Tsugphud Namgyal ( Sikkimese: ; Wylie: ''gtsug phud rnam rgyal'') (1785–1863) was king of

Sikkim Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Silig ...

from 1793 to 1863.Sikkim: Past and Present edited by H. G. Joshi
/ref> He gained independence from

Nepal Nepal (; ne, :ne:नेपाल, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in S ...

in 1815 and ruled under a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its int ...

from 1861. Under his father

Tenzing Namgyal Tenzing Namgyal ( Sikkimese: ; Wylie: ''bstan 'dzin rnam rgyal'') was the sixth Chogyal (king) of Sikkim. He succeeded Phuntsog Namgyal II in 1780 and was succeeded himself by Tsugphud Namgyal in 1793. During his reign Chogyal fled to Tibet ...

, most of Sikkim was appropriated by Nepal. Tshudpud Namgyal returned to Sikkim in 1793 to reclaim the throne. Because the capital of

Rabdentse Rabdentse was the second capital of the former Kingdom of Sikkim from 1670 to 1814. The capital city was destroyed by the invading Gurkha army and only the ruins of the palace and the chortens are seen here now. However, the ruins of this city a ...

was too close to the Nepalese border, he shifted the capital to

Tumlong Tumlong is a village in the Indian state of Sikkim in northeastern India. It is located in the Mangan sub division of North Sikkim district. it is on the bank of the Dik Chu river, a tributary of the Teesta River. Tumlong was the capital of th ...

. His mother was ''Gyalyum'' Anyo, a daughter of Chandzod Karwang. Sikkim allied itself with the

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, who also considered Nepal an enemy. Nepal overran most of the region, sparking the

Gurkha War The Anglo-Nepalese War (1 November 1814 – 4 March 1816), also known as the Gorkha War, was fought between the Gorkhali army of the Kingdom of Nepal (present-day Nepal) and the British forces of the East India Company (EIC, present-day Ind ...

in 1814 with the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...

. The

Sugauli Treaty The Treaty of Sugauli (also spelled Sugowlee, Sagauli and Segqulee), the treaty that established the boundary line of Nepal, was signed on 4 March 1816 between the East India Company and Guru Gajaraj Mishra following the Anglo-Nepalese War ...

and Treaty of Titalia returned the annexed territory to Sikkim in 1817. In 1835, Tsugphud Namgyal ceded

Darjeeling Darjeeling (, , ) is a town and municipality in the northernmost region of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located in the Eastern Himalayas, it has an average elevation of . To the west of Darjeeling lies the easternmost province of Nepal ...

to the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...

for an annual fee, but this relationship was broken off after he seized botanist

Joseph Hooker Joseph Hooker (November 13, 1814 – October 31, 1879) was an American Civil War general for the Union, chiefly remembered for his decisive defeat by Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Chancellorsville in 1863. Hooker had serv ...

and Darjeeling Superintendent

Archibald Campbell Archibald Campbell may refer to: Peerage * Archibald Campbell of Lochawe (died before 1394), Scottish peer * Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll (died 1513), Lord Chancellor of Scotland * Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll (c. 1507–1558) ...

during their expedition to Sikkim. This led to two British military expeditions in 1850 and 1861, resulting in the annexation of Sikkim by 1861. Under the

Treaty of Tumlong The Treaty of Tumlong was a March 1861 treaty between Great Britain and the Kingdom of Sikkim in present-day north-east India. Signed by Sir Ashley Eden on behalf of the British and Sikkimese Chogyal, Tsugphud Namgyal, the treaty secured prot ...

signed by his successor Sidkeong Namgyal in the same year, Tshudpud was granted the title of Maharaja of Sikkim by the British, and he abdicated the following year. At his death in 1863, aged 78, he had ruled Sikkim for 69 years, making him the longest-reigning Chogyal in history as well as the oldest ever Chogyal of Sikkim.

References

1785 births 1863 deaths 19th-century Indian monarchs Indian maharajas Monarchs of Sikkim {{india-royal-stub