21–3|access-date=6 March 2020|archive-date=29 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240329124238/https://books.google.com/books?id=V73N8js5ZgAC|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=coni/> the first urban culture in South Asia.<ref>{{cite book|last=Singh|first=U.|author-link=Upinder Singh|title=A History of Ancient and Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century|year=2009|publisher=[[Longman]]|location=Delhi|isbn=978-81-317-1677-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H3lUIIYxWkEC|page=181|access-date=6 March 2020|archive-date=28 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328162240/https://books.google.com/books?id=H3lUIIYxWkEC|url-status=live}}</ref> Prehistoric sites of [[Paleolithic|palaeolithic]], [[mesolithic]] and [[neolithic]] origins have been discovered in the [[Sivalik Hills|Siwalik hills]] of [[Dang District, Nepal|Dang district]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://himalaya.socanth.cam.ac.uk/c...tnepal/pdf/ancient_nepal_154_02.pdf|title=The Prehistory of Nepal}}{{Dead link|date=June 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> The earliest inhabitants of modern Nepal and adjoining areas are believed to be people from the [[Indus Valley Civilisation]]. It is possible that the [[Dravidian peoples|Dravidian]] people whose history predates the onset of the [[Bronze Age]] in the Indian subcontinent (around 6300 BC) inhabited the area before the arrival of other ethnic groups like the Tibeto-Burmans and [[Indo-Aryan peoples|Indo-Aryans]] from across the border.<ref>{{cite book|title=Nepal|author=Krishna P. Bhattarai|publisher=Infobase publishing|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-aArqOqBGBQC&pg=PA32|isbn=9781438105239|year=2009}}</ref> By 4000 BC, the Tibeto-Burmese people had reached Nepal either directly across the Himalayas from Tibet or via [[Myanmar]] and [[Northeast India|north-east India]] or both.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wang|first1=Hua-Wei|last2=Li|first2=Yu-Chun|last3=Sun|first3=Fei|last4=Zhao|first4=Mian|last5=Mitra|first5=Bikash|last6=Chaudhuri|first6=Tapas Kumar|last7=Regmi|first7=Pasupati|last8=Wu|first8=Shi-Fang|last9=Kong|first9=Qing-Peng|last10=Zhang|first10=Ya-Ping|date=April 2012|title=Revisiting the role of the Himalayas in peopling Nepal: insights from mitochondrial genomes|journal=Journal of Human Genetics|language=en|volume=57|issue=4|pages=228–234|doi=10.1038/jhg.2012.8|pmid=22437208|issn=1435-232X|doi-access=free}}</ref> [[Stella Kramrisch]] (1964) mentions a substratum of a race of pre-Dravidians and Dravidians, who were in Nepal even before the Newars, who formed the majority of the ancient inhabitants of the valley of Kathmandu.<ref>Susi Dunsmore
British Museum Press, 1993 – Crafts & Hobbies – 204 pages</ref>
[[File:Changunarayan photowalk-WLV-3897.jpg| thumb| In the premises of the [[Changu Narayan Temple]] is a stone inscription dated 464 AD, the first in Nepal since the Ashoka inscription of Lumbini ({{circa|250}} BC).]]
By the late [[Vedic period]], Nepal was being mentioned in various Hindu texts, such as the late Vedic ''[[Pariśiṣṭa#Atharvaveda|Atharvaveda Pariśiṣṭa]]'' and in the post-Vedic ''Atharvashirsha'' [[Upanishads|Upanishad]].<ref name="autogenerated4">P. 17 ''Looking to the Future: Indo-Nepal Relations in Perspective'' By Lok Raj Baral</ref> The [[Gopal Bansa]] was the oldest dynasty to be mentioned in various texts as the earliest rulers of the central Himalayan kingdom known by the name 'Nepal'.<ref name="Tiwari2001">{{cite book |author=Sudarshan Raj Tiwari|title=The Ancient Settlements of the Kathmandu Valley|year=2001|publisher=Centre for Nepal and Asian Studies, Tribhuvan University|isbn=978-99933-52-07-5|page=17}}</ref> The Gopalas were followed by [[Kirata Kingdom|Kiratas]] who ruled for over 16 centuries by some accounts.<ref>{{cite book |title=Nepal Antiquary|year=1978|publisher=Office of the Nepal Antiquary.|page=7}}</ref> According to the [[Mahabharata]], the then Kirata king went to take part in the [[Battle of Kurukshetra]]. In the south-eastern region, [[Janakpurdham]] was the capital of the prosperous kingdom of [[Videha]] or Mithila, that extended down to the Ganges, and home to [[King Janak]]a and his daughter, [[Sita]].

