Modern Nepal (A Political history 1769-1955) – Rishikesh Shah

There has been no single balanced and readable work on the history of modern Nepal.
This running account of political trends and developments in Nepal during a period of about two hundred years (1769-1955) from the rise of King Prithvinarayan Shah (1769-1775), the founder of the present Shah dynasty till the end of the post Tribhuvan revolutionary era until 1955, the year in which King Tribhuvan the harbinger of democracy died, seeks to fill this gap,
Starting with general introductory background about Nepal, the story takes us through the ascendence of Prithvinarayan Shah, the erstwhile ruler of Gorkha as the King of Nepal, the emergence of Rana Prime Ministers as virtual rulers, their inter family feuds and ends with the 1950-51 revolution and its aftermath.
The author has made use of English and Nepali sources in writing the book. A special feature of the book is the extensive use made by the author of the correspondence between London and British Embassy in Kathmandu preserved in Public Record Office at Kew Gardens, London not examined so far by other historians. The author who combines academic scholarship with pionee- ring political leadership has produced an admirable story of the making of modern Nepal – the best single work on the subject which would go a long way towards making modern Nepal better known.
Rishikesh Shaha, a scholar involved in political activity in Nepal since the 1950-51 revolution, has had a successful career as Nepal’s leader of political opposition, ambassador, cabinet min- ister, chairman of the standing committee of the council of state. He was elected to Nepal’s panchayat national legislature for the period 1967-71 from the prestigious graduates’ constituency. He has been a visiting professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Washington, D.C. and the East-West Center, Honolulu. The author has to his credit several books on Nepal’s history, government and politics.

Modern Nepal (A Political history 1769-1955) – Rishikesh Shah