Greater Nepal

Imperial Gazetteer Map of British India, 1909. Nepal is shown as an Indian princely state on the map. The phrase "Princely State of India" is misleading. Prior to arrival of the British in the sub-continent, there was no concept of modern state of India. What is now India was initially different kingdoms and fiefdoms ruled by different rulers. The British conquered them and brought it under one territory as British India. After independence from the British, formed the country of Republic of India. Nepal which tracks its history since ancient times has never been included under any foreign empires throughout its modern history. It was always a sovereign and independent state even during and after the British rule in the region.

The “Postal map of China”, 1917 , a Government of China’s Official Government publications, published at Peking in 1917. Actually an imperialist map of China during the relevant period, besides the depiction of Aksai Chin as part of India, the map incidentally depicts all the pre-1947 Himalayan princely states in Pre-1947 India including inter alia Nepal, Sikikim, and what is now Arunachal Pradesh as integral parts of India.

Greater Nepal is a concept referring to the state of Nepal extending beyond present boundaries to include territories ceded to the British East India Company under the Sugauli Treaty that ended the Anglo-Nepalese War in 1814–16. The idea of a modern Nepali state covering the same territories motivates some Nepali nationalist groups. These territories are under the jurisdiction of the modern-day Republic of India.

Political situation of the Eastern Society

The eastern administration system was decentralized with Rajauta, Raja, Maharaja, and Badamaharaja ruling villages and states respectively as per the norms of Dharma Rajya. State was not concerned to planning and development, which was a common feature of entire south Asian region. There were more than 565 principalities in the present India alone. Nepal too did have over six dozen Rajya and Rajauta, called Bayeese(22 in Nepali) and Chaubise(24 in Nepali) Kingdom.

Objective of the unification

Prithvi Narayan Shah was a farsighted king and so he decided to galvanize small states into a strong nation with a view to saving Nepal from being one of the colonies of Britain. He did have full support of all right thinking intellectuals and patriots of the time.

Unification campaign

Main article: Unification of Nepal

King Prithvi Narayan Shah unified the major principalities into one country, especially important for business with Tibet after the victory over Nuwakot on October 2 1744, Sindhupal chowk, Kabhrepal chowk, and some kingdoms located to the eastern part of it in 1748 AD. He unified Mahadevpokhari, Pharping, Chitlang, Dharmasthali, Naldrum, Siranchowk and Shivapuri during 1745-46. Immediately after the unification of Makwanpur and Simrongad, he unified Bara, Parsa, Rautahat, and Sindhuli Gadhi in 1762. In 1763 he unified Dhulikhel and Banepa. On 17 March 1766 he captured Kirtipur. In 1768 he unified Kantipur. Then, relationship of Gorkha Kingdom was established with Government of East India Company. The capital from Gorkha to Kathmandu was shifted in 1868 AD. After it Prithvi Narayan Shah died at the age of fifty three in 1775 AD, while he was planning to annex Chaudandi and Vijayapur. Prithvi Narayan Shah was avisionary person. During the reign of Pratap Shah, the son of Prithvi Narayan Shah, three states like Dang, Kapilvastu and Chitwan were merged into Nepal. Similarly, Lamjung, Tanahu, Palpa, Parbat, Upper Nuwakot, Garahu, Stahu, Bhirkot, and Kaski were conquered in1785. Then, Sarlahi, Mahotttari, Dhanusa, Siraha, Saptari, Sunsari, Morang, Jhapa, Sindhuli, and Udayapur were annexed. In 1769 AD, Jajarkot agreed to absorb its kingdom into Gorkha. Pratap Shah died at the age of twenty five in 1777 AD. after the absorption of the Chitwan Valley of Tanahun. Five Valley of Tanahun. Five years after his demise, Koshi, Lamjung, and Tanahun, including Chaubise kingdoms were galvanized into Nepal in 1789 AD after the absorption of all the Baise Kingdoms (twenty-two principalities), located in the western part of the Kali Gandaki. Then, Salyan, Palpa and Mustang were annexed.

