नेपाली

Timeline

From the age of legends and the Buddha to the railway's return — every dated event on this site, in order. Tap an entry to read more.

  1. c. 500 BCESiddhartha Gautama is born at Lumbini (traditional dates vary between the 7th and 5th centuries BCE).Lumbini — the Sacred Garden →
  2. 249 BCEEmperor Ashoka visits Lumbini and erects an inscribed stone pillar.Lumbini — the Sacred Garden →
  3. 403–411The Chinese pilgrim Faxian travels through the region and describes Lumbini.Lumbini — the Sacred Garden →
  4. 1097Nanyadeva founds the Karnat dynasty of Mithila, ruling from Simraungadh.Simraungadh →
  5. 1324Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq sacks Simraungadh; King Harisimhadeva flees towards the hills, ending 229 years of Karnat rule.Simraungadh →
  6. 14th centuryRecords at the Chaughera monastery name the Chauhan kings of the Dang region, among its early patrons.Chaughera Ratannath Monastery →
  7. 16th–18th centurySen dynasties rule small kingdoms along the lowlands and foothills — Palpa–Butwal, Makwanpur, Vijayapur (Morang) and Chaudandi (Udayapur).Tarai history
  8. 1762Prithvi Narayan Shah captures Makwanpurgadhi, opening the southern route to the Kathmandu Valley.Makwanpurgadhi →
  9. 1763Gorkhali forces defeat an army sent by Mir Qasim, Nawab of Bengal, near Makwanpur.Makwanpurgadhi →
  10. 1767Gorkhali forces defeat Captain Kinloch's East India Company expedition at Sindhuligadhi.Sindhuligadhi →
  11. 1774Gorkha annexes the eastern kingdoms of Vijayapur and Chaudandi, bringing the eastern Tarai into the new Nepali state.Tarai history
  12. 1814The Anglo-Nepal War begins; fighting along the Tarai, including at Jitgadhi near Butwal and Parsa.Lost and returned: the Tarai after Sugauli →
  13. 1816Battle of Makwanpur during the Anglo-Nepal War, shortly before the Treaty of Sugauli was ratified.Makwanpurgadhi →
  14. 1816The Treaty of Sugauli is ratified; Nepal cedes the Tarai along with Kumaon, Garhwal and Sikkim claims.Lost and returned: the Tarai after Sugauli →
  15. Dec 1816Much of the Tarai between the Koshi and the Rapti is returned to Nepal.Lost and returned: the Tarai after Sugauli →
  16. 1860Banke, Bardiya, Kailali and Kanchanpur — the Naya Muluk — are returned to Nepal after Jang Bahadur's support to the British in 1857–58.Lost and returned: the Tarai after Sugauli →
  17. 1896The Ashoka Pillar is re-identified by Khadga Shumsher Rana and Alois Führer.Lumbini — the Sacred Garden →
  18. 1899P. C. Mukherji carries out the first excavations at Tilaurakot.Tilaurakot (ancient Kapilavastu) →
  19. 1911The present Janaki Mandir is completed, funded by Queen Vrishabhanu Kumari of Tikamgarh.Janaki Mandir, Janakpur →
  20. 1927The Nepal Government Railway opens from Raxaul through Birgunj to Amlekhganj — the first railway in Nepal.Birgunj →
  21. 1936Biratnagar Jute Mill opens — Nepal's first large modern factory.Biratnagar →
  22. 1937Narrow-gauge Jaynagar–Janakpur railway opens.Janakpur–Jaynagar railway →
  23. 1938Rajbiraj laid out as a planned administrative town on a Jaipur-style grid.Rajbiraj →
  24. Mar 1947Workers' strike at the jute mill, led by B.P. Koirala and Girija Prasad Koirala, begins the popular movement against Rana rule.Biratnagar →
  25. 1950sMalaria eradication and the Rapti Valley resettlement programme open Chitwan to large-scale settlement; rhino numbers crash.Chitwan National Park →
  26. 1950sMalaria control campaigns with DDT begin in the Tarai; the Rapti Valley resettlement project opens Chitwan to hill farmers.How the end of malaria remade the Tarai →
  27. 1954Nepal and India sign the Koshi Agreement; a barrage and embankments follow.Tarai history
  28. 1959The Gandak Agreement leads to the barrage on the Narayani at the border near Tribeni.Tarai history
  29. 1959Rajbiraj declared a municipality.Rajbiraj →
  30. 1965The Raxaul–Amlekhganj railway closes as roads take over.Birgunj →
  31. 1967The Kankali temple is rebuilt in its present form.Simraungadh →
  32. 1971The Jhapa uprising: young communists launch an armed revolt against landlords in Jhapa.Tarai history
  33. 1973Royal Chitwan National Park established — Nepal's first.Chitwan National Park →
  34. 1976Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve established to protect the wild water buffalo.Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve →
  35. 1976Karnali area protected as a wildlife reserve.Bardiya National Park →
  36. 1976Shuklaphanta protected as a wildlife reserve.Shuklaphanta National Park →
  37. 1978Kenzo Tange's master plan for Lumbini is adopted.Lumbini — the Sacred Garden →
  38. 1984Chitwan National Park inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.Chitwan National Park →
  39. 1987Listed as a Ramsar wetland — Nepal's first.Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve →
  40. 1988Bardiya becomes a national park.Bardiya National Park →
  41. 1990sAround 100,000 refugees from Bhutan are sheltered in camps in Jhapa and Morang; most are later resettled abroad.Tarai history
  42. 1997Lumbini is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.Lumbini — the Sacred Garden →
  43. Jul 2000The government declares the Kamaiya system abolished and all Kamaiya debts cancelled.17 July 2000: the day the Kamaiya were freed →
  44. 2002First Maha Kumbha Mela held at Barahakshetra (BS 2059); repeated every 12 years.Barahakshetra →
  45. 2002The Kamaiya Labour (Prohibition) Act gives the abolition legal force.17 July 2000: the day the Kamaiya were freed →
  46. 2007The Madhesh Movement demands recognition and federalism for the plains; further movements follow in 2008 and 2015.Tarai history
  47. Aug 2008The Koshi breaks its embankment at Kusaha, flooding villages in Nepal and Bihar.Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve →
  48. 2010Banke National Park is established, linking tiger habitat with Bardiya.Tarai history
  49. 2013The government declares the Kamlari system of girl domestic servants abolished.17 July 2000: the day the Kamaiya were freed →
  50. 2015Nepal's new constitution creates seven provinces, including Madhesh Province wholly in the Tarai.Tarai history
  51. 2017Shuklaphanta and Parsa upgraded to national parks.Shuklaphanta National Park →
  52. May 2022Gautam Buddha International Airport opens at Bhairahawa, near Lumbini.Tarai history
  53. Apr 2022Rebuilt broad-gauge line opens for passengers between Jaynagar and Kurtha.Janakpur–Jaynagar railway →
  54. 2023Service extended from Kurtha to Bijalpura (Bhangaha).Janakpur–Jaynagar railway →
  55. Dec 2024The most recent Gadhimai Mela, held amid renewed protests against animal sacrifice.Gadhimai Temple, Bariyarpur →