Prithvi Narayan Shah: How Nepal Was Unified

Before 1769, the territory we call Nepal was a patchwork of dozens of small kingdoms. Prithvi Narayan Shah, ruler of the tiny Gorkha kingdom, changed that forever.

Overview

Born in 1723, Prithvi Narayan Shah became king of Gorkha at 20. He recognised that the prosperous Kathmandu Valley was the key to controlling Himalayan trade routes and conceived a decades-long plan to conquer it. Starting in 1743, he systematically blockaded the valley's trade routes, cutting off the salt supplies essential to the Malla kingdoms, while simultaneously building alliances and training a disciplined army. The East India Company sent a relief force to help the Mallas in 1767, but it was defeated and forced to retreat. By 1769 all three Kathmandu Valley city-states had fallen. Prithvi Narayan moved his capital to Kathmandu and declared Nepal a unified kingdom. He famously called Nepal a yam between two boulders — India and China — recognising the strategic reality that has defined Nepal's foreign policy ever since. He died in 1775, leaving a kingdom that has maintained its independence ever since, never colonised by any foreign power. His birthday, Prithvi Jayanti (January 11), is celebrated as National Unity Day in Nepal.

FAQ

Was Prithvi Narayan Shah related to today's former royal family? Yes — he founded the Shah dynasty that ruled Nepal until King Gyanendra was deposed in 2008 when Nepal became a republic.

What was the Gorkha kingdom before unification? Gorkha was a small hill kingdom west of Kathmandu, covering today's Gorkha District. It was unremarkable until Prithvi Narayan Shah's ambition transformed it into the nucleus of unified Nepal.