Bhutan History

 Duar Wars (War with British)

1- In which Year did Duar War take place?
1864-1865

2- When did British declare war in Bhutan?
In November 1864

3- For how long did Duar War last?
5 months

4- When was treaty of Sinchula singned and till when it came into effect?
Signed on 11th November 1865 and stood until 1910 and Bhutan got Rs. 50,000 as compensation.

5- Which treaty replaced treaty of Sinchula and when?
Treaty of Punakha replaced Sinchula treaty. It was signed on 8th January 1910 and came to
effect until 1947 and Bhutan got Rs.1 lakh as compensation.

6- Why was treaty of Sinchula signed?
To compensate the Duars which British took from Bhutan.

7- Name few of the Duars lost in the Duar War?
Assam Duars, Bengal Duars, Alipur Duar as well as 83 square km of territory were taken.


When did Buddhism arrive in Bhutan?
In seventh Century A.D Tibetan King Srongtsen Gampo(convert to Buddhism) ordered construction
of two temples, one in Bumthang and another in Kyichu, Paro. But People still followed Bon
religion.
In 747 A.D, Guru Rimpoche(Padmasambhava) visited Bhutan and subdued 8 classes of demons
and preached Nyingmapa/Mahayana Buddhism.

Establishment of the Hereditary Monarchy, 1907
Zhabdrung's death in 1651 was kept secret for 54 years by saying he entered religious retreat.
Zhabdrung's son and step brother succeeded in 1651 and 1680 respectively and after that
 Zhabdrung's re-incarnation succeeded. The concept of multiple reincarnation of the first Zhabdrung in the form of either his body, his speech, or his mind--was invoked by the Je Khenpo and the druk desi, both of whom wanted to retain the power they had acured through the dual system of government. In 1903 the last Zhabdrung died and his re-incarnation didn't appear till 1906, civil administration came under the control of Ugyen Wangchuk. In 1907, the fifty fourth and last druk desi was forced t o retire and Ugyen Wangchuk was elected as the first hereditary Druk Gyalpo on 17th December, 1907.

Which treaty replaced the treaty  of Punakha and when was it signed?
On August 8, 1949, Treaty of FriendShip between the GOI(Govt of India) and GOB was signed
and annual compensatin for duars was increased from 1 lakh to 5 lakh and returned
Dewangiri and GOI promised to take care of Bhutan's foreign affair like British.

Modernization Under Jigme Dorji, 1952-72
Jigme Wangchuk married to European-educated cousin of the Chogyal(king)of Sikkim and with
her support made the continual efforts to modernize his nation. His first reform
was establishment of National Assembly (Tshogdu) in 1953. Dzongkha was made the national
language during Jigme Dorji's reign.1962 Bhutan joined the Colombo Plan for Cooperative,
Economic, and Social Development in Asia and the Pacific known as the
Colombo Plan, and in 1966 notified India of its desire to become a member
 of the United Nations (UN).In 1971 after holding observer status for three years, Bhutan was admitted to the UN.