Regmi Research (Private) Ltd, Ka thmDndu: August. l, 2 197 .

Regmi Research Series Year 4, No. B, Edited By, Maoosh C. Regmi.

Contents

l. The Campaign of Political Unification .... 141 2. Lotter From Kingrithvi P Narayan Shah To Ramakrishna Kunwar Rana ••• 146 J. King Prit,hvi Narayan Shah's Letters To Nilakantha Joshi ••• 147 4. Property Transactions In Kathmandu, 1794 ••• 149 5. Land Reclamation In The Eastem Hill Region, :1799 ••• 150 6. Dullu-Dailekh, .1798-1802 ••• . 1$0 7. An Inscription of Aditya Malla, 1321 A.D. • •• lSS 8. A Study In Nepali Economic H1stoey, 1768-1846 ••• 1.60

Regmi Research (Private) Ltd, Lazimpat, Kathmandu, . Compiled by Regmi Research {Private) Ltd. tor private study ond research. Not mean�.- for public sale or display, 1.41.

x The �ampaign Of Political Unitic�tion

By �buram /Icharya •

For the rulers of Tanahu, Lomidanda was a·s strategically located·as Nuwakot was for Gorkha.• During the regime of_ King Kamarajadatta Sen, Ta·ra_hu had occupied. a small area naiood Jo:gimara .in the Lamida1'(la region. His son,· King Trivikrama Sen� was a contemporary of Prithvi Narayan Shah. He was feeling perturbed over the conquest of Larnidanda by the Oorkhalis. However, Prithvi Naray'an Shah made no attornpt to occupy Jogimaro. Hf> had set up on anny outpost at Deurali for the defense of that area-. Prithvi Narayan Shah wanted to occupy the tort of Dahachok, gatewuy to Kathmandu Valley, which belonged to·Lalitpur, and was protected by Lalitpur•s army. But King Trivikrama Sen a·lways made efforts to resist him. By chance, a concubi� of Prithvi Narayan Shah, whom ·he had brought from Bhaktapur, was· suffering from tuberculosis.. Since she wishecf to pass the last days of hor life in Kashi, he sent her 'th'ere via Devghat. Trivikrama Sen, who was in Jogimara, _opened _the pal.anqµin, looked at her and.,then let. the pol.Bn­ quin pass. When_ Prithvi Narayan Shah hoard this news, he became furious, but· controlled ·himself', and sent Narayan Pandit, nephew of the teacher of Narbhupal Shah ., to the palace of King Trirlkrama Sen to SUJm1on· him by any mt:ans to discuss affairs'· of �tate at Jyamirgbat,: situated on. the left bonk of the M�rsyangdi river in Gor�ha. H�s army, which �as �iding thera in dis­ guise, arrested Trivikrama Sfin, who was then 1mpr1a:mad in tho palace. 1't this, the rulers. of Kathmandu, Lamjung and Kaski became furious with Prithvi Narayan Shah. Prithvi ·Narayan Shah then :rel.ea sod Trivikrama Sen lest thf� situation should become mo� critical .. Triv:,l.krama Sen·,.who'.was badly humi- liated, returne.. d t.c Tanahu after his N�ase 0.7S3. A.D.). · · · · Prithvi Naray�n Shah �nt a small force� led by Kaji .Tula nA� Pando, to occupy Dahachok fort without caring for �his mcidmt. On the same · occasion, Jaya Pral,cash Malla sent a force under tha command of Kaji Chikuti Maske ond.occupi.:.-:d too forts of Naldum and M.

xBab�ani Acharya, ,N�al Ko· Samlcshipta Vrit�nta .(A ,-Conciae Account of Nopal). Kathmandu:'Pramod amsher and Nir Bikraai "Piasi'', 2022 (1966). Chapter III: 111:dcikaran Karya� Sangharsha" (The Campaign ot· Unification), PP• 17-23 • . . Cont.ti. 1L2.

Devarshi Upadhyaya , defender .of Hahadevpokhari fort, was killed in the battle , while Umrao Ashajit Bhandari escaped . �st of the troops of both forts were killed (1754 A.D. ) • .Although Prithvi ·Narayan Shah felt distrecsed when he heard this'. ne ws, he was not discouraged. Tho troops led by 'Iula Ram Pande occupiad Da hachok fort and drove out the defend6rs belonging to La litpur (1754 A.D. ) . ·

Wtlun the arcey- of Jaya Praka sh Ma lla occupied the forts of Naldum and t-ia hadevpokhari, King Rnnajit'. Malla felt ve ry frightened. ,r,yaprrik rr nh Malla , wa s then prepared to rfjoccupy Nuwakot. But Prithvi Narayan Shah wa s not at all frustrated. He S '".Jllt A force led by Kalu Panda , rf;occupie:d the fo rts ot Naldum and Mahadevpokhari, killed the NDgarkoti troops there · or drove them out. (August 1, 1754). Tula Ram Panda roach,:id Dolnkha via Sindhupa lchok to occupy it . Do lakha wa s occupied by the Gorkha lis wi thout bloodshed .

