How

Art and F ashion Changed U nder

THE RANA DYNASTY

Ashraya R ana

Ashraya Rana
ART 160A1
23RD April, 2017

For centuries the Himalayan region of Nepal, was filled with waring city states ruled by

various kings. In 1743, all these small states were unified to from the country Nepal, by Prithivi

Narayan Shah. (Hachhethu, 2007) The Shah Dynasty had complete rule over the Himalayan

Kingdom until the late 20th century. During the rule of the Shahs there was a period where

Shah kings were just used as figureheads. This period is known as the Rana era of Nepal. The

Rana regime successfully managed to devolope daily Nepali life by incorporating various

westernized ideas and strategies. Through this text, I will delve into how art in Nepal was

affected under the Rana family. I will observe architecture and fashion in the Rana era to see

how they were influenced and how they differed from the norm in Nepal.

The origins of the Rana family begin in India when a conflicts between Rajput rulers of

Udaipur, drove one family to the Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal. (Dixit, 2002) The story of the

Rana family in Nepal is very intertwined with the Shah Dynasty. The Shah dynasty first came

into power under King Prithivi Narayan Shah of Gorkha, who successfully unified major city

states to form the Kingdom of Nepal. Several Shah Kings later, the Rana family makes there first

big move. In 1846, the midnight massacre was orchestrated by Jung Bahadur Rana, the eldest

of the Rana brothers. This massacre took place in the old palace in Kathmandu, where a 100 of

the most powerful men excluding the king, in Nepal were killed. Jung Bahadur Rana then

became the Prime Minister and Maharaja of Nepal. After coming into power Jung Bahadur was

quick in setting up a hereditary prime-minister system and was the prime-minister of Nepal till

he died in 1877. As his brothers helped him come into power he developed a system where the
power of the prime-minister did not pass from father to son, but from the elder brother to the

younger. Soon after coming into power Jung Bahadur and some of his brothers went on a trip

to London to meet Queen Victoria. (Encyclopdia Britannica) Impressed by Europe the Rana

envoy also visited the cities of Edinburgh and Paris. After the death of Jung Bahadur Rana, the

power of the prime-minister/maharaja passed down to his younger brother and continued to

be passed down in the Rana family. (Encyclopdia Britannica) As all this was taking place the

Shah kings were stripped of all their power and were only used as figure heads. Using a hunting

expedition as an excuse the Shah King Tribhuvan, Feld Nepal and went to India through the

Indian Embassy. Fearing the loss of power, the Rana prime-minster of the time Mohan

Shumshere named a three-year-old Shah prince the King of Nepal. Both India and Britain were

neither happy or impressed by this move leading to the demise of the Rana era. The Shah

dynasty came back to power as King Tribhuvan took control of the country and the last Rana

prime-minister Mohan Shumshere was demoted to the role of a normal minister. (Pandey)

Before the Rana Dynasty, Nepal had very unique architecture that was primarily only

found in the Himalayan Kingdom. Most of the countries structures were compact and built up,

due to the steep terrain surrounding the cities. Due to the mountainous terrain Nepal for

decades had been very isolated form the rest of the world. The Rana family was the first Nepali

family with real power to venture west into Europe. Amazed by advanced and planned cities in

the west, like London, Paris and Edinburgh the Rana prime-ministers set out to change

Kathmandu. After their expedition in Europe, back in Nepal the the Rana family ordered the

construction of massive palaces and state buildings replicating the ones they saw in Europe.

These projects were no easy feat as Nepal then was only connected to the outside world by a
few footpaths between the mountains. In the rural fields of the Kathmandu Valley, the Ranas

walled off vast estates, and built colossal caricatures of the neoclassical palaces of Europe. They

built the Red Palace, the White Palace, the Lion Palace, and many others (Luhan, 2000). The

Ranas were so flabbergasted by the grandeur and beauty of European palaces that too felt the

need to build similar ones in Nepal. Almost all of the furnishings inside these palaces were

imported from foreign lands. The level of manpower required to haul all the furniture and

chandeliers up mountain passes was immense. Out of hundreds of places erected during the

Rana dynasty the biggest and grandest palace of all was commissioned by Maharaja Chandra

Shumshere Rana and was named the Singh Durbar (Lion Palace).

