Editing Kathmandu (section)

=== Medieval era ===
==== Early Shah rule ====

The [[Gorkha Kingdom]] ended the Malla confederation after the [[Battle of Kathmandu]] in 1768. This marked the beginning of the modern era in Kathmandu. The [[Battle of Kirtipur]] was the start of the [[Unification of Nepal|Gorkha conquest]] of the Kathmandu Valley. Kathmandu was adopted as the capital of the [[Gorkha Kingdom|Gorkha]] empire, and the empire itself was dubbed Nepal. During the early part of this era, Kathmandu maintained its distinctive culture. Buildings with characteristic Nepali architecture, such as the nine-story tower of Basantapur, were built during this era. However, trade declined because of continual war with neighbouring nations. [[Bhimsen Thapa]] supported France against Great Britain; this led to the development of modern military structures, such as modern barracks in Kathmandu. The nine-storey tower [[Dharahara]] was originally built during this era.

==== Rana rule ====

Rana rule over Nepal started with the [[Kot massacre]] of 1846, which occurred near Hanuman Dhoka Durbar. During this massacre, most of Nepal's high-ranking officials were massacred by [[Jung Bahadur Rana]] and his supporters. Another massacre, the [[List of massacres in Nepal|Bhandarkhal Massacre]], was also conducted by Kunwar and his supporters in Kathmandu. During the Rana regime, Kathmandu's alliance shifted from anti-British to pro-British; this led to the construction of the first buildings in the style of Western European architecture. The most well-known of these buildings include Singha Durbar, [[Garden of Dreams]], Shital Niwas, and the old Narayanhiti palace. The first modern commercial road in the Kathmandu Valley, the [[New Road of Kathmandu|New Road]], was also built during this era. [[Tri-Chandra College|Trichandra College]] (the first college of Nepal), [[Durbar High School]] (the first modern school of Nepal), and [[Bir Hospital]] (the first hospital of Nepal) were built in Kathmandu during this era. Education was only accessible to the privileged class. Rana rule was marked by despotism, economic exploitation and religious persecution.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dietrich |first=Angela |title=Buddhist Monks and Rana Rulers: A History of Persecution |url=http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-BH/bh117536.htm |access-date=24 September 2013 |newspaper=Buddhist Himalaya: A Journal of Nagarjuna Institute of Exact Methods |year=1996 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131001124156/http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-BH/bh117536.htm |archive-date=1 October 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Lal |first=C. K. |title=The Rana resonance |url=http://nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8741 |access-date=24 September 2013 |newspaper=Nepali Times |date=16 February 2001 |archive-date=28 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928013152/http://nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8741 |url-status=live}}</ref>