From the 1730s, the
Gorkha Kingdom began expanding under King
Nara Bhupal Shah, although most of the significant conquests occurred during the reign of his son,
Prithvi Narayan Shah, starting in 1743. His campaigns were later continued by his younger son,
Bahadur Shah. Over time, they extended their control over large areas to the east and west of
Gorkha. Among their most important acquisitions was the wealthy
Newar confederacy of
Nepal Mandala, centered in the
Kathmandu Valley. Beginning in the 1760s, the Gorkhalis imposed a blockade to weaken the valley’s kingdoms. In response, the Malla kings appealed to the
British East India Company for assistance. In 1767, the Company sent an expedition led by Captain
George Kinloch, which failed before reaching Kathmandu. The three Newar capitals—
Kathmandu,
Lalitpur, and
Bhaktapur—fell to the Gorkhalis between 1768 and 1769. Prithvi Narayan Shah then declared Kathmandu the new capital of his unified kingdom. In 1788, the Gorkhalis turned their attention northward and invaded
Tibet, seizing the towns of
Kyirong and
Kuti, and forcing the Tibetan government to pay tribute. When Tibet stopped the payments, the Gorkhas launched a second invasion in 1791, during which they looted the
Tashilhunpo Monastery in
Shigatse. In response, the
Qing dynasty of China sent an army into Nepal. The Chinese forces advanced to
Nuwakot but were halted due to stiff resistance and logistical challenges. The Gorkha regent
Bahadur Shah requested military assistance from the British, including 10 howitzers, but the arms deal fell through. Eventually, peace was negotiated, and the
Sino-Nepalese War concluded with the signing of the
Treaty of Betrawati in 1792. A later conflict, the
Nepalese–Tibetan War (1855–1856), resulted in a Nepalese victory and the signing of the
Treaty of Thapathali, which granted Nepal financial indemnities and trade privileges. By the early 19th century, the Gorkha dominion stretched from
Kumaon and
Garhwal in the west to
Sikkim in the east. However, after their defeat in the
Anglo-Nepalese War (1814–1816), the Gorkhalis were forced to sign the
Treaty of Sugauli, ceding large territories to the British East India Company and reducing the kingdom to its current borders. ==Gorkha to Nepal==