https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Kingdom_of_SikkimKingdom of Sikkim - Revision history2026-10-28T09:42:45ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.43.6https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kingdom_of_Sikkim&diff=471267&oldid=prevRowenaGlenny3: minor add formatting as per guidelines and corrected details2026-03-28T23:26:41Z<p>minor add formatting as per guidelines and corrected details</p>
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<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Short description|Kingdom in South Asia (1642–1975)}}<br />
{{Distinguish|Sikh Empire}}<br />
{{More footnotes needed}}<br />
{{Use Indian English}}<br />
{{Use dmy dates}}<br />
{{stack|<br />
{{Infobox country<br />
| conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Sikkim<br />
| common_name = Sikkim<br />
| native_name = {{nobold|{{native name|sip-Tibt|འབྲས་ལྗོངས།|italics=off}}}}<br />''Drenjong''<br />{{nobold|{{native name|xct-Tibt|འབྲས་མོ་གཤོངས།|italics=off}}}}<br />''Dremoshong''<br />{{nobold|{{native name|lep-Lepc|ᰕᰚᰬᰯ ᰜᰤᰴ|italics=off}}}}<br />''Mayel Lyang''<br />
| status = [[Protectorate]]<br />
| status_text = {{plainlist|<br />
* Protectorate of [[Ganden Phodrang|Tibet]] (until 1890)<br />
** ''Bhutanese domination (1680/1700–1792)''<br />
** ''Nepalese domination (1776–1792)''<br />
** ''Nepalese-Bhutanese presence (1792–1816)''<br />
** ''British presence (1816–1890)''<!--Source: The Encyclopaedia Britannica: A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences ..., Volume 25, page 89--><br />
* Princely state of the [[British Raj]] (1890–1947)<ref>According to Article II of [[Convention of Calcutta]], Sikkim was a direct protectorate of the British Government, not the British Indian government.</ref><br />
* Protectorate of [[India]] (1950–1975)}}<br />
| government_type = [[Absolute monarchy]] (until 1973)<!--per 8 May 1973 agreement; Government of Sikkim Act, 1974 provided elected legislature--><br/>[[Parliamentary system|Parliamentary]] [[constitutional monarchy]] (1973–1975)<!--https://www.nytimes.com/1975/04/16/archives/sikkim-votes-to-end-monarchy-merge-with-india.html--><br />
| leader1 = [[Phuntsog Namgyal]]<br />
| leader2 = [[Palden Thondup Namgyal]]<br />
| year_leader1 = 1642–1670 (first)<br />
| year_leader2 = 1963–1975 (last)<br />
| title_leader = [[Chogyal]]<br />
| event_start = Established<br />
| year_start = 1642<br />
| event_end = Merger with [[India]]<br />
| date_end = 16 May<br />
| year_end = 1975<br />
| event1 = [[Treaty of Titalia]] signed<br />
| date_event1 = 1817<br />
| event2 = [[Darjeeling]] given to [[British Raj|British India]]<br />
| date_event2 = 1835<br />
| event3 = [[Palden Thondup Namgyal]] forced to abdicate<br />
| date_event3 = 1975<br />
| s1 = Sikkim<br />
| flag_s1 = Flag of India.svg<br />
| image_flag = Flag of Sikkim (1967-1975).svg<br />
| flag_type = [[Flag of Sikkim|Flag of Sikkim<br>(1967–1975)]]<br />
| flag_caption = [[Flag of Sikkim|Flag]]<br />
| image_coat = Seal of Sikkim.jpg<br />
| coat_alt = <br />
| image_map = Sikkim area map.svg<br />
| image_map_caption = Kingdom of Sikkim<br />
| capital = {{plainlist|<br />
* [[Yuksom]] (1642–1670)<br />
* [[Rabdentse]] (1670–1793)<br />
* [[Tumlong]] (1793–1894)<br />
* [[Gangtok]] (1894–1975)<br />
<br />
| motto = "Oh, the jewel of creation is in the Lotus"<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.hubert-herald.nl/BhaSikkim.htm | title=Sikkim / Dämojong | access-date=22 November 2021 | archive-date=22 November 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211122151525/http://www.hubert-herald.nl/BhaSikkim.htm | url-status=live }}</ref><br />
| national_anthem = ''[[Drenjong Silé Yang Chhagpa Chilo]]''{{sfn|Hiltz, Constructing Sikkimese National Identity|2003|p=80–81}}<br />"Why is Sikkim Blooming So Fresh and Beautiful?"<br />
| official_languages = [[Classical Tibetan|Chöke]], [[Sikkimese language|Sikkimese]]<br />
| common_languages = [[Lepcha language|Lepcha]] (early period), [[Dzongkha]], [[Nepali language|Nepali]] (late period)<br />
