The Chamba Lahaul and the British Lahaul Story

The Chamba Lahaul and the British Lahaul Story

The Himalayan / Trans Himalayan Region of Lahaul Spiti today stands as a district in the state of Himachal Pradesh. Both these Regions which were once and still are mostly Himalayan backwaters are now seeing rapid changes coming. The opening of the Rohtang Tunnel for public will open Lahaul at least to outside world like never before. And from a Tourist point of view it will grow more than a one night stop over on the way to Ladakh. Spiti will also be affected though it manages all year round connectivity from the other side. And Spiti has recently seen the influx of Tourists especially the younger generation like never before. Its like Spiti is like the new Ladakh and we see stuff on Spiti all the time.

Wife of Thakur Amar Chand of Lahaul as taken by Ralph Stewart 1913

Lahaul and Spiti have had a checkered fascinating history and lying on the Himalayan borderlines they have always been the bone of contention for various powers in the Region from the states of Kashmir, Chamba, Kullu, Bushahr, Ladakh, Guge, Tibet, the Chinese and even the Mongols, Baltis and Yarkandis. However little is known of the exact circumstances and the chain of events of History that followed as there are no written records. All the above powerful states / people left some mark or influence on these two adjoining Regions. This is an attempt to piece together their History though for most of the time the History followed its separate course in Lahaul and its own course in Spiti. Thats only fair as physically there is a contrast between the verticality of the Cis-Himalayan Lahaul Valley and the seeming Horizontality of the Trans-Himalayan Spiti Valley.

Lahual from somewhere near Keylong

The culture of Lahaul is also a curious mix of many influences mostly Hindu and Buddhist but also of the aboriginal Religion which was referred to as Loong Pai Chos which shared some similarity with the old Tibetan Bon traditions. This has resulted in a syncretic Religion in most of Lahaul and the Lahaulis like to mostly refer to themselves as Hindu-Bodh, which to me is a perfect example of peaceful co-existence of two major Religions. Spiti on the other hand has always been under great influence of Tibet and Ladakh and hence it has developed a strong tradition of Tibetan Buddhism as practiced in Tibet and Ladakh. And of course there are many Cultural similarities with the same Regions as well.

Somewhere in Lahaul by Ralph Stewart 1913

The origin of the name “Lahaul” is kinda not clear. The Ladakhis / Tibetans referred to Lahaul as Garzha or Garsa or vDvarska though some say the present name is derived from the Tibetan word Loh-Yul or the Land of the South. From the earliest records it is said that Lahaul was a part of the Kingdom of Chamba under Ajy Verman who became a Vassal of Kashmir sometime around the 8th Century. Thus Lahaul became a part of the Kashmir Kingdom and the influence of the most powerful King of Kashmir, Lalitaditya can be seen in Maylang and even in some early Temples in Kullu. But with time Kashmir lost its influence and it was Chamba Kingdom which prevailed over Lahaul it seems.

A Village near Darcha towards Zanskar.

Later it seems Lahaul became a part of the vast Kingdom of Guge in Western Tibet which included besides Lahaul, Spiti, Zanskar, Ladakh and even parts of Kashtwar and Paldar (as Kishtwar and Paddar were referred to by the Tibetans). At that time it is said that Lahaul was much bigger and included parts of Pangi and Paddar as they exist today. Since these Valleys are contiguous along the Chandrabhaga/ Chenab it is quite possible that the Guge influence was there as well. But after the fall of the Guge Kingdom, Lahaul was eyed upon by the neighbouring Kingdoms and it became somewhat of a bone of contention between the Chamba, the Kullu and the Bushahr Kingdoms. And it was during the Guge rule that Buddhism spread rapidly all over Lahaul and became the dominant Religious order. It was in the 16th Century that Raja Bahadur Singh of Kullu made certain incursions into Lahaul and loosened the grip of the Guge rule in the areas of Lahaul adjoining Kullu. The Kullu Rajas appointed local Chieftains who were mostly Buddhists. Their allegiance also varied between Kullu, Guge and even Ladakh depending on where the wind blew. This helped keep things mostly peaceful in Lahaul during these periods.