The.re was now open opposition betwe(,n the King of Lamjung and Pr_ithvi Naroyan Shah , Pr ithvi Narayan Shah t hon broke the treaty with Lamjun�� and said to Ranajit M.1 lla, 11 Since you aro not capable of holding' Sindhupalchoh and Dolakha , I will keep thorn under my control. I will also protect your .- territory, Kabhrepalanchok, which has remained under your cont rol for n long time and for this, I will retain the fort of Mahfidevpokhari." Ranjit Ma lla �gree d to this proposal. (1754 �.D.). Prithvi Narayan Shah know that the King of Lamjung wa s planning to invade Gorkha with the he lp of the Kings of Tanahu ; Ka sk� and Parbat •. Generally, the Kines· of Lamjung and Parbat used to raid Kaski joint ly and thus harass King Siddhi Narayan Shah. The refore , Prithvi NarayPn Shah, with the. intent ion of dividing them, a·nd winning over the King of Kaski to his side, st:nt an envoy to Kaski. But 'when a man from Kask:i. came, to Hc.J hn­ de'vpokhari and told ,Prithvi Narc1yan Shah that the King of Kp �ki ·1. :s not likely to bo won ov�r , he left for Nuwnkot aft0r bidding go.od-byi:,· to Kine: Ranajit .Malla'. Whun ho arrived in Nuwakot, ho wa s inforrrPd that the army of the Chaubisi. Kingdoms , including Larnjung, had attacked the fort of' Siranchok belonging to Gorkha during the la st w�uk of May and occupiud it. The army ledby Kolu Panda th�re fled to Gorkha , and Prithvi Narayan Shah 'also roached thqre subsequently . Knji Rana Rudrn Shuhi, who had been dopute:d to protoct Gorkh.3 , wa s reorganizing the forcos of Gorkti:-i'. When Kr..lu Pc.1ndo ro .- .· •xi there, the Gorkhr, li ..:rll\V invudod SirEinchok. 'l'he bc1ttle continued ,.all "Luo day long, and many senior officers of both side s wo ro kil�od, ond th€ir soldiers suffered boavy casualties'. In tho end , the Gorkhnlis secure d a victory nnd Kalu P�ndo captured eom3 of th0 senior officers of the onomy and brought them to GorkhA'. The troops of the ChPu- bisi Kingdoms , -who wore pursuod had beon driven by the Gorkhn lis , fe ll int,) ti: Chepo river nnd woro drowned, since boa.ts were not avoiloblo. This deci­ sive battle proved that the Kingdom oi' Gorkha could not be defoatod {:jV0n through the oombi�d efforts of the Chaubisi Kingdoms'.

Contd ••• 1.43 .

) ....�.,.,. Arter gain ing nctocy ov er Siranchok, Prithvi Narayan Shah .engaged himself in administrative reforms for pne year . During this time, there were intrigues between King Joya Prakash Malla of Kathman du and Minister Kali Das. of Lalitpur . Prithvi Naray an Shah deputed Kalu Pande ,with troopi to occupy the territortea of Lalitpur. Kalu Pan de moved �rom Chitlang and occupied Pharping wi tho�t a fight. H� stopped in Pharping when he was r_equested by · Kin g Jaya Prakash not to move towa:i:ds Lalitpur, but to fight with Bhaktapur . After Pharping was occupiad, the Kingdom of _Gorkh-a ext0nd0d .to Kulekhani, Ipa aoo Malta , and the sout}'lern border of Gorkha ad join ed the northern border of Makwanpur.

Towards tho end of September, a secret agent of Jayaprakash Malla kill�d Minister Kalidas at his re sidence. Due to this shock, King Rajya Pra� ash Malla 'lJlso (of Lalitpur) di ed. Towards the bagµming of October, the -ministers enthroned a younc . Thakuri, Bishwajit Malla· , .wh · o had b�an . 'br�ught up at the royal palAce, (1756 A.D,). . . - . :. Prithv'i Narayan Shah then planned to ini'iltrat·e .into the interior arec1s of Lolitpur ,via Dahfl chok. For this, it was n ecessary to occupy Kirti pur, the main settlement of this arera. In the course of discussions with genernls qnd ,

Tho Buddhis t traders of ,Ka thm.,mdu had been'. arnass·ing money by conduc­ ting trade in goods frpm Tibet a� woll as tho se reaching Tibet from Bihar and Bengal. Both the traders and the King of Kathmandu derived benefit from this trade, i'or it yio lded a large sum of money as customs revenue • The passes of Kuti and Kerung wera thin under Kathmsndu . But both the traders and tho King of Kathmandu were deprived of the se profits when · the so passes wero. occupied by Bh8ktapu�. When �he King of Bhaktapur occupied the pass of Kuti, he w.ns able to monopolize trade with !l'ibet. He was thus abl� to constr\lct a huge palace with the customs revenue of se-ven yoi:lrS'. Prithvi . Na rayan Sh.nh also had triod to conduct such trade via· Kcrung, btlt he was no t successful, since the Go rktw lis were no t ·skilled in trade . He could not even make'· profit by stationing a consul in Khasa, whon h\:l occupil;:)d Sindl)upalchok and Dol. akhn , to purchase gold that came fro� 'l'ibe t and sell it to Indian traders .:'I'h erefore , he felt it ·necessary to obta in coope ration from the Buddhis t 'lJ.:war traders of Kathmandu fo r Jay.'.l Praka sh Malla and Bishwa'j it Malla had quarrelled with eAch after th;: b8ttle of Kirtipur, and Kine Ram'ljit Malla too did not havo good re lntionr. with Kathmandu'. Prithvi Narayfln Shllh thareforo propo sod to JayR Pr.tkash Ma lla that tha routos of both Kuti and Kerung should ro main open, tht1t the tr.::d0rs of Gorkh,1 and Kathmandu �hould conduct trade with'• 'l' ibet jointly and share the profits oqually, thnt both should station consuls in lhasa for this purpose , and that Oorkhn should appoint ,'l consul in Kathmnndu, nnd Ka thmnndu in Nuwakot,. thus maintaining cordial .r�.lations botwoen them. Jaya Prnkash Malla agreed to these proposals and a trenty was con­ clud�d accordingly (Janunry 3 1 1758 ). Jayo Prakosh Malla , who had b"�comc furious with Bishwajit Malla,'· propo sed the.� Prithvi Narayan Shah should

Contd ••• 145. - .�ake ovor the Kingdom of La litpur , and return Sindhupalchok and Dol�khn to Ka thmandu . Prithvi Narayan Shah reluctantly incorporated this proposa l in the treaty, as he wanted to conduct trade (with Tibet) .