| religion = [[Tibetan Buddhism]]<br />
| demonym = Drenjop, Sikkimese<br />
| currency = [[Rupee]]<br />
| legislature = [[State Council (Sikkim)|State Council of Sikkim]]<br />
| today = [[India]]<br />
| area_km2 = <br />
| area_rank = <br />
| GDP_PPP = <br />
| GDP_PPP_year = <br />
| HDI = <br />
| HDI_year = <br />
}}<br />
}}<br />
{{Contains special characters|Tibetan}}<br />
{{Contains special characters|Uncommon Unicode}}<br />
{{Princely states topics}}<br />
<br />
{{History of South Asia}}<br />
}}<br />
The '''Kingdom of Sikkim''' ([[Classical Tibetan]] and {{lang-sip|འབྲས་ལྗོངས།}}, ''Drenjong''), officially '''Dremoshong''' ([[Classical Tibetan]] and {{lang-sip|འབྲས་མོ་གཤོངས།}}) until the 1800s, was a [[hereditary monarchy]] in the [[Eastern Himalayas]] which existed from 1642 to 16 May 1975, when it was annexed<ref>{{Cite web |author=<!--Staff byline--> |title=16th May 1975: The Kingdom of Sikkim and its Annexation with India |url=https://eurasiantimes.com/sikkim-history-india-annexed/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Did India have a right to annex Sikkim in 1975? |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/cover-story/story/19780430-did-india-have-a-right-to-annex-sikkim-in-1975-818651-2015-02-18 |access-date=2023-05-27 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Abrahams |first=Pema |title=The Forgotten Kingdom |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/05/20/the-forgotten-kingdom-sikkim-forty-years-india/ |access-date=2023-05-27 |website=Foreign Policy |language=en-US}}</ref> by the [[India|Republic of India]]. It was ruled by [[Chogyal]]s of the Namgyal dynasty.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Marathe |first=Om |title=Explained: Sikkim, from Chogyal rule to Indian state |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-sikkim-chogyal-rule-to-indian-state-sdf-bjp-5921574/ |access-date=2022-11-13 |website=The Indian Express |language=en |archive-date=13 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221113131452/https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-sikkim-chogyal-rule-to-indian-state-sdf-bjp-5921574/ |url-status=live }}</ref><br />
<br />
==History==<br />
===Nepalese-Bhutanese domination===<br />
In the mid-18th century, [[Sikkim]] was invaded by both [[Nepal]] (then the [[Gorkha Kingdom]]) and [[Bhutan]] (then ruled by Gedun Chomphel) and was under both the Gorkha and the Bhutanese rule for more than 40 years. Between 1775 and 1815, almost 180,000 ethnic [[Nepali people|Nepalis]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chettri |first=Mona |title=Ethnic politics in the Nepali public sphere three casesfrom the eastern Himalaya. |url=https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/18060/1/Chettri_3563.pdf |url-status=live |access-date=13 November 2022 |website=SOAS Research Online |archive-date=13 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221113131854/https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/18060/1/Chettri_3563.pdf }}</ref> from Eastern and Central Nepal migrated to Sikkim.{{Citation needed}} After the British colonisation of India, however, Sikkim allied itself with British India as they had a common enemy – Nepal.{{citation needed}} The infuriated Nepalese attacked Sikkim with vengeance, overrunning most of the region including the [[Terai]]. This prompted the [[British East India Company]] to attack Nepal in 1814, resulting in the [[Anglo-Nepalese War]].{{Citation needed}} The [[Sugauli Treaty]] between [[British Raj|Britain]] and Nepal and the [[Treaty of Titalia]] between Sikkim and British India resulted in territorial concessions by Nepal, which ceded Sikkim to British India.<ref name="nepalarmytwo">{{Cite web|url=http://www.nepalarmy.mil.np/history.php?page=two|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607215048/http://www.nepalarmy.mil.np/history.php?page=two|url-status=dead|archive-date=2011-06-07|title=History of Nepal: A Sovereign Kingdom|publisher=Official website of Nepal Army}}</ref><br />
