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Ratna Rajya Laxmi Devi Shah (born 19 August 1928 in Kathmandu) was Queen Consort of Nepal from 1955 to 1972 and Queen Mother from 1972 to 2008 when the royal family were stripped of all titles and provileges. She was technically the Queen Grandmother of Nepal for three days following the Nepalese royal massacre in 2001, after her step-son killed royal family.
She is the second wife of King Mahendra of Nepal (1920–1972). Queen Ratna belongs to the aristocratic Rana family and is the daughter of Late Honorary General Hari Shamsher JB Rana.
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Ratna's older sister Indra had married Crown Prince Mahendra in 1940 but died in 1950. Two years later, Ratna married Mahendra. There were no children by this marriage; Mahendra already had three sons and three daughters by Indra. She became Queen Consort after Mahendra's father King Tribhuvan died in 1955.
In 1972 Mahendra suffered a fatal heart attack while hunting in Chitwan. Ratna thereby became Queen Mother.
The former Queen Mother was famous for her social work for children in Nepal. The Monarchy in Nepal was abolished in 2008 after the Constituent Assembly election [1].
| Preceded by Kanti |
Queen Consort of Nepal 1955-1972 |
Succeeded by Aiswarya |