Knji Tuln Ram Pande , consul of Prithvi Na r8yan Shah, arrived in K.:ithmandu. But thero were se:veral difficultie s :md time passed. Tuln Rc1m P:mde was, in fnct, doputo::·d to spr1::ad the influence of Gorkha in Kathmclndu, and he wd s busy doing so'. Jaya Pra kn sh Ma lla, who did not notice any possi­ bility of conductinK trade , and regarde d the stay o f Tula Ram Pande ris only a mcr nns to spread tho Gorkhnli inflijence; detained him on the charge of ·b uing a spy and b�headcd two of his assis tants'. 'I'ula Ram Ponde then fl.::d from Kathmandu and rea ched Nuwakot to report the matter to Prithvi Harr1ya n _Shah Upril, 1759) .•

· Prithvi NAraynn Shah bccr:m•2 annoyed by the betraya l of Jriya Prakash Mn ll:1. H,: occupied a fort of Kathmr.,ndu on the .Shivapuri hill, situated on the bord(;r between Kathmandu and Nuwakot, in order to break re lations b•.- twecn tho King and the pCoplo of KathM• ncfu . (July 1759) . Prithvi NarFiyan Shnh' s rt, lationship of ritua l fatherwit h King Ranajit Malla was also broken, for Ranajit Mallct ha d foucht against him in tho battle 0f Kirtipur. Prithvi NarByan Shah them withdrew tha Gorkhali troops stationed at the fort of 1-b hndovpokhari . RDnajit M,illn had appointe d Parashu Ram 'l'hapa , an oppon�mt of Prithvi Narayan Shah, ati g•.:nero l. ijc venovated the forts of Knbhre and Pa lanchok and stationed the tro ops of Bha ktapur in both forts . Prithvi Narc,yan Shah th•:Jn sent troops led by Bhim Simha Thnpa t " Tiger of Sirc.1nchok, '' to occupy both of those forts. Bhim Sirnhci 1'hapa attacked the fo rt· o! P� 1-:in­ chok, but was k1'1Ied . His·co lleaguo, Ramkrishnn Kum-1a r, lod tho Gorkhn li troops nnd occupied the fort (January 1760) . The·dufenders of Kabhre fort (b(;; longing to Bhaktapur ) fled from thure after h0aring the occupation of .Pnlanchok by tho Gorkhalis . Thus , bo th forts wert} occuried· by tho a:nny led hy Ramkris hna Kunwar, who then b{;:9am0 the administrator of that arefl and settled'· in Bhanwarkot. ·

When King B ishwajit.Mc;1lla of Lalitpur.was killE

Letter 'From King Prithvi Narayan Shah To Ramakrislma Kunwar Rann (Suwry.) .

On Wednesday,'. Magh 2 ( Janunry 15 ), tho t roops of the Hakim { i .0 . Nawab M ir K.

We have re ceived reports that the Nawab I s troops have reached Harinc1 - Madhi. It is now n ecessary for us to attack . Impress too services of all inhabita nt s of your aroa on Jhara basis And remain ready. Proceed to the plac� directed by us later.

Maeh Sudi 1.

Explanation

This l(:ttt:ir was written by King Prithvi Mareyan Sha h to Ramikrishna Kunwar on rfagh 5, 1819 (January 18 , 1763). It refe·rs to the attack of thG troops of Mir Kasim on M.1kwonpur .-

After King Prithvi·Na rayan Shah•� occup ation of Dolakha nnd ne arby .:ir(;as, it bocamo ·�osier for him to encircle Nepal (Le ., K.:ithmnndu) VA lle:y from th"1 wust.:rn, northern ar11i eastern directions •. 'I'o bcsiogo the va lley from _!,he southi;lril direction, it wr.is necessnry to occupy- Makwanpur. King Hl;makrirna S,:,n of lfokwanpur, who w:� s th/3 fathEir-in-bw of King F'rithvi Narayan Shah, had died in lfn6 Vikrarna , King . P rithvi Nr1r.;',yF'n Shah'w,1 s nrJt on good terms with Digbandhan Sen, his wife 's elder brother. Digbandhan Sen had actually joined the en�my camp . Therefore, on Bhndra B, 1819 Vikrarna, the Gorkha11 troops invaded .Makwanpur'. 'fhoy scored victory in this bat't.lG . On f. shwin 22, i .•,; . L5 days after the defeat of 1-b kwanpur , the G•>rkhalis took ovor Harih:1rpur, situatcci to t oo s outh of MH k\Jfmpur.

Nawab Mir Kasim of Bengal wtis fieeking tp occupy as much territory as possibler. lit: sant troops to att:.ick Mnkwanpur on hearing tha·t 1 t had been occupied by King Prithvi Nar ayan S hah. When h1:1 wa s inf'onnod t hat th.,3 troops of Mir Kasim had be sie ged Makwanpur., Prithvi Naruyan Shah wrc,te ·• this lotter, dirt::;cting Ramakrishna Kumwr· to remain ready to rosist th1:: invosion.

On .Magh 10., 1819 Vikrama; i.e. 5 days after this latter was written, ilork:ha11 troops made a lir,htoizag attack on th� troops of Mir K!1sim, who th�rt::upon fled . Aioong tho Gorkhnli nobles spoarhoading 'this attack was Ramokrishna KunwAr Rana.

Contd ••• 147 .

•·-.r· Th& Gorkha lis had been fighting cont inually for 20 yearsr. But this was tho first tillll': that they h:id had to fight against ,a large foreign arm;y . Having defeated th_e enemy in .this battle as well, the Gorkhfllis wero a.bl0 ·to derive double adVontage . In the first place, they wero able to seiz� weapons in large quantities, and secondly, tpeir prestige want up, both ?'It ho� and abroadr. · Sourco : Naya Raj Pant et . al., Sri 5 I'rithvinarayan Shah Ko Upa dosh (Teachings of King Prithvi Narayan Shah) . Lalitpur : Jaga­ damba ?rakashan, n.d . pp . 986-988r.