Victory over Kumau & Garhwal

Army of Gorkha got victory over Kumaon in 1790 AD. Pradhumna Shah became the ruler of the nation on condition of paying Rs. 5000 yearly tribute. The southern border of Nepal extended up to Allahabad after the absorption of Palpa Kingdom, including the Terai sector of Butwal taken by the king of Palpa from the king of Awadh on lease in 1801. In 1806 AD, the army of Gorkha absorbed all the small kingdoms like Sirmudh, Hindur and Besahar lying across the Gadhwal and the Satalaj River. In this way, Nepal had intention of acquiring the nearest port of Karanchi and the hilly regions such as Nainital, Almoda, Garhwal and Dehradun across the Satluj River.

Victory over Sikkim & Darjeeling

Previously Darjeeling formed a part of dominions of the Raja of Sikkim, who had been engaged in an unsuccessful warfare against the Gorkhas. From 1780 the Gorkhas constately made inroads into Sikkim. In the Sino-Nepal treaty, Sikkim lost some of its land to Nepal and by the beginning of 19th century, they had overrun Sikkim as far-eastward as the Teesta and had conquered and annexed the Terai.

Historic boundaries

British India and Nepal in 1795. It has similar borders to today. This map is a mere depiction of Greater Nepal in the making, the process that started in 1744 and ended in 1816 with Sugauli Treaty. As the British East India Company were annexing the territories in the south to create British India, the rulers of Gorkha sought to create a unified and a stronger Nepal to counter the threats from the invading British. The notion of Greater Nepal is about Nepal's boundaries just prior to Sugauli Treaty and not about what it was in 1795.

This map of 1805 shows Nepal has enlarged, invading Indian princely states, expanding Nepal's western border near the Kangra across the Satluj river. The Sugauli Treaty ceded these areas to British India. As per the article 8 of the 1950 Indo-Nepal Friendship Treaty signed between the governments of Nepal and Republic of India after her independence, renders that the treaties between Nepal and British India including Sugauli Treaty to be null and void. Thus the activists of Greater Nepal say that these territories should be rightfully returned to Nepal.

Under the Sugauli Treaty, the Nepalese kingdom had ceded the territories conquered by the British East India Company that spanned from the Teesta River in the east, which are constituted in the modern Indian states of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Bihar, West Bengal and Uttarakhand and including places such as Almora, Pathankot, Kumaon, Dehradun, Garhwal, Sirmur and Shimla and Kangra, located to the west of the Sutlej River in the modern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh.Similarly southern border was the Siwan District of Bihar. The word "Siwan" refers the border in Bhojpuri so it was the border between Nepal and British India. Nepal also ceded control over kingdom of Sikkim, whose local ruler, the Chogyal, had supported the British in the war, as well as the north of the Rajshahi division of Bangladesh. The re-acquisition of these territories is a goal held by several Nepali political groups, especially the parts of then Nepal integrated into India only because of the consequence of the Sugauli treaty concluded between British India and the Nepalese government.

Nationalist cause

The idea of "Complete (Greater) Nepal" motivates not only some Nepali nationalists but a majority of Nepalese academicians, who seek to extend the boundaries of present-day Nepal to include the very territories ceded under the Sugauli Treaty. As the ceded territories were not restored to Nepal by the British when freedom was granted to the people of British India, these have become a part of the Republic of India even though it was mentioned that the treaties on behalf of the East India Company or British India would not be valid anymore. Some Nepali politicians and activists accuse India of usurping Nepali territory and using the present border and territorial situation to dominate Nepal, which in the opinion of Nepali nationalists can be overcome by a "Complete (Greater) Nepal." Some law graduates claim that the Sugauli Treaty became null and void on August 15, 1947 when India obtained her independence from British Raj and by the 1950 Indo-Nepal Friendship Treaty. Several Nepalese publications and activities claim the lost territories must be recovered since the Sugauli Treaty has in effect been void by article 8 of the 1950 Indo-Nepal Friendship Treaty and Anglo-Nepal Treaty.

The British (East India Company) in particular, wanted trade with Tibet

through Nepal, but Nepal, which was extended from Sikkim up to Simla, did not allow the British to have this facility. Violating the provisions of the 1801 treaty between Nepal and the East India Company, that if border dispute occurs between the two parties, shall be resolved through peaceful dialogues, the British suddenly declared war against Nepal on 1 November 1814. The war between Nepal and the British continued from 1 November 1814 till 28 April 1815. In the war fought at the main five fronts, Nepal defeated the British at three places in the middle and east and lost at two fronts to the British in the West. Following this war, David Ochtorlony from the side of the British and Amar Singh Thapa from the Nepali side reached a ceasefire through dialogue between the two and made an agreement on 15th May 1815.

