Narayanhiti Palace - The End of Nepal's Monarchy
On the day before I left Kathmandu, I did a little more sightseeing. One of the places I visited was the Royal Palace named Narayanhiti -the more modern residence of the now defunct Nepalese Monarchy. I love big, ornate buildings of historical importance so I was thrilled to visit. My big disappointment was that my mobile phone was confiscated at the entrance-no photo taking allowed (no reason given). All the photos on this blog post were skimmed from the internet.
Nepal is an ancient country and I have not taken the time to read up on its long history. A few main points : The monarchy began in 1768 and ended recently in 2008. It is now a federal democratic republic. The line of kings came from the Shah family.
Looking at the formal, impressive portraits of the long line of kings hanging on the palace walls was very sobering. Many of the kings suffered unusual early deaths-some not surviving to their 20's and many perishing in their 50's. I got the feeling of a lot of intrigue and drama in the line of monarchs. This was verified by a part of the tour where you walk through the area where 10 of the royal family (including the reigning king and queen) were massacred in 2001.
The royal family massacre was supposedly perpetrated by the Crown Prince suffering from a family grievance because his marriage plans were thwarted. Supposedly he committed suicide after the shooting. But his wounds were not congruent with suicide.
He lived one day longer in a hospital as crowned king. Upon his death, another family member -Gyanendra- was crowned king.(seems suspicious to me). Gyanendra was the last living king. He currently lives as a commoner in Kathmandu.
Touring the palace I felt simultaneously sad, more than a little creeped out by the taxidermy prominently displayed throughout the palace, and also intrigued about the current political reality of Nepal. Here are some photos from the internet.
Nepal is an ancient country and I have not taken the time to read up on its long history. A few main points : The monarchy began in 1768 and ended recently in 2008. It is now a federal democratic republic. The line of kings came from the Shah family.
Looking at the formal, impressive portraits of the long line of kings hanging on the palace walls was very sobering. Many of the kings suffered unusual early deaths-some not surviving to their 20's and many perishing in their 50's. I got the feeling of a lot of intrigue and drama in the line of monarchs. This was verified by a part of the tour where you walk through the area where 10 of the royal family (including the reigning king and queen) were massacred in 2001.
The royal family massacre was supposedly perpetrated by the Crown Prince suffering from a family grievance because his marriage plans were thwarted. Supposedly he committed suicide after the shooting. But his wounds were not congruent with suicide.
He lived one day longer in a hospital as crowned king. Upon his death, another family member -Gyanendra- was crowned king.(seems suspicious to me). Gyanendra was the last living king. He currently lives as a commoner in Kathmandu.
Touring the palace I felt simultaneously sad, more than a little creeped out by the taxidermy prominently displayed throughout the palace, and also intrigued about the current political reality of Nepal. Here are some photos from the internet.
Nepalese Monarchy loved to hunt. Prized kills by both the kings and queens were displayed liberally. I saw at least 5 tigers, rhino heads, crocodiles, water buffalo and deer.
The several story high throne room was the most impressive room to me.
Precious royal accoutrements such as the heavily jeweled crowns, scepters and fans were displayed in a high security room.
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