Kin� frithvi Nnrnyan Shoh 1 s Lettors To Nilokantha Joshi L. Fr.0m King �rithvi Nareyan Shah, To .Nil,�; k.antha J eis hi •.

. W,� hereby erant you exemption from (too obliga tion to provide) Jhnr:.i (labor)r. . . Friday, Chaitra Badi 9, lBlS (March 1758).· , _ • From King Pr ithvi Narayan Shah,

to .Nilakantha Joshi. Greetings . 1,11 is well her".:i and we want the same ther<➔ .· --'l'his will ::ivc us groat . pleasure .

We havo received your lottur and noted its contents.

W.J hereby grant you exemption from payipont of Kusahi-Bisahi 1-.�viosr. Wu hnvt1 S(.ont th13 royal order in this regard to th,: : Chc1utara and tho Kaj i. Uti lizo the; Birta lands owned by you. Wha t more to karned people .

'l'he oral �ssage communicated by the bearer of this l_ot��r is c,Jni'irmcd •

Co ntd .•·•· ·' ·' Expla nation

Tho se two l.:.:tter s wt:ro written by Prithvi · Narayan Shah to Nilak,mthn Joshi . In the first letter, the 'Vikrama yoar 1815 is m,:int iomd., while, tho socond ono d0e::> not mention any dnte . It _has been calculated that the sccun<1 ktt(::r was written in 1816 Vikr.ema . The two · le tters aro g iven side by side here, since: the con tE

liilakAntha Joshi was a resident of Bhaktapur'. The ab�v8 letters indicate the t rrithvi tiarayan Shah had managed to look aftar his interes t�-: in thi:: Bhaktopur arc[-! with the help of Nilakantha Jnshi . Frithvi Nnr,iyan Shah followed the policy of bestowing favors on thc,sc who joined him . i.ccordingly, h;;:, had i'ranted Nilakantha Joshi li.:Xemption from � and the Kusahi-Bisahi l.;;lvy, and allowed him to rota in his Biz•ta lands'.

Jhara tnt:�nt unpaid labor contributed by th& p,aople on a compulsory basis to moct tho special requirem,mts of the govern�nt ., particularly durine lrnr. 'fhis systum cuntinue d for 1.1 lunf time . It w�s physically arduous to work undur this sys tom. H,:mct: Pr ithvi NarAyan Shah used to grant excm!'• ti,.,n fr0m Jhara to p•.=rsr.ms , pa rticul.nrly:.Brahmans, who r.indered sp6 cial Sta:rvic0s. L..-=i t1:;r, a ll Upadhyayn Br.:Jhmnns -.-11;: ri-' exempted from Jh:.:r.'.l'. 'l'hL: 1.s prov,;d by contemPorary docum.:. nts'. One of t hem whic h refers to the con'struction of a fort in Butaul during the Anglo-Nopal weir, is given below:-

Fr0m His Majesty •••

1'u people b..:llonginc to llll thi; 4 caGtes and )6 sub_-cnstes residing in ciroas west 0f tho Marsyane;di ri vcr :-

" Coli.:mo l Ujir Singh 'l'h;Jpa has be;.; n nrdered to construc t a fort in Butaul. i.ll 'Ji.ma lis othor than Upndhyuya Brnhmans� belong ing to t;ll tho 4 cast(:ls aoo 36 sub-caztus., shDll roach Butaul by P0ush 5 carrying with th0m axes olld spndos, Khukris and oth6r tools, :is W(;; ll as 4 months'1 rations', �nd work as dircct(: d by Colone l (U�ir Sine h Thapa ) promptly. Any one wh(; fa ils to contribute.: Jhara labor, or any .1-'\rn ali who fail s to supply Jhcirn lr1b,)l'l.:rs, shall _b,. punishod . 11

Tt1or;;;; a1•1; scor2s of cases in which Pri thvi N arayan Shah hnd bnstowuc:I favors �s . pa rt .of sta tecrnft. Howcv:or, he c�refully. eavaluntF.

Source :' �, pp . 978-981 . I _ Progerty Transactions In Kathmandu, 1794

(Royal orders confirming these transactions issued on Monday, Kartik Badi S, 1851 (November i794)r. i. Madhav Sing Udars, of Ngat To lrin K athmandu, sold 16 ropanis of Khet lands in Dhalpodol. Balakrishna Newar, also of Ngat Tol, purchased the same for Rs 328.• Baksauni. . . fee : Rs 4 • 2. Jaya Bhakta Sing, Bhuwan Pati, Dharrna Pati and Ratna Pati, brothers of Tamfigu Tol in Kathmandu, sold 4 ropanis of Khet lands called Helswat, as we 11 as 2 ropanis bf lands in ••• Those lands wei-e purchased by ••• for Rs 72/8 . Baksauni foe ; Rs 1/4 . J. Narayan, Balabhadra, Bhajudhan, Dhanju, Balakrishnadhan, brothers, of Nagal Tol Brahmapuri in Kathmandu town, sold 19 ropanis of Khot lands in Khijol to Dhnrma Singh of Ekul-Bahal, Ngat Tol, for Rs 343/. 8 . Baksauni fee : Rs 4/12 • , l, . Jium Sing Jyapu of Pude-Bahal Tol in Kathmandu town, is childloss : Ono­ eixtb of tho va luo of (his lands ) was therefore offered to tho governmnnt, nnd 2} ropanis of Khot lands Wlcro -purchased by Dhananjaya of Kwabahnl Tel for Rs 12. Baksauni : Ra .../10 . > • Gandharva Sing Newe r of Chaswadol, MDkhan Tol, in _Kathmandu town, sold 2 .12 ropanis of Khot lands in Dhubahal for Rs 90/8. These lands were purchased by Raj�ndra Newar of Saiva Tol. Balqiauni·' fee : Rs -/8½.

