Ranas Good, Ranas Bad…

In Nepal, after the end of a century of rule by the Rana maharajas in 1951, it was similarly inevitable that perceptions of the period reflected the concerns of the Nepali royal family and of the political parties who had together ousted the Ranas from power. Both the monarchy and the party politicians naturally stressed the failings of the Ranas when measured against ideal democratic standards, but the monarchy's interests demanded that the Rana period also be seen to contrast unfavourably with the situation before 1846, when the Shah dynasty held real political power. The result has been that important continuities, especially between pre- and post-1846 Nepal, have been obscured.

Fabric of Intrigue

The Rana era began on the night of 14 September 1846, when Jang Bahadur Kunwar massacred his fellow ministers and their supporters at the Kot Arsenal. We shall never know if the bloodshed was pre-planned, or whether he acted to pre-empt a threat against himself and his brothers. It is likely, however, that Jang Bahadur and other ministers had been involved in the assassination earlier that evening of Queen Laxmi Devi's confidante Gag an Singh, which had led her to call together all leading political figures. Jang Bahadur was nevertheless skillful enough to retain the queen's confidence and was appointed Prime Minister by her. They worked together to expel the families of the slain leaders, but then Jang Bahadur deftly shifted his support to the Crown Prince and engineered the Queen's exile. King Rajendra, probably fearful for his life, announced he would accompany her to Banaras.