A Prayer Wheel in Lahaul by Ralph Stewart 1913

And Chamba Kingdom also started to take the lead and as the hold of the Guge weakened the Chamba Rajas began to assert their authority and advanced into areas which were associated with Western Lahaul rather than Chamba. They had advanced well into Pangi and Trilokinath which was the most important religious Center in Lahaul. The Chamba Rajas drew a nominal tribute from Lahaul, which the Lahaulis though still under the Gue Kingdom had no choice but to pay and one of the main items of tribute were 12 large dogs. I assume Lahauli Dogs for some reason held great value for the Chambyalis as I imagine these were Tibetan Mastiffs and they were good Dogs. Of course all these activities did not go unnoticed by the Rajas of Kullu and Bushahr. And the Kullu Raja decided to do something about it.Of course before also Kullu Rajas had made advances on the other side of the Rohtang. And there was a continuous power struggle between the Kullu Rajas with the Chambyalis on one side for Lahaul and with the Bushahris for Spiti on the other side. But nominally both Lahaul and Spiti were under Tibetan / Ladakhi Rule who were facing their own sets of problems with other neighbours mostly of Mongol origins.

Jispa, Lahaul

And then in 1671 a Mongol Army attacked Lahaul and as usual they were in control for a few years. The Mongols probably wanted to assert the authority of the Central Tibetan Kingdom headed by the Dalai Lama and a claimant to all the territories of the Guge Kingdom. Interestingly there have been found graves and tombs in Lahaul of unknown people as both the Hindus and the Budhhists have never ritually buried the dead. They are supposed to be the remnants of people or perhaps a small force which came from Yarkand. But as usual the Mongols didnt stay put for long and left leaving Lahaul mostly to itself though still under Tibetan Rule.

Once they had left the Raja of Kullu decided to assert himself in a special way. The Kullu Raja married a Princess of Kishtwar for the same purpose.. And decided to go himself to Kishtwar to get his Bride. Of course the way he decided to assert to the Lahauli’s s that they should get rid of the Guge Rulers and be a part of Kullu. Thus his whole entourage was a show of strength of the Kullu Kingdom not only put on show for the Lahauli’s but for their friendly neighbourhood Chambyalis as well. And it seems the ploy worked but by then the Guge Kingdom was as good as collapsed. Lahaul was now firmly in Kullu’s grip except that the powerful Raja Chattar Singh of Chamba decided to re-assert his authority and again took Pangi and Trilokinath under strong Chamba control. And further Raja Chattar Singh’s son Raja Udai Singh further continued this Policy and even named the main Village where the Trilokinath Temple was situated as Udaipur, a name which still stands today. And the Kullu Rajas were firmly in the seat in other parts of Lahaul.

Above Keylong by Ralph Stewart 1913

But in the meantime things dramatically changed in Northern India and the British and the Sikhs under the Sher e Punjab Ranjit Singh were vying for power and the Western Himalayas came under the control of the Sikhs. Kullu and Chamba both became a part of the Sikh Kingdom and so did Lahaul. And it remained hence and this was enhanced when in 1840 the Sikh forces moved into Kullu and came down to Lahaul as well. And finally when the British defeated the Sikhs it passed onto the Brirtish. And as a result of the machinations which followed the formation of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, Chamba got to keep its part of Lahaul which was henceforth called as the Chamba Lahaul while Kullu was taken over by the British and the Kullu part of Lahaul was now called British Lahaul. Interestingly even Spiti had gone over to Raja Gulab Singh as it was a part of Ladakh but the British thought it prudent to have direct access to the Pashmina rich Region of Changthang and this could do this only if they kept Spiti.

Looking towards “British Lahaul” from outside Udaipur

And so it was till the British left and both Chamba and Kullu became a part of Himachal Pradesh and once again Chamba Lahaul and British Lahaul were merged to form Lahaul as we know it today.

Source : Various sources including Harcourt’s Himalayan Districts of Koloo, Lahoul and Spiti, 1874. Also History of Lahaul and Spiti by Sanjay Kumar. And of course a number of conjectures of my own. Please feel free to point out if you notice any discrepancy.

Pic: The Sun sets over what used to be Chamba Lahaul just outside the Village of Udaipur as the Chandrabhaga flows by. The Chorten was amongst the first reminder of the Cultural change in the Region as one comes in from the Pangi Valley side in Chamba.

Pic from June 2019. Near Udaipur, Lahaul, Himachal Pradesh.

The Remanent of an Army

The Remanent of an Army

In John Keay’s epic "When Men and Mountains Meet: The Explorers of the Western Himalayas 1820-1875" there is mentioned a certain meeting between Raja Gulab Singh (The future Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu and Kashmir) and the British Governor of Punjab who’s name I cannot recall. It was sometime in 1842. And it was in Shimla. It was in the times of the Great Game.