R..:gmi Res.-::arch Collections, Vo l. 24, pp . 453-454. 1so.

Land Reclamation In The Easwrn Hill Region, 1799 1. From King Orban ,

To Prithvidhar Podhya and Siddhikarna Padhya Ghimire,

We hE)reby gr,1nt you author.ity to reclaim waste and virgin landsn, as we ll os to construct am op:.::nrate irrigation chann(;;ls, in the SyambDn and adjoining areas across the Arun river. Settle pdople on the lands thus reclaimed and irrigated . Submit mi annuDl statemant.'3 .of :the total area of rice fi6lds thus reclaimed, aftc.;r an initial p.::riod of , •.• years . Wo her�by dt::cree that such lands sholl be utiliz..:-:d subject to local c_ustomsn, .rind that eviction shnll nc,t be mDdr:: as long as (rents are paid ) on Adhiyn basis as · in thn rest of th,! country .· In case you do not. construct irriga-_ tion chQnnels or rEiclaim rice lands, :you shall be he ld guilty . With dunn,. assurancen, .enjoy the l[lnds after an i.ni.t ial period (of tax exemption) • � : . Poush Sudi 1856 (January 18005, ) . Regmi Re�oarch Collections, Vo l� 2L, p . 33, (Such orders w,;ro issued on the. sn.mL' datr: also to Bharath Padhya .t'or the M..�wa aren east of the Arun river, and to Balabhadra Padhya in tho Yancsc,lr area on the banksn. o·t' the _Tamor rive r) .

-Dullu-Dailekh2 1798-i802 l. kppoint100nt Of Sub�dar

From King Rana Bahadur. Shah.,

To Abhiman Karki , We her�;by appoint you as Subedar, (with jurisdiction over) 159 perf:lOnnel, including 125 musket-bearing troops , who have boen newly­ recruited under the JwaladDl Company at Simta (Dara ) in Dullu-Dailekh .

(Revenues ) from the three Bhansars (rncnopolies and revenue collectir:n contrancts)n, Panch.:-khat finus, Mandali levies, Saun�fagu and Kalyandhan (buried treasure) , as Wt'!ll as from lead, copper aoo cinnabar ( Sobhitan) mines, are hereby ref:.::•rved.

Contd ••• 151 ..

Wi th revenues co 111:: cted rom Khuw'a' villages and Raik� � land s : . ..� throughout tho ti:1rrit.ory of S1.mta ., prov. ide land a ssignmt,nfi • �ntJ"t>ay sE:.lr.1rios at the fo llowing r:,tes to milit�ry p1::rsonnEJl.

Do nr-Jt increaso rntes of t�xation in that t�rritory'. Procur':l ryots from different aroa's en

List Of P,�rsonn0 l /ind L�nd Assignments

Designation Number L<1nd Lssignmenrt (Colwnn le ft blank).

Subedar 1 Jc.imadar 4 Ma jor 1

Kate l

Adjutant 1 Front erisign 1 Re, ... r r-nsign 1 Hawa ldar 8 Saldiers 109

Pipa -Jamadar 1 Pipa (porters) 16 D�r 1 Contd ••• 152s.

2 Tasya., Harfya 2

Bhariwal 2

(Incomplete )

Shr�won Bodi 3, 1855 (Juoo 1798)s. Regrni Res 2arch Collectisons, Vol. 2L , p. 66)-664 . 2. Excessive 'l'axati on find Depopulation

Fr-:.>m King Girban,

1 '1 0 the Subba and Subedars stat.ioned in ••• Dullus. You have collect..::dtrx os in excess of the ra t,1s pre scribed by th·= ChAutariya ons ••• lands situated along main routus, with thA result tha t these have all become depopulateds. It hns become diffic ult even to find lodgings for troops. Accordingly, you shall be h.31.d gui lty if you do not obs.::rve tha arra�l3Illents mention.A in the royal order .

Construct ro =ids everyye ar in the::· territories undt:r your jurisdic­ ti,Jn. At oll places wht:re there exist rest-houses (Pouwa ), assign 20 muris of rice lands each. C•)nstruc t rest-houses where thert aro nono .

1.swin Sudi 15, lf.l.59 ( Sep:tr� rnb;:;r 1802 ) • lt.- gmi ReS'·Drch Coll,�ctlons, Vol. 2L , p. 619s.

J. Judicial Customs And Taxation

(1) From King Girban, To the ryots of Simtar-Dara in Dullu-Dailekh. • Ybu have represented to w, that r:�gulations have not be""n enacted for you.

lccordingly, with effect from the year 1859 (Vikrama) (1802 A.D.), �e confirm existing arrangements as follows :-

Cont d ••• 153 .

t� house-hold with one Hal (one yoke. of oxen ) shall pay Rs 1/-. A house-hold with only one ox shall pay a, amas. -� Kodale holding shall pay annas� 4 . . Every household shall supply 2 annas of ghee and .oil as Senna and Sauriofagu. For Chak-Chakui (adultery not involving persons of high caste) offensesr, there shall be no enslravement• . . Rates of Chak-Chakui fines s ha11 be as follows :- Khas ·• t. Rs 10 Kamir, Sarki . •··• Rs 7 Damai ••• Rs S/4 Bhagi, K�tri ••• Rs 5 A Chak (adultorer) wtio elopes (wtth the woman ) shall be� �finad Rs JO. Ha lf of this am0unt shall be appropria-ood by the Amali, and . tht; otho:r ha·lf by the ·aggrieved husband •.

· Unpaid porterage servic�s shall be ·provided for govermrental requirtiments , as well as i'or sick people, but not for other purposes.•

1he_Amal i shall summon both the plaintiff and the defen dant and giver· them a hearing . He shall not impo se punisA11ent· or collect fee.a (Jitauri ) from tho winning side on an ex-prarte basis.•

Goats and other provisions (Mejwani) shall no� be collected fr()fll every villager. 01lt on1;1 goat shall be obtained where necessary.