Around 600 BC, small kingdoms and confederations of clans arose in the southern regions of Nepal. From one of these, the [[Shakya]] polity, arose a prince who later renounced his status to lead an ascetic life, founded [[Buddhism]], and came to be known as [[Gautama Buddha]] (traditionally dated 563–483 BC).<ref name="Klostermaier">{{cite book |author=Klaus K. Klostermaier|title=A Survey of Hinduism: Second Edition|year=2007|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=df1SUJMdC9sC&pg=PA482|publisher=SUNY Press|isbn=978-1-4384-0933-7|page=482}}</ref> Nepal came to be established as a land of spirituality and refuge in the intervening centuries, played an important role in transmitting Buddhism to [[East Asia]] via Tibet,<ref name=leo/> and helped preserve Hindu and Buddhist manuscripts.

By 250 BC, the southern regions had come under the influence of the [[Maurya Empire]]. [[Emperor Ashoka]] made a pilgrimage to [[Lumbini]] and [[Pillars of Ashoka|erected a pillar]] at Buddha's birthplace, the [[Lumbini pillar inscription|inscriptions]] on which mark the starting point for properly recorded history of Nepal.{{sfn|Landon|1928|p=11}} Ashoka also visited the Kathmandu valley and built monuments commemorating Gautama Buddha's visit there. By the 4th century AD, much of Nepal was under the influence of the [[Gupta Empire]].{{efn|On [[Samudragupta]]'s [[Allahabad Pillar]], Nepal is mentioned as a border country.}}<ref name="ChakrabartiChakrabarti2013">{{cite book |author1=Kunal Chakrabarti|author2=Shubhra Chakrabarti|title=Historical Dictionary of the Bengalis|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QVOFAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA9|date= 2013|publisher=[[Scarecrow Press]]|isbn=978-0-8108-8024-5|page=9}}</ref>

In the Kathmandu valley, the Kiratas were pushed eastward by the [[Licchavi (tribe)|Licchavis]], and the [[Licchavi (kingdom)|Licchavi dynasty]] came into power {{circa}} 400 AD. The Lichchhavis built monuments and left a series of inscriptions; Nepal's history of the period is pieced together almost entirely from them.{{sfn|Landon|1928|p=19}}<ref name=leo>{{cite book |last1=Rose|first1=Leo E.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VTduAAAAMAAJ|title=Nepal: profile of a Himalayan kingdom|last2=Scholz|first2=John T.|date=1980|publisher=Westview Press|isbn=978-0-89158-651-7|language=en}}</ref> In 641, [[Songtsen Gampo]] of the [[Tibetan Empire]] sends [[Narendradeva]] back to [[Licchavi (kingdom)|Licchavi]] with an army and subjugates Nepal. Parts of Nepal and Licchavi was later under the direct influences of the Tibetan empire.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Beckwith|first=Christopher I|title=The Tibetan Empire in Central Asia: A History of the Struggle for Great Power among Tibetans, Turks, Arabs, and Chinese during the Early Middle Ages|year=1987|publisher=Princeton University Press}}</ref> The Licchavi dynasty went into decline in the late 8th century and was followed by a [[Thakuri]] rule. Thakuri kings ruled over the country up to the middle of the 11th century AD; not much is known of this period that is often called the dark period.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://royalnepal.synthasite.com/the-thakuri-dynasty.php|title=Nepal Monarchy: Thakuri Dynasty|website=royalnepal.synthasite.com|access-date=17 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141230042020/https://royalnepal.synthasite.com/the-thakuri-dynasty.php|archive-date=30 December 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Medieval Nepal ===
{{More sources|date=April 2025}}[[File: Sinja_Valley, Karnali.jpg| thumb| [[Sinja Valley]], thought to be the place of origin of the [[Khas]]as and the [[Nepali language]], was at the heart of the Khas Malla empire.]]

