Over 18–28 December 1911,

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

took part in a hunt in the

Kingdom of Nepal The Kingdom of Nepal was a Hindu monarchy in South Asia, founded in 1768 through the unification of Nepal, expansion of the Gorkha Kingdom. The kingdom was also known as the Gorkha Empire and was sometimes called History of Asal Hindustan, ...

as part of an expedition organised by the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

of Nepal,

Chandra Shumsher Jang Bahadur Rana Field-Marshal His Highness Maharaja Sri Teen Chandra Shumsher Jung Bahadur Rana (8 July 1863 – 26 November 1929) was the Prime Minister of Nepal from the Rana dynasty. He served in this capacity from 27 June 1901 to his death in 1929 after he ...

. The king had wanted to visit Nepal in 1905 but due to the ongoing cholera pandemic, he could not enter the region. The crew killed 39 tigers, 18 rhinoceros, 4 bears, and several

porcupine Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp Spine (zoology), spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two Family (biology), families of animals: the Old World porcupines of the family Hystricidae, and the New ...

s and leopards over the course of the 10-day expedition. During the hunt, the king knighted Chandra Shumsher with the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

Planning

The British royals started to hunt in Nepal in 1876 after Nepali Prime Minister

Jung Bahadur Rana Jung Bahadur Rana, , was born Bir Narsingh Kunwar (1817-1877). His mother, Ganesh Kumari, was the daughter of Kaji Nain Singh Thapa, the brother of Mukhtiyar Bhimsen Thapa from the prominent Thapa dynasty. During his lifetime, Jung Bahadur eli ...

invited Albert Edward (later King Edward VII) to an expedition which killed about 23 tigers in two weeks. Later many foreign dignitaries were invited by the Rana dynasty, including

Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Austria (18 December 1863 – 28 June 1914) was the heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary. His Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassination in Sarajevo was the ...

George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston (11 January 1859 – 20 March 1925), known as Lord Curzon (), was a British statesman, Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician, explorer and writer who served as Viceroy of India ...

, and

Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale (Albert Victor Christian Edward; 8 January 1864 – 14 January 1892) was the eldest child of the Prince and Princess of Wales (later King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra). From the time of his ...

. In 1905, Prince George, the future

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

King of the United Kingdom The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with their powers Constitutional monarchy, regula ...

, wanted to visit the

for a hunt but due to the ongoing

1899–1923 cholera pandemic The sixth cholera pandemic (1899–1923) was a major outbreak of cholera beginning in India, where it killed more than 800,000 people, and spreading to West Asia, North Africa, Eastern Europe, and Russia. The outbreak of the pandemic is thoug ...

he could not. In 1911, Prime Minister of Nepal

invited George V to participate in

big game hunting Big-game hunting is the hunting of large game animals for Trophy hunting, trophies, taxidermy, meat, and commercially valuable animal product, animal by-products (such as horn (anatomy), horns, antlers, tusks, bones, fur, body fat, or special o ...

Terai The Terai or Tarai is a lowland region in parts of southern Nepal and northern India that lies to the south of the outer foothills of the Himalayas, the Sivalik Hills and north of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. This lowland belt is characterised by ...

. Preparing for the hunt, Chandra Shumsher spent months collecting 645 elephants and bullocks and tied them in jungles to lure the tigers. The King of Nepal

Prithvi Bir Bikram Shah Prithvi Bir Bikram Shah (), (18 August 1875 – 11 December 1911) was King of Nepal. Among the most notable events of his reign were the introduction of the first automobiles to Nepal, and the creation of strict water and sanitation systems for ...

died on 11 December but the preparations did not stop. Thousands of elephant beaters were employed "to drive the game toward his waiting guns". About this event, George V told

Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst, (20 June 1858 – 2 August 1944) was a British diplomat and statesman who served as Viceroy and Governor-General of India from 1910 to 1916. Background and education Hardinge was the second ...

: "As probably this will be the last and only time in my life when I shall get big game shooting of this kind, I naturally want to have as many days in Nepal as possible". The Terai region of Nepal was protected from hunting's by rulers of Nepal but since 1846 it was allowed if the person obtained a permit from

Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...

h or the Prime Minister. A few specimens from Nepal were shown in international museums such as The Royal College of Surgeons of England, and

Indian Museum, Kolkata Indian Museum (formerly called Imperial Museum of Calcutta) is a grand museum in Central Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It is the ninth oldest museum in the world and the oldest, as well as the largest museum in Asia, by size of collection. It ...

The hunt

After attending the

Delhi Durbar The Delhi Durbar ( lit. "Court of Delhi") was an Indian imperial-style mass assembly organized by Britain at Coronation Park, Delhi, India, to mark the succession of an Emperor or Empress of India. Also known as the Imperial Durbar, it was he ...