After the traditional exchange of greetings between the two men, who didn't seem to be too fond of each other, they sat down. Raja Gulab Singh started the conversation. He said he had bad news coming from the side of Afghanistan. It seemed that the Sun had been eclipsed. The Great British Army of the Indus had been annihilated and only one person out of over 20,000 had made it back to safety into British territory. The Britisher looked up at the Raja of the Dogras, and without twitching an eyelid said that Raja Sahib I too have bad news for you. These come from the Trans Himalayan region of Tibet. Your General Zorawar Singh and his Army on its way to conquer Lhasa had been all killed in an engagement with a joint Chinese-Tibetan force and a few remnants of the Dogra Army had managed to make their way to the British Garrison in Almora. It seemed that the Moon too had been eclipsed, Raja Sahib.

Raja Gulab Singh had often retorted to the British that his (Sikh Kingdom) was a Moon in front of the Sun that the British Empire was. But for the time being both seemed eclipsed.

Whether both men were already aware of the happenings on either side of the Himalayas as they sat that day in Shimla is anyone’s guess. Both were tough Military men, being Generals in the most powerful Armies on the sub-continent were not me who would let go of their emotions. The Great Army of the Indus, of the powerful British had been all but massacred by the Afghans and on the other side the powerful Dogras led by General Zorawar Singh had met a similar fate at the hand of the Tibetans. It was a great set back to both parties and revenge was already on the cards.

It is often said that the achievements of General Zorawar Singh were overlooked by historians of that time as they were focused on the events in Afghanistan as the First Anglo Afghan battle was underway and even after winning the initial Battles and in control of Kabul they could not hold the Afghans under control for long. Kabul proved too much for the British to handle And in the beginning of January 1942 they decided to evacuate Kabul and crossover the Hindu Kush into friendly territory across the Khyber. The whole British enterprise into Afghanistan through Sikh territory was the fear of the Afghan Rulers getting an alliance with the Russians who were seen as actively trying to undermine British interest in Afghanistan like they had done in Persia.

The only surviving member of the Army of the Indus, was the assistant Surgeon William Brydon who was immortalised in this classical Painting by Elizabeth Butler called the “Remnant of an Army” as he trudged on his tired horse with the Fort of Jalalabad in sight. It is said that the Horse died as soon as he was put into a stable. Dr.Brydon also survived by sheer good fortune although a part of skull was sheared off by an Afghan sword but he had stuffed a Magazine in his hat to keep his head warm in the freezing snowbound Passes of the Hindu Kush. The Magazine took the brunt of that Afghan sword swipe and hence the Doctor survived. The only survivor of the Army of the Indus.

The painting is dated January 13, 1942.

PS: There were other survivors but they emerged later as they were rescued by successive punitive Missions by the British.



The Chamba Story

The Chamba Story

Chamba today is a quaint little district of Himachal Pradesh known more for its Hill Station of Dalhousie than anything else.

However the Kingdom of Chamba in its time was a powerful Kingdom which held sway in large part of one of the most unvisited and unexplored parts of the Western Himalayas including Lahaul, Bahderwah, Padder and Zanskar. All these regions are still largely unexplored and the Chambyalis were the Masters of all these regions at a point in history.

For Lahaul they were always in a power struggle with the Kulu State and they even met at Battle right on the Rohtang Pass as well. Rohtang kinda was the point where Kullu met Lahoul and kinda touched Chamba as well. Both Chamba and Kulu were in a constant state of rivalry over Lahaul. Though it was mostly the Kulu state which held onto Lahaul after the disintegration of the Ladakhi Kingdom.

The King Chattar Singh of Chamba attacked Padder in the middle of the 18th century and established Chamba Rule over the Padder region in Kishtwar. After being victorious Chattar Singh established a Fort there known as Chattar Garh. Padder continued to be under the control of Chamba till 1836.

In the early 1800’s Ratnu Thakur, the top official of the Chamba King, undertook an expedition to Zanskar and made it a tributary of Chamba as well. The King of Zanskar agreed to pay an annual tribute to Kingdom of Chamba.

It was around this time that my favorite historical character, the Sher e Punjab was on the rise and all the Hill Rajas including the Rajas of Chamba had no option but to accept the Sikh Emperor as their overlord. The Emperor deposed most of the Hill Rajas but he had a soft corner for Chamba as the main Wazir, Wazir Nathu, had played a positive role in the negotiations with Raja Sansar Chand of Kangra in 1809 and had as per some reports saved the life of the Emperor himself by providing him a horse in the 1817 Campaign in Kashmir.