In the 11th century, a [[Khasa Kingdom|powerful empire]] of [[Khas people]] emerged in western Nepal whose territory at its highest peak included much of western Nepal as well as parts of western Tibet and [[Uttarakhand]] of India. By the 14th century, the empire had splintered into loosely associated {{transliteration|ne|[[Baise rajya]]s}}, literally 22 states) as they were counted. The rich culture and language of the Khas people spread throughout Nepal and as far as Indo-China in the intervening centuries; [[Khas language|their language]], later renamed the Nepali language, became the lingua franca of Nepal as well as much of North-east India.<ref name=leo/>

In south-eastern Nepal, Simraungarh annexed [[Mithila (region)|Mithila]] around 1100 AD, and the unified Tirhut stood as a powerful kingdom for more than 200 years,<ref name=Darnal/> even ruling over Kathmandu for a time.{{sfn|Landon|1928|pp=32–33}} After another 300 years of Muslim rule, Tirhut came under the control of the Sens of [[Makwanpur District|Makawanpur]].<ref name=Darnal>{{cite journal |last=Darnal|first=Prakash|date=31 December 2018|title=A Review of Simarongarh's History on Its Nexus Areas with References of Archaeological Evidences|journal=Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology and Anthropology|language=en|volume=12|pages=18–26|doi=10.3126/dsaj.v12i0.22176|issn=1994-2672|doi-access=free}}</ref> In the eastern hills, a confederation of Kirat principalities ruled the area between Kathmandu and [[Bengal]].
[[File:Patan Durbar Square-2644.jpg| thumb| [[Patan Durbar Square]], one of the three palace squares in the Kathmandu Valley, was built by the Mallas in the 17th century. The Durbar Squares are a culmination of over a millennium of development in Nepali art and architecture.]]

In the Kathmandu valley, the [[Malla (Nepal)|Mallas]], who make several appearances in Nepalese history since ancient times, had established themselves in Kathmandu and Patan by the middle of the 14th century. The Mallas ruled the valley first under the suzerainty of Tirhut but established independent reign by late 14th century as Tirhut went into decline. In the late 14th century, [[Jayasthiti Malla]] introduced widespread socio-economic reforms, principal of which was the caste system. By dividing the indigenous non-Aryan Buddhist population into castes modelled after the four [[Varna (Hinduism)|Varna system]] of Hinduism, he provided an influential model for the Sanskritisation and Hinduisation of the indigenous non-Hindu tribal populations in all principalities throughout Nepal. By the middle of the 15th century, Kathmandu had become a powerful empire which, according to [[William Kirkpatrick (East India Company officer)|Kirkpatrick]], extended from Digarchi or [[Shigatse]] in Tibet to Tirhut and [[Gaya, India|Gaya]] in India.{{sfn|Landon|1928|p=39}} 

In the late 15th century, Malla princes divided their kingdom in four – Kathmandu, Patan and Bhaktapur in the valley and Banepa to the east. The competition for prestige among these brotherly kingdoms saw the flourishing of art and architecture in central Nepal, and the building of famous [[Kathmandu Durbar Square|Kathmandu]], [[Patan Durbar Square|Patan]] and [[Bhaktapur Durbar Square]]s; their division and mistrust led to their fall in the late 18th century, and ultimately, the unification of Nepal into a modern state.<ref name=leo/>{{sfn|Landon|1928|pp=52–61}}

