Prithvi Narayan Shah


Prithvi Narayan Shah

 

Born 1723; died 1775. Became king of Nepal in 1769.

From 1742 to 1769, Prithvi Narayan Shah ruled the principality of Gorkha in western Nepal. During this time he subjugated the other principalities in the Katmandu Valley and annexed the territories east of the valley as far as Sikkim. In 1769 he transferred his capital to Katmandu and founded the Shah dynasty of Nepal. Prithvi Narayan Shah played an important role in the formation of a unified Nepalese state. He opposed rapprochement with the British East India Company, refusing to trade with it or to permit British goods to pass through Nepal.