Around the same time happened the invasion of Ladakh by the indomitable General Zorarwar Singh. While on his back from the first campaign in Ladakh on reaching Kishtwar, the General heard of an uprising in Ladakh. He rushed back to Ladakh, but this time taking the shortest route through Paddar via Umasi La Pass into Zanskar and onto Leh to put down the uprising.

A detachment of his Army under Wazir Lakhpat Rai and Col. Mehta Basti Ram was sent to subdue the Zanskaris which they did and stationed some Dogra soldiers there as well. And thence they returned to Jammu via Paddar but stationed a few Dogra troops in Paddar as well.

As General Zorarwar Singh was tending the affairs in Ladakh and Baltistan the Zanskaris rose up in revolt and put the Dogra garisson to the sword. The news of this reached Paddar and the overzelaous Ratnu Thakur decided to use this oppurtunity to attack the Dogra soldiers stationed in Paddar. Some were killed and others were taken as prisoners to Chamba.

The General got the news in Ladakh and was visibly incensed at this attack on his soldiers in what he considered friendly territory. Well those of you are aware of the kind of man General Zorawar Singh Kahluria was know what was coming next.

The General with a detachment of his Army invaded Paddar vis the Bhot Nullah from Zanskar. The whole Fort and town of Chattar Garh was destroyed and it was renamed Gulabgarh in the name of Raja Gulab Singh. Meanwhile on hearing the news of Zorawar’s approach Ratnu Thakur fled to Chamba. After claiming Padder Zorarwar Singh decided to make a push for Chamba
itself.

The Chamba Rajas knew that facing the battle hardened Dogras of the General would be quite a task made a representation to Raja Gulab Singh denying any involvement in the unfortunate incidents that took place in Padder and put the blame squarely on Ratnu Thakur. Consequently Ratnu Thakur was despatched to Jammu by the Chamba Rajas where he was imprisoned by Raja Gulab Singh. But this was not the last of Ratnu Thakur. After a few years news came to Raja Gulab Singh that Ratnu Thakur in the prison had shaved his head and his beard. Raja Gulab Singh sent for Ratnu Thakur and asked him why he did so ? My King has died and I as a loyal subject owe him this, Ratnu answered. The King of Chamba, Chattar Singh had passed away a few days back. Raja Gulab Singh was impressed with his sense of loyalty and decided to free him and even bestowed upon him a Jagir in Kishtwar.

However by 1841 the Sher-e-Punjab, indomitable General and the Wazir had passed away and the Sikh kingdom was in dissaray. The Chamba Rajas were now without a protector and the field was now open. However the Sikh Armies finally met the British Army in 1845 and in the consequence of their defeat Chamba was now ceded to the British. In the meantime Raja Gulab Singh had already taken Badarwah in the meanwhile and installed Raja Prakram Singh (who incidentaly was the son of Raja Zorwar Singh who was the nominal Raja of Badarwah being made so by his brother Raja Chattar Singh, the Ruler of Chamba). However Chamba still mantained its claim over Badarwah.

In the after math the British signed a treaty with the Raja of Gulab Singh under which all the territory to the North of the Ravi to the the Indus and beyond was given to Raja Gulab in lieu of Rupees Seventy Five Lakhs he paid as war indemnity on part of the defeated Sikh armies.

Thus even most of Chamba, which lay beyond the Ravi became a part of the new state of Jammu and Kashmir with Gulab Singh as its Maharaja. But then the Wazir Bhaga, another able Wazir from the family of Wazir Nathu, intervened and asked the British to take them under their wings instead of becoming a part of Jammu and Kashmir. Chamba Kingdom had to give up its claim on Badarwah and all other territories beyond it which became a part of Jammu and Kashmir. And the Chamba Kingdom promised to pay a tribute of Rs.12,000 per annum to the British plus Dalhousie was leased out to the British in perpetuaty as a Hill Station where the troops could get some R&R.

Subsequently in 1947 Chamba State became a part of Punjab Hill States and later an important part of Himachal Pradesh.

Coming back to where we started, Dalhousie, the most well known place in Chamba nowadays, the tales bravery, conquest and subterfuge all but forgotten.

A view of the Pir Panjals looking out of Dalhousie.

If only these Mountains could speak, the tales they would tell would truly be extra-ordinary.