Apart from one destructive sacking of Kathmandu valley in the mid 14th century,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Petech |first=Luciano |url=https://ia902904.us.archive.org/29/items/mediaevalhistoryofnepallucianopetech_643_f/Mediaeval%20History%20of%20Nepal%20%20Luciano%20Petech.pdf |title=Medieval History of Nepal |publisher=Fondata Da Giuseppe Tucci |year=1984 |edition=2nd |location=Italy |pages=125}}</ref> Nepal remains largely untouched by the [[Muslim invasion of India]] that began in the 11th century. The [[Mughal Empire|Mughal period]] saw an influx of high-caste Hindus from India into Nepal. They soon intermingled with the Khas people and by the 16th century, there were about 50 Rajput-ruled principalities in Nepal, including the 22 (Baisi) states and, to their east in west-central Nepal, 24 [[Chaubisi rajya|''Chaubisi'' states]]. There emerged a view that Nepal remained the true bastion of unadulterated Hinduism at a time when Indian culture had been influenced by centuries of Mughal, followed by [[British Raj|British rule]]. [[Gorkha Kingdom|Gorkha]], one of the Baisi states, emerged as an influential and ambitious kingdom with a reputation for justice, after it codified the first Hinduism-based laws in the Nepalese hills.<ref name=leo/>

=== Unification, expansion and consolidation (1768–1951) ===
{{Main|Unification of Nepal|Kingdom of Nepal}}
{{multiple image
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| image1            = Prithvi_Narayan_Shah.jpg
| caption1          = [[Prithvi Narayan Shah]] began the [[Unification of Nepal|unification process]] of what would become the present-day country of Nepal.
| image2            = Bhimsen-thapa-painting (cropped).jpg
| caption2          = During [[Bhimsen Thapa]]'s premiership, Nepal reached its zenith.
| image3            = Jung Bahadur Rana in 1887.jpg
| caption3          = [[Jung Bahadur Rana]], who established the autocratic [[Rana regime]] in 1846 and instituted a pro-British foreign policy
| image4            = King Mahendra (cropped).png
| caption4          = During King [[Mahendra of Nepal|Mahendra]]'s reign, Nepal experienced a period of industrial, political, and economic change.
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}}
In the mid-18th century, [[Prithvi Narayan Shah]], a [[Gurkha|Gorkha]] king, set out to put together what would become present-day Nepal. He embarked on his mission by securing the neutrality of the bordering mountain kingdoms. After several bloody battles and sieges, notably the [[Battle of Kirtipur]], he managed to conquer the Kathmandu Valley in 1769.<ref>{{cite periodical |author= Father Giuseppe |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vSsoAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA307 |title=Account of the Kingdom of Nepal |magazine=Asiatick Researches |place=London | publisher=Vernor and Hood |year=1799 |page=308 |access-date=<!-- 2 July 2015 -->|volume=2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016233414/https://books.google.com/books?id=vSsoAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA307 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>
The Gorkha control reached its height when the [[Kumaon Kingdom|Kumaon]] and [[Garhwal Kingdom]]s in the west to [[Sikkim]] in the east came under Nepalese control. A dispute with [[Tibet]] over the control of mountain passes and inner Tingri valleys of Tibet prompted the [[Qing dynasty|Qing Emperor]] of China to start the [[Sino-Nepalese War|Sino-Nepali War]] compelling the Nepali to retreat to their own borders in the north.{{sfn|Landon|1928|pp=68–69}} The rivalry between the Kingdom of Nepal and the [[East India Company]] over the control of states bordering Nepal eventually led to the [[Anglo-Nepalese War|Anglo-Nepali War]] (1815–16). At first, the British underestimated the Nepali and were soundly defeated until committing more military resources than they had anticipated needing. Thus began the reputation of [[Gurkha]]s as fierce and ruthless soldiers. The war ended in the [[Sugauli Treaty]], under which Nepal ceded recently captured lands.{{sfn|Landon|1928|pp=75–80}}<ref name=leo/>