We hereby prom�.il.gate' th.ese regula tions.. Comply with them wi th due assurnncer. Ashadh Badi 12, 1859 ( Juno 1802) • RBgmi Research Collections , Vo l. 24, p. 5$1.

Contd.•r• ·r 154.

(2) From King G irban, To the Ama lis of Dullu and Dailekh. The following arrangements, introduced by Cheutariya Barn Shah in IAlll� and _Dailekh, shall be follcw�d :-

P. household with ono ,y--oke of oxen of high qµality (Upallo) sh�ll pay Rs 1/8 •

11 household with one yoke of c,x�-n of iow quality (Tallo ) shall pay Rs 1/- . ii Kodal� holding of 61.lpori 1:. grado (Upallo) shall pay 8 annos. _?, holding grRde LTallo ) shall pay annns • 0 , A K dale of inferior.. •' . • .. 4 . ' Saunefa gu levy shall be co·llected · ·· at the r..ite of 1 anna from every hou.s.::holdr. .

In cnse a Khas w0 m,m elopes· with a man of lower caste , Rs 15 shall be obtained (from him) . The woman shal� not be taken back (by the husband ). In case she has eloped with a man of equivabnt c�sto , only Rs 5 sh.all be taken , not more .

No punistuoont shnll be award�d if (a girl) elopes with a man of oquivalent caste without �rfonning tho rites of marriager. ·· We hereby confirm these orrang8ments. In case any person acts in contrav<.;ntion of these arrangements and c_ au ses depopulation, ho shnll punish�d .r be _

Shrowan Badi l, 1859 {July 1802). Ut.1gmi fwscarc h Coll1.1ctions, Vo l. 24, p. 559. . . . 155. ft' An Inscription Aditya ; Of Malla, 1321 A.D. By Mohan Prasad Khana l •.

At Rigaon situated in the Atharasaya-Kho la area at the .fo ot of the Larke -Himal in Gorkhas districtr., there is a well-known monastery (Gumba) called Taghbai. According to the local Lamasr., this monarstery is 1., 000 years old, and it had a rich collection of antiques�.

Under th� 1959 Nopnl-China Boundary Agreement, the Taghbai monastory .wE1s included in Chinese t�rritory. Following this agroemnt, tho Chinoso havu tiikon owoy tho ontiques in tho posses sion o1' ttiu monas�ry.

Before the·c onclusion of th,o Nepal-Chino Boundary Agreoment, oroaa stretching up to 30 miles to the north of the monastery wt,re loca ted in Nopali torritory. Most of tho land endo�nts made in favor of tho mon!'lstery are now �ituatcd in Chinese territory.

Sorr..e of such lands �ro lo9ated also et Samdugaon within the Luiloyo Vi llage Panchayat in Gorkha district. Hence a small monastery ha s been built th�re . Somc·rancrient idols and historical materials have been brought from the 'I'a ghbai monastery am kept at Sanrlugaon . Theso include a copper plat<.: inscription issued by King Aditya Malln of the Karnali region in favor of the Taghbai monastery. The inscription is written in an old i"ol'lll ot thor. llopa 11 · language as we 11 as 1:n t ha Tibetan language � A �rans lation of the inscription is given below :-

'lhe pious K� Aditya Malla hereby issues tho followµig order to ministers ., district· administrators J soldiers deputed to. the eastern region, and to all tho subjects of the country.

Noboay sha ll c,:iusc ony suffering to Lama s rosiding in tho '.l'aghbni and othur subordina to monaatorias · who p�rform re ligious .functions occording to tho scripturesr. They :shall be permittod to carry on tte ir relig ious i'uB: tions from genera tion to gene ... ration . Nobody shall expel them or doprive them of anything. · · ·· ·

1. " 1378 Ko Karnali Pradeshka Rajn Adi tyamalla Ko Abhilekh-- 1.11 (An Inscription of King Aditya Malla of The Karnali Region Dated 1321 A."O;)r. Samikshn Wotkly, July 24, 1972. Contd.•• 156 •.

Futur,J K1.nes. llnc;i su�jccts too shall . not expel these-· Lamas, who have boon traditic,:;1,:, lly per ... fo rming r-eligious func tions, or deprive thorn of anything .

Any one who does ·not comply with this order shall be punished with a fine of Sun Sang (?) and rigorous physic�l torture shall be inf'lic­ Wd on him.

'l'ht:1 King has issued this order on th,e Dashami day in the month of''Shra vnna of the'. Year of t.he R8t for the inf'orm,1tion of all.

Aditya Mnll� wna tha son of Jitari Mallo . Lik� his foro.fnthors , /1d ityn Mnlla gradually oxpandud his kingdom. His forefathers had extended his dcrnin ions to tho north-we stern ration. But none of thorn, except Ji tari l'ia lla , had been able to expand eastwnrd.

· In l3L4 Vikrama, Jitari Malla first invaded Kathmand� Valley'. I, •fierce battle broke out ncr nr the Swayambhu hills , in which about 800 Kh8s troopf:: of Jitari Mnllc'! wo re killed . Notwithstanding thE: he avy cnsua lties sufforf.)d by him, J1tnri Mc1 ll,a continued to 'lldvanco, so tha t all the 1nhabit0nts of Kathl'Mndu· Va lley wero forced to tnke shelter in fort.st forts, conceRling nll avAilablo stocks of food�rnins'. Uriab 43 to get any food , Jitari M�llo returned to his country along uith his troof>S'.

14 months la ter, Jitari Malla again :lnvaded Kathm;ndu Valley . 'l'his attack watl more forocious than ' the first oni:; . The Kha·s trc;> 0ps set several village s on fire in ord1::i" t0 occupy forts. Jitari Ma lla then perform�·d. roligious ceremouios at famous temples in the Valley and roturnod home .