Figure 1: The Himalayan Times, 2016, Singha Durbar

After its completion in 1904, Singha Durbar and its vast gardens was said to be half the size of

the old walled city of Kathmandu. (Luhan, 2000) Observing figure 1, we can see that Singha

Durbar looks very similar to the Buckingham Palace in London. While older Nepali palaces built

by the Shah kings were compact, tall and made out of red bricks; Rana palaces were sprawling,

colored white and included features such as arches and columns as seen above. It is clear, that
the Rana rulers were very inspired by European architecture and art, as they constructed

numerous palaces that took design ques from their European counterparts. European

architectural influences through the palaces of the Ranas can be seen in Kathmandu today. A

lot of new building include arches and columns a design element very commonly used in

Europe. The palaces the Rana family built are still in use today as many of them have been

converted into government buildings; the Singh Durbar is now the offices of the prime minister

and the Lal Durbar (Red Palace) is now the residence of the President of Nepal.

While all these majestic palaces were being built all around Nepal the Rana dynasty was

also changing the was people dressed and accessorized in the country. After the Rana

expedition to Europe the style among nobles and royalty in the capital drastically changed. The

influence of European fashion can be seen in many of the pictures of the Rana dynasty. Before

the Rana era the fashion in Nepal was very basic. Plain pieces of clothing with minimal jewelry

was the norm due to the harsh climate around the mountains. After touring Europe, the Rana

Dynasty brought in color, jewelry and ornate outerwear into Nepali fashion.

The trappings of male finery included plumed helmets, heavy epaulettes, long swords, tassels,

braid, knee-high boots, gleaming escutcheons, white gloves, white trousers. The women

became blimps in massive gathered skirts, bustles and crinolines. Their hair was arranged in

ringlets, framing heavily made-up faces topped with round, flat hats.

(Luhan, 2000)

Figure 1: Nepali Times, 2002, All Nine Rana Prime Ministers

By analyzing figure 2, a picture of all nine Rana prime-ministers, we can see that the influence of

western fashion is very prevalent in the painting. Knee high boots, blazers, velvet robes, jewelry

and peaked caps were not traditionally seen in Nepali fashion, they were all integrated from their

western associates. In the image above we can also see most of the Ranas wearing the color red,

this color is often associated with power and authority. The color red is also very prevalent in the

wardrobe of the British Royalty, from whom the Rana dynasty adopted a lot of style ques. The

Rana dynasties impact on Nepali fashion was properly documented through photography.

Photography was very new in Nepal and the Rana family made sure to capture key moments. The

photographs allowed a greater number of people to be influenced by the trends of the Ranas.

Nepali fashion has never been the same since; the westernization of fashion brought through by

the Rana dynasty influenced not only the public but also their rivals the Shah dynasty.

Nepal is a culturally rich country with centuries of history. In 1743 several small city

states were unified by Prithivi Narayan Shah forming the Kingdom of Nepal. Eventually, the

Shah dynasty was reduced to figure heads as the Rana family took control of the country. The
Rana era brought about many changes into the Himalayan country through education, science

and engineering. The Rana dynasty also brought about several cultural changes around art and

visual culture. Architecture and fashion were some of the most noticeable changes in the

Nepali lifestyle that were directly correlated with the family. Through expeditions to Europe the

Ranas were able to incorporate western architecture into Nepal by constructing massive

European style palaces. These western design ques can be seen in buildings all over the country

till date. The Rana dynasty also integrated western fashion into Nepal. They were often seen

posing for pictures wearing velvet robes, knee high boots, jewelry, ornate outerwear and large

crowns. Most of these fashion trends were also adopted from their European equals. Overall,

the Rana dynasty had a massive impact on the both the architecture and fashion in Nepal,

through them new building styles and style trends from the west were normalized in the

isolated Himalayan country.

References

Luhan, M. (October, 2000). The Rana Rulers: How Nepals prime minister usurped royal powers

and ruled for a centaury, pp. 1-24. Retrieved from

http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy2.library.arizona.edu/docview/232445324/fulltext/

57A5F56E5CF42F5PQ/1?accountid=8360

Dixit, K. (October, 2002). Dynasty: A lavish new book takes a look back at the Rana Centaury.

Issue 116. Retrieved from http://nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5358#.WQKoxiSaCu4

Hachhethu, K. (May, 2007). Legitimacy Crisis of Nepali Monarchy. pp. 1828-1833. Retrieved

from http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy4.library.arizona.edu/stable/pdf/4419602.pdf

Pandey, M. How Jung Bahadur Established Rana Rule in Nepal. pp. 50-63. Retrieved from

http://lib.icimod.org/record/9584/files/7124.pdf

Written by the Editors of Encyclopdia Britannica. (December, 2009). Jung Bahadur. Retrieved

from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jung-Bahadur#ref262581