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Mulkaji Damodar Pande: The Forgotten War Hero of Nepal

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  Mulkaji Damodar Pande: The forgotten war hero of Nepal A Picture of Mulkaji Damodar Pande Introduction Kaji Damodar Pande was a Nepalese Statesman, military General and a nobleman who served as the Mulkaji / Mukhya Mantri (equivalent to the Prime Minister) of Nepal. He was born in 1752 A.D or 1808 B.S as the youngest son of Kaji Kalu Pande. He along with his elder brothers Kaji Bansharaj Pande and Sardar Ranasur Pande, were given important roles in the court of King Prithvi Narayan Shah soon after the death of their father in the battle of Kirtipur. Damodar Pande was a very successful general who fought in the Sino-Nepalese war, Nepal-Tibet war and the unification of campaign of Nepal. He successfully annexed Sikkim in the East to Krishna-Gandaki upto Mahakali in the west. Unification Campaign Damodar Pande was made the Army General or the Pradhan Senapati of the Gorkhali forces in 1786 A.D during the Regency
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Thapa and Pande conflict and the Rise of Junga Bahadur Rana

Thapa and Pande conflict and the Rise of Junga Bahadur Rana Introduction Rana regime was the period of 104 years  ruled by hereditary Rana prime ministers from 1903 B.S to 2007 B.S. The fortune for the Rana family was established by Jung Bahadur Kunwar through series of conspiracies, murders and various other factors. The subsequent kings after King Prithivi Narayan Shah didn’t have stronghold in the politics of the country either due to minority or lack of qualities to rule. The state politics or authority was monopolized by the regents or noble Chettri families which included, Basnyat, Pande, Thapa and Shah/Chautariya families .The families plotted against each other and provoked the rulers against each other which inturn resulted in murder of prominent leaders like Damodar Pande, Bhimsen Thapa, Rana Jung Pande and Mathbar Singh Thapa. The internal palace clash between the courtiers, groupism and the bitter struggle for power resulted in the century long Rana regime. One of th
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Prime ministers of Nepal before Bhimsen Thapa

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The Unexplored Part of History Nepal as a country existed long before 1768 A.D when King Prithivi Narayan Shah of Gorkha led the unification campaign. There has been mentions about Nepal even in various ancient Tibetan scriptures and also in "Arthasastra" of Kautilya which is more 5000 years old. There are also mentions in a Sanskrit inscription of 512 CE found in Tistung, around west of Kathmandu Valley. But in public way we consider existence of Nepal after unification of Kantipur (now Kathmandu) into Gorkha empire in 25th September 1768 A.D. For those who must be wondering why Nepal got its official existence from 1768 AD but Bhimsen Thapa who became prime minister in 1806 A.D is considered as the first prime minister and none before that. There are many people in Nepali history who have served in capacity of Prime minister even before Bhimsen Thapa. Prime minister or " Pradhan Mantri " in Nepali history were known with different names. For example earlier P
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Kaji Kalu Pandey: The Great Warrior

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Kaji Kalu Pandey: The Great Warrior Kaji Kalu Pandey (or  पाँडे / Pande) has stood as a symbol of great valour in Nepalese history. Born in Gorkha in 1770 B.S (1713 A.D) into a noble family , his father Kaji Bhimraj Pandey was also an influential noblemen in the court of Gorkhali King Prithivipati Shah, the great grandfather of King Prithivi Narayan Shah. He was a  Chettri  of Upamanyu Gotra  and a descended of Mantri Ganesh Pandey of Gorkha(served under King Dravya Shah).  As he was born into the family of warriors and administrators, Kalu Pandey whose real name was Banshidhar soon followed his forefather’s legacy. Very soon at the age of 20 he was in the Gorkhali administration. He was an influential Bhardhar since 1798/99 B.S. Along with being a warrior he was also a great tactician. He is credited for mediating a friendship treaty between King Prithivi Narayan Shah of Gorkha and King Ripumardan Shah of Lamjung diminishing a century long rivalry between the two states
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