In 1346 Vikrama, that is, exnctly oni:! yo nr lat�r, J1tari Mnlla at tr.ck'. Kothmandu Valley fo r tho third tinlt:l'. · However, the author of the Gopal Varru;tw.• � is silent on h

1346 Vikramll is tht.? last known' dcitti rolating to Jft.:ri Nallo'1 s rule . ,..n irw cription instullod by Srinatha Rnut, a cont�mporary 01· King l1dityn Ma lla , 10 ye ars later� pruves tha.t Aditya Malla bad suqceedcd ;Jit!lri Ma lln.

lhwever , in PP• 27-29 of Karnali frc1desh, •Dhanava jra Qajrt1chl-lrya hf.ls v diff�rent story to toil. He �rites:

Contd � •'• 15-7'.

11Who succeoded Jitari Malla ? The pillar-inscription of Pri thvi Mallc1 .is somawhat vague- about the time of succes sion. It sheds light mainly on t.hr

g�nea logy of two brotbars•. But the inscription .shows that Jttari Marll� hnd b�en succ1.;1eided by. his nephew, Ripu Malla, for it puts the name ·o r Ri,u Malla aft ,r Aditya Ma lln in order of procodence . The only point of doubt cono;;;rns the date of Ripu Malla I s �le'. Tho known year re.lating to Ripu l•b lla I s rulc.i is 1369 Vikrama . This was the year during which he had visi t�,d fathmandu Valluy. This is also confirmed .by the inscription discover�d et Niglihnwa. It is therefore definite thtit Ripu Malla h2d been ruling durin�: tiu:it ye ar. But a smnll inscription dated 1356 Vikrama, discovel'\':,d at the . t.;mple o f Jwalaji in Dullu, describe:s Aditya Malla as King ••� · ••• Adityr· Ma lla had invaded Kathmanch.l Vnlley in 1384 Vikrama •. Hence a there is no' . room for doubt that Aditya Malla ha d been ruling miring'' tha t year. The npp:i rt:nt conelus ion to be drawn from th is is that Jitari M.1 lla I s son and nf:phow had •rul-0 d sepn:rataly•' •••, The abovo-mcntione d inoori ption of 1356 Vik.rnmc1 doi:;s uot bolong to Aditya Malla, but WD S insta'lled by Srin.:i thn �·1ut, a St:rvont of Aditya Malla, He thus might have r1�ferrad to his mast, r as 11Rnja 11 (Kin.:: ), cvtin though Ripu Malla was t,he reigning Kine ."

But h::ivinr, said all this, Dhanovajra Bajracharya, also stat(-)s; 11/lny way, -I fee:; l this is a matte r on which historians must coriduct furthoi: · rust,;:'arch. 11 Ho hm; thus adopted a vague and evasive :stand .

1 In Knrnali Loka Sanskriti (Vol. I), Satya &han Joshi makes a similAr cloim, and adds, "ThE!Se inscriptions show that Ripu .Mall.a had faith in Buddhism, and also that he had oxpa n::icd his dominions .,1 •••. It is no t clear wh,) succe,::ded Ripu Malla . Tho fact that Sa ngrama Ma lla 1 s nama is inscrilx, d alfjne, with th;jt of his fath•�r, Ripu Ma lla, in the Ashoka Pillar at Lurnbini indicates that: Ripu Ma lla hnd ci tho r sent his son on an inspection tour or takun him along with him on pilgrimoge. However , no account is av ai l.Jbl.e tc sh0w th.2.t Sancrflmrt Malln actUE11ly succeeded Ripu Malla •. On the other h,md , th� Gop� l Vflmshawa li substantiates the view tnat Ripu Mal la was succaudod by Aditya Me lla , who was thG socond son of Jttari Ma lla, his oldur uncw . It appanrs thnt K ing Aditya Mc1 lla was junior to Ripu Ma lla . I'

.Satya Mohan· Joshith us tries to .givo color to his ·b()ok by citinl'. son� int(:;r1.:sting f c1cts such as th,>sd mentioned abov�. When Satya K:>han Jqshi .,�ti-1 h::iJ conducu..id histor ic al research

Contd••• 158n.

l1d i:t,yn !"ia lla probably bccamv King at flny time b6twoen 1JL6 And 1)56 Vikrnma after the do.nth of Jitnri l1.--:1lla. Like his father, Aaityn Malla ha d territorial ambitionsn. But Ripu Ma lla , who w:-s the son of his unclen, assistn.1 him cuns idt:rably in rµnnint: th(, nff'.nirs of to:n· St:d;a . '!'his is thero ason why in 1369 Vikramn Kine A.;i ty.J M::illa htid 9espatched som3n. Khas troops to Kathmnndu Valloy undor the· command of Ripu ·Mal la rind t!is son Songrama Mu lLi. Dut it r.tppu:rs th<'!t thi s army returned home thrc.,ugh Lumbini without putt in: ur r-:ny fieht in Kathmnndu Vnllcyn. While rcturninc from Kathmandu Valley, Ripu Malla puid a fJilgriniag� to Lun�ini , birthplac0 of the Buddha, nnd loft nome of his inscriptions thare . Th� �uthor of the Gopnl Vamsh:1vE;li describes Ri pu Mall!?. as a Khas King . 'I'h0 inscription at Kapil.::ivastu C')nta instht: worcts ."Long Live Ripu Malla, 1234 'Jikrmnan'' whik tho /.shokn Pillar bo ,cJrs 1ihe words "Long Live fi.ipu M� ll:1 , vict1Jry to Snr,4�rr.unn ·Mn lla .n11 (ltitw� Prr·ka:,h, VL-1. 2 , Dc.nk 1, p. 81)n. 00,.:. bo,,k �ntitkd i:bhis:,mnynbnkr:r, discov;::rda··at: a 'fib•�'tan rnonnstcry, rofc1·� tc, him .ns 1 H:ijraj.::ishwar Lokl�shwar Hipu Malln!' (Potech, MAdieval N.,p:il, (>{) . 108-9)n.

i i�ll thc,t.o wi rtincs create the: impression that fiipu Ma lla W3S actually Kin� . But !.riit.y,1 Malla ," not Hipu Nalla, was the actu.,l rei13ning King. 'l'huro is no doubt about thisn.

