SIKKIM

Namgyal Dynasty

The Namgyal dynasty ruled over Sikkim as hereditary kings for 333 years. Court intrigues, conspiracies and attempts against the monarch were not uncommon in those troubled centuries of Sikkim’s history.

Equally serious were threats from outside. Time and again hordes of warlike Bhutanese surged in from the east, while in the second half of the eighteenth century the Gorkhas of Nepal mounted repeated incursions from the west. Sikkim was like corn caught between two millstones, its population forced into a desperate two pronged war.

The British, who were exploring a trade route to Tibet, had no intention of allowing the rampage. After the Treaty of Sigoli, Sikkim acquired protectorate status.

Sikkim joined India as an associate State in 1975 in accordance with its peoples aspiration for a democratic form of government, and later attained full Statehood within the Indian Union. With the merger, the age of monarchy came to an end.

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