Pic from October 2016, Dalhousie, Himachal Pradesh

The Khukris of Kotkhai Palace

The Khukris of the Kotkhai Fort

As they say every pic tells a story.

This pic was clicked in the Diwan E Khas of the Fort Palace of the Rana Sahib of Kotkhai. I had earlier posted another pic from the same place.

Like any Royal places of audience it had the customary display of weapons of war and trophies of hunts. There were Shields, Swords, Matchlocks, Bows, Kataars and most intruigingly Khukris. And this opened the Pandora Box of the time when the Gurkhas were in control of this area along with Garhwal and Kumaon and which eventually brought them into conflict with the British.

The Gurkha war machine after over running Garhwal and Kumaon and certain parts of Himachal laid a siege on one of the most important Forts of the Lower Himalayas, the Fort of Kangra in 1806. Led by General Amar Singh Thapa, also referred to as Kazi, the Gurkhas were simply unstoppable. The House of Gurkha, inspired by the Great Prithvi Narayan Shah were expanding their Empire like never before and led by Generals like the Kazi, who was the Military Commander of the Gurkha armies to the west of the Sutlej they were on a roll. Soon they over came the defenders of the Fort and the Kangra Fort was now in the hands of the Gurkhas. As per a report of a British Officer Captain C.P Kennedy in 1824 after Kangra the next target for the Gurkhas was Kashmir, which at that time was under the Afghans.

Except that another equally powerful entity had its eyes on the Kangra Fort, the Hill States and Kashmir and beyond. This was Maharaja Ranjit Singh and his equally warlike Army of the Khalsa ie the Confederacy of the Sikhs. After the fall of the Fort the ruler of Kangra, Raja Sansar Chand Katoch approached Maharaja Ranjit Singh asking for his help in evicting the Gurkhas. It has to be noted that the Sikh and the Katoch armies had also fought against each other as Maharaja Ranjit Singh had set his eyes on the Himalayas as mentioned earlier and they were not really the best of friends. But for now the best recourse available to the Hill Raja was to seek the help of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The Kangra Raja offered the Sikhs the Fort for the long term if they could make the Gurkhas leave.

Maharaja Ranjit Singh was not only a great military genius and organiser of the Sikh armies, he also had great sagicity and foresight. He knew exactly what it would entail taking on the Gurkhas, they had a reputation for all the right reasons. And he knew that the biggest victors in an all out clash between the Sikhs and the Gurkhas would be the British as both these forces would be greatly weakened if they got into a war. And he did what he thought would be in everyone’s best interest. Of course his own interest and the interest of his statecraft was paramount.

Ludwig Stiller writes in his epic book “The Rise of the House of Gorkha” that Maharaja Ranjit Singh sent a letter to General Amar Singh Thapa in August 1809 asking him to peacefully give up the Kangra Fort and vacate the whole area to the Sikhs and in return he offered Gurkhas military help, whenever they came into conflict with the British, which was clearly inevitable. Just to push his point in, being the Great Military Genius he was, he had cut off the supply lines of the Gurkhas and had the Fort surrounded. The Kazi offered money to Maharaja Ranjit Singh in order to withdraw but it was Kangra the Maharaja wanted and not money. That was when the Letter was sent.

General Amar Singh Thapa was incensed when he read the letter and even imprisoned the messenger. The reason for this was that he was aware that the Maharaja and the British had signed the Treaty of Amritsar in 1809 in which it was agreed that the Maharaja would keep to the other side of Satluj and not interfere with the British dominions and protectrates below it. It was however set him free to do whatever to the North and the West of the Sutlej. The Kazi found it hypocritical that the Maharaja would sign a Treaty with the British on one hand and offer help to the Gurkhas against them on the other hand. This is how the greatest Empires were built but I assume the Kazi was more of a military man. The Kazi refused the offer.

Maharaja Ranjit Singh had no other option except the Military one now as a conflict with the Gurkhas could not be avoided. The Gurkhas had spurned his offer. There ensued a short War, called the Sikh Gurkha war, both sides fought tooth and nail but the Gurkhas had a disavantage as their supply trains were cut. The Gurkhas lost in the end and as a result of which the Gurkhas were evicted from the Kangra Fort and all the territories there of. Maharaja Ranjit Singh now sat firmly in command of the Kangra Fort and surrounding Hill States braced up for the Gurkha retaliation. And later of course Maharaja Ranjit Singh conquered Kashmir as well from the Afghans.