Factionalism inside the royal family led to a period of instability. In 1846, a plot was discovered revealing that the reigning queen had planned to overthrow Jung Bahadur Kunwar, a fast-rising military leader. This led to the [[Kot massacre]]; armed clashes between military personnel and administrators loyal to the queen led to the execution of several hundred princes and chieftains around the country. Bir Narsingh Kunwar emerged victoriously and founded the [[Rana dynasty]], and came to be known as [[Jung Bahadur Rana]]. The king was made a titular figure, and the post of Prime Minister was made powerful and hereditary. The Ranas were staunchly pro-British and assisted them during the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857]] (and later in both World Wars). In 1860 some parts of the western Terai region were gifted to Nepal by the British as a friendly gesture because of its military help to sustain British control in India during the rebellion (known as ''[[Naya Muluk]]'', new country). In 1923, the [[United Kingdom]] and Nepal formally signed [[Nepal–Britain Treaty of 1923|an agreement of friendship]] that superseded the Sugauli Treaty of 1816.<ref name="auto">{{cite book |first1=andrea matles |last1=savada |first2=george lawrence |last2=harris |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/93012226/ |title=Nepal and Bhutan : country studies |access-date=26 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160630034937/https://www.loc.gov/item/93012226/ |archive-date=30 June 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The Hindu practice of [[Sati (practice)|Sati]], in which a widow sacrificed herself in the funeral pyre of her husband, was banned in 1919, and [[History of slavery in Asia|slavery]] was officially abolished in 1924.{{sfn|Hutt|2004|p=22}} Rana rule was marked by tyranny, [[wikt:debauchery|debauchery]], economic exploitation and religious persecution.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Dietrich |first=Angela |title=Buddhist Monks and Rana Rulers: A History of Persecution |url=https://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-BH/bh117536.htm |journal=Buddhist Himalaya: A Journal of Nagarjuna Institute of Exact Methods |year=1996 |access-date=17 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131001124156/https://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-BH/bh117536.htm |archive-date=1 October 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Lal |first=C.K. |title=The Rana resonance |url=https://nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8741 |newspaper=Nepali Times |date=16 February 2001 |access-date=17 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928013152/https://nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8741 |archive-date=28 September 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== Contemporary history ===
In the late 1940s, newly emerging pro-democracy movements and political parties in Nepal were critical of the Rana autocracy. Following the success of [[Indian Independence Movement]] which Nepalese activists had taken part in, with India's support and cooperation of King Tribhuvan, [[Nepali Congress]] was successful in toppling the Rana regime, establishing a parliamentary democracy. After a decade of power wrangling between the king and the government, [[Mahendra of Nepal|King Mahendra]] (ruled 1955–1972) scrapped the democratic experiment in 1960, and a "partyless" [[Panchayat (Nepal)|Panchayat]] system was made to govern Nepal. The political parties were banned and politicians imprisoned or exiled.{{sfn|Hutt|2004|pp=3–7}} The Panchayat rule modernised the country, introducing reforms and developing infrastructure, but curtailed liberties and imposed heavy censorship. In 1990, the [[People's Movement I (1990)|People's Movement]] forced [[Birendra of Nepal|King Birendra]] (ruled 1972–2001) to accept constitutional reforms and to establish a multiparty democracy.{{sfn|Hutt|2004|pp=3–7}}<ref name="Nepal_Timeline">{{cite news |title=Nepal profile – Timeline|date=19 February 2018|work=[[BBC News]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/country_profiles/1166516.stm |access-date=29 September 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070303103321/https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/country_profiles/1166516.stm |archive-date=3 March 2007 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1996, the [[Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist)|Maoist Party]] started a violent bid to replace the royal parliamentary system with a people's republic.{{sfn|Hutt|2004|pp=3–7}} This led to the long [[Nepalese Civil War]] and more than 16,000 deaths.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8268651.stm|title=Nepal raises conflict death toll|date=22 September 2009|language=en-GB|work=[[BBC News]]|access-date=11 March 2020|archive-date=5 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105182206/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8268651.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> With the death of both the King and the Crown Prince in a [[Nepalese royal massacre|massacre in the royal palace]], King Birendra's brother [[Gyanendra of Nepal|Gyanendra]] inherited the throne in 2001{{sfn|Hutt|2004|pp=3–7}} and subsequently assumed full executive powers aiming to quash the Maoist insurgency himself.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Hutt|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Hutt (academic and translator)|year=2005|title=King Gyanendra's Coup and its Implications for Nepal's Future|jstor=24590670|journal=[[The Brown Journal of World Affairs]]|volume=12|issue=1|pages=111–123|issn=1080-0786}}</ref>

