History of Nepal

An ancient time Nepal called only in Kathmandu Valley, when it's ruled before Shah Dynasty. The ancient report that a sage (muni) named Ne became the protector (pāla) of this land and the founder of its first ruling dynasty. The name of the country, Ne-pāla, therefore originally meant the land 'protected by Ne. The Kathmandu valley and begins with the Kirantis said to have ruled for many centuries beginning from the 7th or 8th Century B.C. their famous King Yalumber. Around 300 A.D. the Lichavis arrived from northern India and overthrew the Kirantis. The descendants of the Kirantis are the Rais and Limbus who predominate in eastern Nepal. In early 7th Century, Amshuvarman, the first Thakuri king took over the throne from his father-in-law who was a Lichavi. The Lichavis brought art and architecture to the valley but the golden age of creativity arrived with the Mallas who came to power around 1200 A.D.

At this time the Kathmandu valley was ruled by the Malla kings. During the 17th and early 18th centuries, Gorkha continued a slow expansion, conquering various states while forging alliances with others. Prithvi Narayan dedicated himself at an early age to the conquest of the Kathmandu valley.

During the mid-19th century Jung Bahadur Rana became Nepal's first prime minister to wield absolute power relegating the Shah king to a mere figurehead. Soon after the overthrow of the Ranas, King Tribhuvan was reinstated as the head of the state.

After many years of struggle when the political parties were banned, they finally mustered enough courage to start a people's movement in 1990. With the public rising up against absolute monarchy and demanding democracy, the then ruler King Birendra accepted constitutional reforms and established a multiparty parliament with himself as head of state and the prime minister heading the government. In May 1991, Nepal held its first parliamentary elections. In February 1996, one of the Communist parties (Maoist wing) went underground to wage a people's war against monarchy and the elected government.  

In April 2006, strikes and street protests in Kathmandu led to a 19-day curfew and the political parties joined forces with the Maoist rebels to bring pressure on the monarch. Eventually, King Gyanendra realized it was futile holding on to power and relented. He agreed to reinstate parliament. But the political parties and a majority of the general public had enough of dynastic rule and their abuse of power.  On May 28, 2008, a newly elected Constituent Assembly declared Nepal a Federal Democratic Republic, abolishing the 240 year-old monarchy. Today Nepal has a President as Head of State and a Prime Minister heading the Nepal Government.