Prehistoric dwellings and
Stone Age implements have been discovered in
Almora and
Nainital districts. Initially settled by
Kols, the region witnessed successive waves of
Kiratas,
Khasas, and
Indo-Sythians.
Kunindas were the first rulers of the region. They were followed by the
Katyuri kings of
Khasas origin who controlled the region from 700 to 1200 AD. The Rajwar dynasty of Askot in
Pithoragarh, was set up in 1279 AD, by a branch of the Katyuri kings, headed by Abhay Pal Deo, who was the grandson of Katyuri king Brahma Deo. The dynasty ruled the region until it became part of the British Raj through the treaty of Sighauli in 1816.
Chand Raj , the first capital of
Chand Kings, 1815 The Chand dynasty was established by Som Chand in the 10th century, by displacing the Katyuri Kings, who had been ruling the area from the 7th century AD. He continued to call his state Kurmanchal and established its capital in Champawat in Kali Kumaon called so, due to its vicinity to river Kali. Many temples built in this former capital city, during the 11th and 12th century exist today, this includes the Baleshwar and Nagnath temples. One of the most powerful rulers of Chand dynasty was Baz Bahadur (1638–1678 AD), who met
Shahjahan in
Delhi, and in 1655 joined forces with him to attack
Garhwal, which was then under the King Pirthi Sah. Baz Bahadur subsequently captured the
Terai region including
Dehradun, which was thus separated from the Garhwal kingdom. Baz Bahadur extended his territory east to
Karnali river, later Baz Bahadur invaded
Tibet and captured several forts including a Hindu pilgrim
Kailash Manasarovar. he also built the Golu Devata Temple, at Ghorakhal, near
Bhimtal, He also built the famous Bhimeshwara Mahadev Temple at Bhimtal. Towards the end of the 17th century, Chand kings again attacked the Garhwal kingdom, and in 1688, Udyot Chand erected several temples at Almora, including Tripur Sundari, Udyot Chandeshwar, and Parbateshwar. To mark his victory over Garhwal and Doti, the Parbateshwar temple was renamed twice, to become the present Nanda Devi temple. Later, Jagat Chand (1708–1720) defeated the Raja of Garhwal and pushed him away from
Srinagar (in Uttarakhand, not to be confused with the capital of present-day Indian Kashmir), and his kingdom was given to a
Brahmin.
Nepalese invasion and its defeat in
Almora, 1895 In the latter half of the 18th century, the power of Kumaon was on decline, as the king Mahendra Chand was unable to properly administer the country. After the fall of Doti, the
Kingdom of Nepal decided to again invade over Kumaon. The Gorkha forces, under the leadership of
Amar Singh Thapa crossed the kali river, and reached the outskirts of
Almora via
Sor and
Gangoli. After facing tough resistance by King Mahendra Chand's uncle who was leading the army, and retreating temporarily, the Gorkha's returned again and in the ensuing battle Mahendra Chand's uncle was killed. Hearing about his uncle's death, Mahendra Chandra became frightened and fled to the plains. Kumaon was annexed to the
Kingdom of Nepal in 1790. The Gorkha rule over Kumaon lasted for 24 years. The only architectural advancements during the period was a road connecting kali river to
Srinagar via
Almora. The Gorkha rule over Kumaon is said to have been cruel and barbaric. The Gorkha's only thought of Kumaon and Garwhal (which was conquered some years after the invasion of Kumaon) as frontier states and so proper administration was not practiced. Almora was the largest town of Kumaon during the Gorkha period, and is estimated to have about 1000 houses. After the Gorkhas started meddling in the territories of
Oudh, the
Nawab of Oudh, who was then a suzerain of the
British Empire, asked for their help, thus paving way for the
Anglo-Nepalese War of 1814. The British forces under Colonel Nicholas, consisting of about forty five hundred men and six pounder guns, entered Kumaon through
Kashipur and conquered Almora on 26 April 1815. On the same day, Chandra Bahadur Shah, one of the principle Gurkha chiefs, sent a flag of truce, requesting to end hostilities in the region. A negotiation was brought up the following day, under which the Gurkhas agreed to leave the Country, and all its fortified places. The war ended with Nepal signing the
Treaty of Sugauli in 1816, under which, Kumaon officially became a British territory.
British Raj , the summer capital of
United Provinces during
British Raj The region was annexed by the
British East India Company in 1815, and the Kumaon region was joined with the eastern half of the Garhwal region as a chief-commissionership on the
non-regulation system, also known as the
Kumaon Province. It was part of the
Ceded and Conquered Provinces. It was governed for seventy years by three administrators, Mr. Traill, Mr. J. H. Batten and
Sir Henry Ramsay. There was widespread opposition against British rule in various parts of Kumaon. The Kumaoni people especially
Champawat District rose in rebellion against the British during the
Indian Rebellion of 1857 under the leadership of the members like
Kalu Singh Mahara. In 1891 the division was composed of the three districts of Kumaon,
Garhwal and the
Tarai; but the two districts of Kumaon and the Tarai were subsequently redistributed and renamed after their headquarters,
Nainital and Almora. The area received international attention after the publication of
Man-Eaters of Kumaon, by
Jim Corbett, the noted hunter and conservationist, describing the author's trials seeking out and killing man-eating tigers. Animals like the
Champawat Tiger and the
Chowgarh Tigers plagued the area for many years, with the former estimated to have killed over four hundred humans by herself, in Nepal and then Kumaon, in the years 1920–1928.
Mahatma Gandhi's advent sounded a death knell for the British in Kumaon. People now aware of the excesses of British Raj became defiant of it and played an active part in the Indian Struggle for Independence. While staying in Kumaon for 12 days, recovering from the rigors of imprisonment, Gandhi wrote
Anashakti Yoga, his commentary on the
Gita. Gandhi was revered in these parts and on his call the struggle of Salam Saliya Satyagraha led by Ram Singh Dhoni was started which shook the very roots of British rule in Kumaon. Many people died in the Saalam Satyagraha due to police brutality. Gandhi named it the
Bardoli of Kumaon an allusion to the
Bardoli Satyagrah. Many Kumaonis also joined the
Indian National Army led by
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
Independent India After India became independent in 1947,
United Provinces were converted into the newly formed Indian state of
Uttar Pradesh. The princely state of
Tehri Garhwal joined the
Indian Union in 1949, and became a district under the Kumaon division. Three new districts viz.
Pithoragarh from
Almora,
Chamoli from
Garhwal and
Uttarkashi from
Tehri Garhwal were created in 1960. A new revenue division, named Uttarakhand division, was carved out from these three districts of Kumaon division. The year 1969 saw major administrative reforms in these hilly regions of Uttar Pradesh, and a new
Garhwal division, with its headquarter in
Pauri, was formed with the districts of Tehri Garhwal and Garhwal from Kumaon division, and
Uttarkashi and
Chamoli from Uttarakhand division. The Uttarakhand division too was disestablished the same year, and the remaining district of Pithoragarh was brought back to Kumaon division, hence giving it its present size. Three new districts were created in the 90's, taking the total number of districts in the division to six.
Udham singh nagar from Nainital in 1995, and
Bageshwar from Almora and
Champawat from Pithoragarh in 1997. As a result of the largely peaceful
Uttarakhand movement, the state of Utarranchal was carved out of Uttar Pradesh in 2000; this state's name was changed to Uttarakhand in 2007. Two new districts, Ranikhet from Almora and Didihat from Pithoragarh, were announced in 2011 by the then Chief minister of Uttarakhand,
Ramesh Pokhriyal, but the districts never came into existence because no official notification was ever released. ==Culture==