A close study of the history of Kathm:!ndual V ley wouldn. snow thnt cl:.;f:, rclativ;;;s of tt�c King, who r._:nd;_,:Nd cooperation to-him in runninr the of fairs of tfu Staten., WLrn tr,-:iatGd as if' thf.y W•.;rcl Kines ·,md r,ivon :royal titlosn. f'or exmripk , th� rd'c.:roncvs mad..:: to Bira Malla in a docunf nt in the possession of' the Natiorw l Library cr.:ate the impression that he was the r�al King of Dhaktapur durin1:, 624 Samw:it . But th.er� is no disputcJ ·over thu · fact that Bhuwano ·Malla and nr)t Bira Ma_lla was thl: ri:· al reigning �ing c, f Bhaktapur at that tiu,o , a fact which is ccni'innt-:d by the inscription f0u11i� -at Changun. . '

11 stone inscription cit.:id in (D.ft. Heem1 1 s) Medi.oval Nep�,l, Vol. 3 , P• 95, I,irov�s that Birn Nalla wa s married during e th rcien of King Bhuwanf' Mallan. It is a dii'fcr�nt n1t1ttor if om➔ is to r ogFird B:t.rn M::illn AS Kine only oocauso tho inscriptiun addres�es him by roy�l titles. Of oourse, t he in::;­ cription ·or 1580 Vikrama, discoV(;rt::d at Dhalachhe Tolo in Bhaktapur, . con­ tR.ins tho -words, "the· Kingdom of Rr:na Malla, DhimA ·Mc1ll11 and Jita Mn llri .'1

Contd ••• ,' This crentas the imprerssion that Bhsktepur was ruled' .' jointly by tb:lsa three persons. the act�al position is _that Bhaktapur was ruhid by Raya Malla, Bhuwana MallaBut and Prana Malla , in that order.- · · ..

Yet another exanple is the tre aty conc lude d by too Kings ot Bhaktapur, Kantipur and Lalitpur in 1605 VikramRr. It mntions the names ot Bira MallG, Narendra Ma lla , Malla , Ka lyana Malle, Prabhu Malla, Govinda Malla and Prana Malla, along with the1.r roya ·l titles•. Of them, Narendra Ma lla and Prana Malla, wer0 the actual Kings ot Bhaktapur and' 'Kantipur respectively, while· the rest were mours or the royal families of Kathmarduan d Patm'.

Similarlx, Ripu Malla was not a real King h1lllself'� He was thought' .to be a King only because he was also v·estod with a tew royal •titlea, Moreove r, Ripu· Malla I s inscriptions of 1369 and 1370: Vikrama do not ofter.any evidcnco to show that ho�� really beco� King• • On·th(j other hand, �onclusive evidence is ava'ilable to show that ·11 ditya Ma lla w as the real King·� Kingr P ithvi Mal1.a 1 s go ld plate inscrip­ tion of 1413 Vikrema stc:1tes tha_t his predecessors,King Aditya Malla and · Ki ng Punya Malla,; had made a ritu Al gi.tt of lands on the aUBpic;ious occ a­ stions of solar .and _lunar eclipses. . . . Misunderstanding has arisen about A�itya Malla because ot the tailurr-} to study pro perly the availab le evidence about him. Inscriptions dealing with the 28 yea rs lone rule (1356�1384 Vikrama ) or Aditya Malla have beE:n discovored. Of the se inscriptions , the one- dated 1378 Vikrama '.as ci�d. in the beginning of this article , should help to dispel th e wrong notions . Qbout Aditya Malls . This -co pper plate inscr iptior) wa s iessucd py King'. Adity;, Malla Qf,the : Karnali-regi on in ta vor ot thti Lamas ofthe Taghbai mnaste ry in 1378 Vikrama (1321 A.D,). It was du.ring that, year that _h111 _troop� inyt!dt1 d Kothmandu Valley.' · · · · . . . ' . As th.is. inscription also _Nters to the ministers a� officers assigned to the eastern front, it appears that Aditys Malla wa·s making ettorts :to occupy territories situated in th e eastern region . A.ccorc:line; to the Gop l ·vnmsnnvali, he bad occupied Nuwakot after some ,time . This is :an l,ndicat ion that the Karnali empire stretched upto Gorkha, across the Trishuli (modein Dhading di strict) • · · · · · ·

Anyway, this copper plate inscr1pt,1on is ot cons iderable ancei.Jnport in tho history not only of the but also ot t� Karnal1 region , 160.

A STUDY IN NEPALI ECONOMIC HISTORY 1768-1846

By l'.a hesh C. R1:�gmi .

�IUIIOHHl·

Published in thor· Bibliotheca Himalayica Series by Manjusri Publ.ishing House , Kumar Gallery, 11 Sundar Nagar Market, New Delhi, 1971 . 235 PP• Library ad:R s 39.00; Deluxe ad: Rs ,4;00 (Indian cuITency) . Contentsr. Chapter.. I: Political Unification : E�onomic Aspects And Consequencesr. h Ch�pter 'II : Te Economic Backgrowid•

Qiapter, . , III: 'nle Extension of State Control Over Tho Land . ·. · Chap_ter IV: Rewnue And ·Taxation •.. · -chapter V: The Peasant And The Land. Chapter VI: Forced Lapor And Slavery.

Chapter VII:, .Revenue Administrations ;Impact on_- �rarian Conditions . Cha�ter VIIl :General Bconomic Policies And Programs. Chapter IXs Economic Dev�lopments Arter The NepaL-British War. Chapter · Is A ·Retrospect .

, .

(� 0 M \