<br />
===British and Indian protectorate===<br />
[[File:Sikkim map 1898.jpg|thumb|left|Map of Sikkim, 1898]]<br />
Under the 1861 [[Treaty of Tumlong]], Sikkim became a [[British protectorate]], then an Indian protectorate in 1950.<ref name="nikkei">{{cite news|url=http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/International-Relations/Indian-hegemonism-drags-Himalayan-kingdom-into-oblivion?page=1|title=Indian hegemonism drags Himalayan kingdom into oblivion|publisher=Nikkei Asian Review|agency=Nikkei|access-date=24 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170403015228/http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/International-Relations/Indian-hegemonism-drags-Himalayan-kingdom-into-oblivion?page=1|archive-date=3 April 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref><br />
<br />
[[Thutob Namgyal]], the 9th Chogyal of Sikkim, looked to the [[Dalai Lama]] for spiritual leadership and during his reign the [[Tibet]]an government started to regain political influence over Sikkim. In 1888 the British sent a [[Sikkim expedition|military expedition to expel Tibetan forces from Sikkim]].<br />
<br />
===Accession to India===<br />
<br />
In 1975, allegations of discrimination against [[Nepalis|Nepali]] Hindus in Sikkim led to resentment against the [[Chogyal]].<ref>{{cite news |last= Larmer |first= Brook |title= Bhutan's Enlightened Experiment |url= http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/03/bhutan/larmer-text/8 |id= ([http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2008/03/bhutan/larmer-text print version]) |newspaper= National Geographic |location= Bhutan |access-date= 7 September 2016 |archive-date= 20 March 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210320163730/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/ |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= 25 years after Sikkim |url= http://nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=9621#.V89C9zVGRhY |newspaper= Nepali Times |issue= #35 |access-date= 7 September 2016 |archive-date= 31 January 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180131071530/http://nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=9621#.V89C9zVGRhY |url-status= live }}</ref> Their instigation led to [[Indian Army]] personnel moving into [[Gangtok]]. According to [[Sunanda K. Datta-Ray]] of ''[[The Statesman (India)|The Statesman]]'', the army killed the palace guards and surrounded the palace in April 1975.<ref name="nikkei" /><br />
<br />
After disarming the palace, a [[1975 Sikkimese monarchy referendum|referendum on the monarchy]] was held, in which the Sikkimese people overwhelmingly voted to abolish the monarchy, and the new parliament of Sikkim, led by [[Kazi Lhendup Dorjee]], proposed a bill for Sikkim to become an Indian [[States and union territories of India|state]], which was promptly accepted by the Government of India.<ref name="nikkei"/><ref>{{cite news|last1=Sethi|first1=Sunil|title=Treaties: Annexation of Sikkim|url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/did-india-have-a-right-to-annex-sikkim-in-1975/1/435037.html|access-date=4 December 2016|agency=India Today|issue=2|publisher=India Today|archive-date=28 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160128172513/http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/did-india-have-a-right-to-annex-sikkim-in-1975/1/435037.html|url-status=live}}</ref><br />
<br />
==Culture and religion==<br />
In culture and religion, Sikkim was linked closely with [[Tibet]], from which its first king migrated, and [[Bhutan]], with which it shares borders. The presence of a large ethnic Nepali population, mainly from eastern and central Nepal, also leads to cultural linkages with Nepal.<br />
<br />
== See also ==<br />
* [[Sikkim]]<br />
* [[History of Sikkim]]<br />
* [[Chogyal]]<br />
* [[List of heads of government of the Kingdom of Sikkim]]<br />
* [[List of political officers in the Kingdom of Sikkim]]<br />
<br />
==References==<br />
<br />