The Maoist Party joined mainstream politics following the success of the peaceful [[2006 Nepalese revolution|democratic revolution of 2006]];<ref name="Abolish">{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7424302.stm |title=Nepal votes to abolish monarchy |work=[[BBC News]] |date=28 May 2008 |access-date=18 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170107130737/https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7424302.stm |archive-date=7 January 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> Nepal became a [[secular state]],<ref>{{cite news|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/05/18/nepal.king/|title=Nepal king stripped of most powers|publisher=[[CNN]]|date=18 May 2006|access-date=18 April 2020|archive-date=23 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200123080202/http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/05/18/nepal.king/|url-status=live}}</ref> and on 28 May 2008, it was declared a federal republic,<ref name="Abolish"/> ending its time-honoured status as the world's only [[Hindu king]]dom.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/03/world/birenda-55-ruler-of-nepal-s-hindu-kingdom.html|title=Birenda, 55, Ruler of Nepal's Hindu Kingdom|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|last=Crossette|first=Barbara|author-link=Barbara Crossette|date=3 June 2001|access-date=18 April 2020|archive-date=24 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200724150104/https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/03/world/birenda-55-ruler-of-nepal-s-hindu-kingdom.html|url-status=live}}</ref> After a decade of instability and internal strife which saw two constituent assembly elections,<ref name="mao">{{cite news |last=Kaphle |first=Anup |date=7 July 2010 |title=Long stalemate after Maoist victory disrupts life in Nepal |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/06/AR2010070605214.html |url-status=live |access-date=22 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104015054/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/06/AR2010070605214.html |archive-date=4 November 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=17 April 2008 |title=Nepal's election The Maoists triumph |newspaper=[[The Economist]] |url=https://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11057207&fsrc=nwl |url-status=live |access-date=29 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090214103506/https://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11057207&fsrc=nwl |archive-date=14 February 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=28 August 2011 |title=Baburam Bhattarai elected prime minister of Nepal |work=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-14700892 |url-status=live |access-date=12 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111010024052/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-14700892 |archive-date=10 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=28 May 2012 |title=Nepal PM calls new elections after constitution failure |publisher=[[CBC News]] |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/nepal-pm-calls-new-elections-after-constitution-failure-1.1251219 |url-status=live |access-date=28 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120528045008/https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2012/05/27/nepal-elections.html |archive-date=28 May 2012}}</ref> the [[Constitution of Nepal|new constitution]] was promulgated on 20 September 2015, making Nepal a [[Federated state|federal]] democratic republic divided into [[Provinces of Nepal|seven provinces]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://kathmandupost.com/valley/2015/09/20/constitution-special-the-evolution-of-nepals-constitution|title=[Constitution special] The evolution of Nepal\'s constitution|newspaper=[[The Kathmandu Post]]|language=English|date=20 September 2015|access-date=18 April 2020|archive-date=18 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200518203321/https://kathmandupost.com/valley/2015/09/20/constitution-special-the-evolution-of-nepals-constitution|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://kathmandupost.com/valley/2015/09/20/people-celebrate-constitution-promulgation-in-photos|title=Constitution of Nepal 2015 Promulgated|newspaper=[[The Kathmandu Post]]|language=English|date=20 September 2015|access-date=18 April 2020|archive-date=1 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210301131012/https://kathmandupost.com/valley/2015/09/20/people-celebrate-constitution-promulgation-in-photos|url-status=live}}</ref>
{{clear}}