, George V and Queen Mary travelled via boat and train from

Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...

and

Bankipore Bankipur is a neighbourhood and residential area in Patna, in the Indian state of Bihar. It is located on the bank of the river Ganges. The prime attraction is the Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Library built by Khan Bahadur Khuda Bakhsh in 1891 and ...

to Bhikhna Thori railway station on 16 December. They arrived in Nepal at 10 am on Monday, 18 December, where the king was greeted by Chandra Shumsher. George then travelled from Bhikhna Thori railway station by car to Thori, Nepal. There was a large encampment for the king and his 12,000 followers, and there were roughly 2,000 attendees. During the hunt, every night baits were placed to lure tigers. On Tuesday, 19 December, information about a tiger went out so the team visited the place and the king killed the animal. Later that afternoon, one tiger and two rhinoceros were killed by Charles Cust, Colin Keppel, and Horace Smith-Dorrien respectively. On Wednesday, 20 December, three separate groups went to look for tigers (two) and rhinoceros (one). The same day, the king killed a female tiger, and the hunters disturbed a rhino cow and calf, that charged at the elephants. After lunch, it was found that the next ring of elephants contained four tigers "roaring and snarling in a blood-curdling chorus, the tigers charged madly from side to side while the surrounding elephants trampled and trumpeted and the

mahout A mahout is an elephant rider, trainer, or keeper. Mahouts were used since antiquity for both civilian and military use. Traditionally, mahouts came from ethnic groups with generations of elephant keeping experience, with a mahout retainin ...

s screamed and shouted". The king killed all four tigers. While the group was returning to camp, a big rhinoceros appeared suddenly out of a bush and the king killed it with two bullets. The same day, a bear was shot by Captain Bryan Godfrey-Faussett and Smith-Dorrien, and Faussett and Keppel both killed a tiger. On Thursday, 21 December, George V killed four tigers and a bear, and a rhinoceros was shot by Faussett. The next day, the king killed three tigers in the field. A rhinoceros ran from the grass and was shot by Charles Cust; the king missed it but it was killed by Faussett.

Lord Durham Earl of Durham is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1833 for the Whig politician and colonial official John Lambton, 1st Baron Durham. Known as "Radical Jack", he played a leading role in the passing of the Refo ...

, Lord Charles Fitzmaurice, Derek Keppel, Colin Keppel, and

Henry McMahon Sir Vincent Arthur Henry McMahon (28 November 1862 – 29 December 1949) was a British Indian Army officer and diplomat who served as the Foreign Secretary in the Government of India from 1911 to 1915 and as the High Commissioner in Egypt fr ...

killed seven tigers and a Himalayan bear. On Saturday, the team moved to Kasra and on Sunday, 24 December, Rev. J. Godber led a divine service for Christmas Eve. Later that afternoon, the king went to inspect animal collections from Nepal with

Kaiser Shumsher Jang Bahadur Rana Field Marshal Sir Kaiser Shumsher Jang Bahadur Rana (8 January 1892 – 7 June 1964) was a field marshal in the Royal Nepalese Army. He was the third son of Maharaja Sir Chandra Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana, the fifth Prime Minister of Nepal of the ...

. George V saw various animals including a young elephant, a rhinoceros calf, and a wild ass which were sent to the zoo in London, and various Nepali arts were shown as well which are now housed in the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

. In the evening, the king knighted Chandra Shumsher with the

. On Monday, 25 December, George V shot a tiger and then killed two rhinos. The group led by the Duke of Teck killed three tigers and a rhinoceros. The hunting area had been disturbed because out of 60 baits only one tiger was trapped and was killed by Lord Durham, and the king shot one rhinoceros the same day. During the last days of the hunts, on Wednesday, the king killed one female tiger which was his 20th kill. Thursday, 28 December, was the last day of the hunt; that day the king and the Duke of Teck shot a tiger at the same time. The crew travelled by car to Bhikhna Thori railway station where a train was waiting for them; while going to the station, the king killed his 21st tiger. The team reportedly killed a total of 39 tigers, 18 rhinoceros, 4 bears, and several

s and leopards over the course of ten days. George V reportedly laid claim to having killed 21 tigers, 8 rhinoceros, and 1 bear. It is not known how all the trophies were distributed but four of the tiger skins were given to national museums across the United Kingdom – London, Edinburgh, Cardiff, and Dublin – and four to provincial museums – Exeter, Norwich, Leicester, and Bristol. A living rhinoceros was given to the king on 24 December; it was kept in the

Zoological Garden, Alipore The Zoological Garden, Alipore (also informally called the Alipore Zoo or Kolkata Zoo) is India's oldest formally stated zoological park (as opposed to royal and British menageries) and a big tourist attraction in Kolkata, West Bengal. It has ...

, then on 1 April 1912 it was moved to the

Zoological Gardens A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility where animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoology, ...

in London. British diplomat and naturalist

Brian Houghton Hodgson Brian Houghton Hodgson (1 February 1801 – 23 May 1894) was a pioneer natural history, naturalist and ethnologist working in India and Nepal where he was a British Resident (title), Resident. He described numerous species of birds and mammals fr ...

documented over 560 species of birds (with 9,500 specimens), 900 mammals, and 80 reptiles.

Notable attendees

Legacy

Sanjib Chaudhary, writing in 2018 for Online Khabar, noted that it was "the most barbaric and horrific hunting trip". In 2015, Sankarshan Thakur reported that the hunting lodge built for the occasion was now being used as "an abandoned gambling den". The photographs taken during the hunt are reportedly valued at £2,000. Where most of the hunt took place was turned into the first national park in Nepal

Chitwan National Park Chitwan National Park is the first national park of Nepal. It was established in 1973 as the Royal Chitwan National Park and was granted the status of a World Heritage Site in 1984. It covers an area of in the Terai of south-central Nepal. It ra ...

in 1973. In 1922, George V's son Edward, Prince of Wales, went to Nepal to hunt. There he killed his first rhinoceros and tiger. The prince was presented with many animals and birds, including baby elephant, tiger and rhino calf which were kept at the Victoria Gardens, Bombay, then moved to the London Zoo.

References

External links

* {{George V History of hunting George V Mary of Teck 1911 in Nepal Hunting in Nepal Nepal–United Kingdom relations