===Citations===<br />
{{Reflist}}<br />
<br />
===Sources===<br />
{{refbegin}}<br />
* {{citation |last=Hiltz |first=Jackie |title=Constructing Sikkimese National Identity in the 1960s and 1970s |journal=Bulletin of Tibetology |year=2003 |url=https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/1810/243140/bot_2003_02_04.pdf?sequence=1 |ref={{sfnref|Hiltz, Constructing Sikkimese National Identity|2003}} |access-date=1 August 2017 |archive-date=1 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170801201114/https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/1810/243140/bot_2003_02_04.pdf?sequence=1 |url-status=live }}<br />
{{refend}}<br />
<br />
==Further reading==<br />
* {{cite book|last=Duff|first=Andrew|title=Sikkim: Requiem for a Himalayan Kingdom|publisher=Birlinn|location=Edinburgh|isbn=978-0-85790-245-0}}<br />
* {{citation |last=Rai |first=Rajiv |title=The State in the Colonial Periphery: A Study on Sikkims Relation with Great Britain |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mstdCgAAQBAJ |year=2015 |publisher=Partridge Publishing India |isbn=978-1-4828-4871-7 |ref={{sfnref|Rai, The State in the Colonial Periphery|2015}}}}<br />
* {{citation |first=Leo E. |last=Rose |title=India and Sikkim: Redefining the Relationship |journal=Pacific Affairs |volume=42 |number=1 |pages=32–46 |doi=10.2307/2754861 |jstor=2754861 |ref={{sfnref|Rose, India and Sikkim|1969}}}}<br />
* {{citation |last1=Rose |first1=Leo E. |title=Nepal – Strategy for Survival |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v07Vo3vAaKwC |year=1971 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-01643-9 |ref={{sfnref|Rose, Nepal – Strategy for Survival|1971}}}}<br />
* {{citation |last1=Sharma |first1=Suresh Kant |last2=Sharma |first2=Usha |title=Discovery of North-East India: Geography, History, Culture, Religion, Politics, Sociology, Science, Education and Economy. Sikkim. Volume ten |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kBk3xBjSRbsC&pg=PA117 |year=2005 |publisher=Mittal Publications |isbn=978-81-8324-044-4 |pages=117– |ref={{sfnref|Sharma & Sharma, Discovery of North-East India, Volume ten|2005}}}}<br />
* {{citation |last=Singh |first=Amar Kaur Jasbir |title=Himalayan triangle: a historical survey of British India's relations with Tibet, Sikkim, and Bhutan, 1765–1950 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4dq1AAAAIAAJ |year=1988 |publisher=British Library |isbn=9780712306300 |ref={{sfnref|Singh, Himalayan Triangle|1988}}}}<br />
<br />
== External links ==<br />
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100828072311/http://sikkim.nic.in/sws/glim_mon.htm "Buddhist Monasteries of Sikkim"]. Sikkim.nic.in.<br />
* {{Curlie|Regional/Asia/India/Sikkim}}<br />
* [http://www.gluckman.com/Sikkim.htm Climbing the clouds to Sikkim]<br />
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20101027093510/http://www.sikkim-culture.gov.in/Kings%20of%20Sikkim/Kings%20of%20Sikkim.aspx Kings of Sikkim]<br />
* [http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/the-sikkim-saga-through-an-american-lens/article4617433.ece The Sikkim saga, through an American lens]<br />
<br />
{{Sikkim}}<br />
{{Former Monarchies}}<br />
<br />
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sikkim, Kingdom of}}<br />
[[Category:Kingdom of Sikkim| ]]<br />
[[Category:Sikkim]]<br />
[[Category:States and territories established in 1642]]<br />
[[Category:States and territories disestablished in 1975]]<br />
[[Category:Former monarchies of South Asia]]<br />
[[Category:Former countries in South Asia]]<br />
[[Category:Former British protectorates]]<br />
[[Category:Princely states of India]]<br />
[[Category:Tibetan Buddhist places]]<br />
[[Category:Associated states]]<br />
[[Category:Former British colonies and protectorates in Asia]]<br />
[[Category:1642 establishments in Asia]]<br />
[[Category:1975 disestablishments in Asia]]<br />
[[Category:Former monarchies]]<br />
[[Category:Gun salute princely states]]<br />
[[Category:Empires and kingdoms of India]]</div>Snixtr