According to the agreement, Nepal had to cede the land lying between the Mahakali and Sutlej Rivers in the Western front to the British East India Company. But after six and half months on 2nd December 1815, the British side put forward yet another draft treaty, which proposes that Nepal should cede the areas from the Mechi River up to Sikkim and Dinajpur in the East, including all Tarai area to the British East India Company. Nepal, in compulsion signed this Treaty on 4th March 1816. After this treaty, Nepal lost Tarai land, but showed continuous dissatisfaction about this Treaty and assuming that another war with Nepal might ensue, the low land lying between the Koshi and Rapti River was returned to Nepal on 8th December 1816. Long after in 1857, the "Lucknow Mutiny" in the British India was successfully suppressed by the Nepali Army in support of the British, the British government in recognition of the support returned the land lying between the Rapti and Mahakali Rivers to Nepal in 1860, which was ceded to the East India Company according to the treaty of Sugauli (1816). As a result of the Lucknow Mutiny, the East India Company was dissolved and India came under the direct rule of the British Crown. The 1860 treaty, on the return of land between the Rapti and Mahakali, was entered into between Nepal and the Government of United Kingdom.

Nepal was given its territories back in two installments, but it has yet to get back its big bulk of territories. The Greater Nepal Movement is an effort to realize the "yet to be returned" territories. With the freedom of Pakistan and India on 14h and 15th August 1947 from the British Empire, the ceded territories of Nepal under the Sugauli Treaty were also freed and this freed territories must now be integrated into Nepal, is the concept of what the "Greater Nepal" is. While India and Pakistan fought against the British Colonization, many Nepalese also took part in the movement. But, as Pakistan and India became free, Nepali territories were annexed in India and East Pakistan. It was a great mistake and an injustice to Nepal. It is a serious mistake on the part of the British Government not to have returned the Nepali territories, on the other, India, which fought more than 90 years against the colonization, not to have realized that the Nepali Territories were also freed together with its freedom is highly immoral. Since, the past 15 years, the Greater Nepal Movement has been continuously going on for the freedom from the unjust acts. Just before a decade, Greater Nepal could not even be talked about, but now this has become a subject of Nepali polity.

The Article 8 of both the Treaties signed between Nepal and India on 31st July 1950, and between Nepal and United Kingdom of Great Britain on 30th October 1950 has declared all treaties, engagements and agreements made between Nepal and the British Government as null and void, and in line with the declaration promulgated by the United Nations resolution (1514-XV) in December 1960 with regard to declaring end of all forms of colonization, is a base for the freedom of Nepali territories after India was freed on 15th August 1947. What international law believes is that a treaty entered into between two parties will be cancelled in the absence of one of the parties, and according to this, the Sugauli Treaty cannot be in force after the British Government has left India. From the international instances like Hong Kong and Macau, which are integrated into China, East Timor has been freed from colonialism, has achieved the status of a free state; China to continuously claim sovereignty over Taiwan

This fascinating hand colored 1814 map by Edinburgh cartographer John Thomson depicts northern India and Nepal. Bounded on the east by Persia and the Indus valley, on the North by Tibet, on the south by Berar, and on the east by Assam and Bhutan. Much of the upper portion of this map includes a detailed inset of the Kingdom of Nepal or Nepaul. This area is depicted in impressive detail considering that, when this map was printed very few western travelers had ever been to Nepal. Includes roads, mountain passes and the residences of important Lamas. Extends fully into the Tibetan plateau as far as Te Shoo Loomboo and the Road to Lhasa (Lassa). The right hand corner of this map contains an inset of Kabul or Cabul. Date 1814(1814)

See also

• Gorkhaland
• British East India Company, British Raj
• History of India
• History of Nepal
• History of Sikkim
• Politics of Nepal

External links

• Greaternepal.org
• Bellinfosys.com (important dates in the history of Garhwal.)
• Bordernepal.com