Narayanhity Royal Palace

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The Narayanhity Royal Palace in Kathmandu, Nepal

The Narayanhity Royal Palace or Narayanhity Durbar was the home of the monarchs of Nepal.^[1] The palace takes its name from the Narayanhiti, a famous historic waterspout situated at the southern corner of the Palace.

1 History
2 Royal massacre at the Palace
3 Abolition of the monarchy
4 References
5 External links

[edit] History

Some parts of this palace are more than 200 years old. It is the Royal Palace of the Nepali King. The Shah kings moved to this palace from their old palace in the late 18th century. This was a decade after they came out victorious with the gruesome wars with the Ranas. The old palace that still stands near the famous Durbar Square was abandoned and the new one was constructed to commemorate that victory. There were various additions in the course of time. The new edifice was inaugurated in 1970 on the occasion of the wedding of His Majesty king Birendra Bir Bikram Shahdev.

[edit] Royal massacre at the Palace

Main article: Nepalese royal massacre

The palace witnessed a bloody massacre in the year 2001. King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah was assassinated along with 7 members of his family including Queen Aishwarya and Crown Princesses. It is alleged that Crown Prince Dipendra, who was upset with his immediate family because they disapproved of the woman of his choice for a wife, carried out this massacre. He died a few days later from wounds sustained during alleged "exchange of fire". Various conspiracy theories arose and there has yet to be a clear picture of what happened that night.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Abolition of the monarchy

Narayanhiti Palace was nationalized by the Nepalese government in August 2007 but the king was allowed to remain there until the pending Constituent Assembly elections. King Gyanendra left Narayanhiti for Nagarjuna Palace one day after the decision,^[2] but later returned to the palace.

In spring 2008 Narayanhiti owed the state nearly NRS75 million (over $1 million) over their electricity, water and phone bills. The palace stopped paying its electricity dues in 2005, the year the king seized absolute power.^[3]

After the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) won a plurality in the Nepalese Constituent Assembly election held on 10 April 2008, a senior Maoist leader, CP Gajurel, stated that the King was informed through his relatives that he should leave the Narayanhiti Palace as soon as possible.^[4] The Maoist Minister for Physical Planning and Works, Hisila Yami, made it clear that the royal palace would be soon converted into a museum.^[5]

In spite of this the king celebrated his 37th wedding anniversary by throwing a lavish feast in Narayanhiti on 1 May 2008. ^[6]

The monarchy was abolished in Nepal on 28 May 2008, at the opening of the Constituent Assembly; Gyanendra was given 15 days to leave the palace. On 29 May, the royal standard was removed from the palace and replaced with the national flag.^[7] The Constituent Assembly also decided that the palace would become a museum or would be used for the national interest in some way as decided by the government.^[8] The government warned that Gyanendra could be forcibly removed from the palace if he did not leave during the allotted time.^[9] As he was required to depart Narayanhity, he asked the government to make arrangements for his new residence on 1 June, and on 4 June the government decided to give another palace, the Nagarjuna Palace, to Gyanendra.^[10]

The ex-king and his wife left Narayanhity Palace on 11 June 2008 after a press conference. Gyanendra has given his royal crown jewels to the new Nepalese government. He also left behind most of the furniture, along with gifts he received in his capacity as the country's head of state. His stepmother Queen Mother Ratna and his grandfather's 94 year old concubine Sarala Gorkhali were allowed to live on in their homes within the compound of the palace, in a fenced-off area.^[11]^[12]