So the Gurkhas lost the Kangra Fort and eventually they had to fight the British in 1815 and they had to fight them alone. Maybe theyshould have taken Ranjit Singh’s offer and the course of history would have been different. Alas. But lets rewind again.

Coming back to 1809, after their eviction the Gurkhas tried to take Nalagarh as it was beyond Maharaj Ranjit Singh’s reach due to the terms of the Treaty Of Amritsar and at the same time they captured the Fort at Subathu (it still serves as a Gurkha Regimental Center)and the went onto conquer the other Shimla Hil States like Theog, Keonthal, Balsan, Jubbal Kotkhai and Rampur Bushahr. The KotkhaiFort was also now under the control of the Gurkhas and now a clearer picture of the mystery of the Khukris at the Diwan e Khas emerges.

On a broader front the Gurkhas were now, with all their conquests were now heading for a collision with the British. The powerful Nepalese Prime Minister, Bhim Sen Thapa knew war was coming. Bhim Sen Thapa was also a great tactican and it was apparent to himthat the greatest weakness of the British was that they could not stand up to a combined force of a confideracy of the local powers. He sent emissaries to various princely states, amongst them the Marathas of Gwalior. The Scindia had admiration for the Gorkhali courage that they had displayed in standing upto the British. But in order to form an alliance he set one condition. He would only join in an alliance if the most dominant local power in North West India ie good old Maharaja Ranjit Singh would also join the alliance. The clock had turned a full circle in 5 years.

It was now Amar Singh Thapa’s turn to send a missive to Maharaja Ranjit Singh, which offered the Sher-e-Punjab, “a division of the Gangetic plains from Delhi to Calcutta between the Sikhs, the Gurkhas and the Marathas” and also appealed to Maharaja Ranjit Singhto throw out the British in the name of Hinduism. Prime Minister Bhim Sen Thapa had made his move and had also thrown in an emotive religious angle into it. He knew this game. He knew it well.

I still wonder what the Sher-e-Punjab would have made of all this. And I am sure he must have considered it very seriously. He could think keeping all emotions, including religious ones aside. His armies consisted of Sikhs, Muslims, Hindus, Europeans and even Gurkha and Rohilla soldiers. After givng it much thought, I assume, he decided to lay low and not get himself imbroiled in this affair. He had made his offer long back and it was refused. Now it was payback time. At the same time he mobilised his Army of the Sutlej to “take advantage of any situation that may arise” out of the coming clash between the British and the Gurkhas.

The First Anglo Gurkha war finally broke out in October 1814. The British attacked on the Western and Eastern front, in an area from the Sutlej to the Kosi. In the eastern front the charge through the Terai towards the Kathmandu Valley was led by Maj Gen Marley and Maj Gen Wood and the western front was led by Maj Gen Gillespie and Col Ochterlony.  Facing them were the Nepalese Army columns led by none other than our old friend, the Kazi, General Amar Singh Thapa.

On the Himachal Hill States front, when the British and the Gurkhas crossed swords the local Hill Rajas supported the British, as they were promised their Kingdoms/ Riyasats/ Thakurais back. That the British afterwards reneged on their promises is another story. All the Kings of the region however now use the title Rana, though I am not sure if its significance or if it had anything to do with the Gurkhas. However I am pretty sure they all have collections of Khukris.

I leave the details of the Anglo Gurkha War for you to read up on but at the end the Treaty of Sagauli was signed and the Gurkhas lost all their dominions in Garhwal, Kumaon, Himachal Pradesh as well as Sikkim and Darjeeling. The borders of Nepal as it stands today were defined by this Treaty.

I cant help but wonder what would have been different had the Kazi accepted the Sher-E-Punjabs offer or vice versa 5 years later.

The British eventually overcame the Sikhs as well almost 10 years after the Sher passed away. Having faced the Gurkhas and Sikhs in war the British had a great sense of admiration for their sheer courage and tenacity. No wonder both the Gurkhas and Sikhs were recruited as soldiers and boy did they prove themselves in all the Wars they fought for the British.

The Political History of the Himalayas is indeed as intriuging as the Himalayas themselves.

PS : Some of the Forts that the Gurkhas built still exist in Himachal Pradesh like the Dhar Mountain Fort, the Malaon Fort, Bansar Fort, Subathu Fortand Parwanoo Fort. Maybe this tale will inspire some of you guys to go take a look at these old dilapidated structures take some pics and post around here.