Palden Thondup Namgyal

Palden Thondup Namgyal

Palden Thondup Namgyal (May 23, 1923 – January 29, 1982) was the 12th and last Chogyal (king) of Sikkim.

At six, Namgyal became a student at St. Joseph's Convent in Kalimpong, but had to terminate his studies due to attacks of malaria. From eight to eleven he studied in order to ordain monkhood under his uncle, Rimpoche Lhatsun, and was subsequently recognized as the reincarnate leader of both Phodong and Rumtek monasteries. He later continued his studies at St. Joseph's College in Darjeeling and finally graduated from Bishop Cotton School in Simla, in 1941.

Namgyal served as adviser for internal affairs for his father, Sir Tashi Namgyal, the 11th Chogyal, and led the negotiating team which established Sikkim's relationship to India after independence in 1949. He married Sangey Deki in 1950, a daughter of an important Tibetan family, and together they had two sons and a daughter. Sangey died in 1957.

Namgyal married Hope Cooke in 1963, a twenty-two-year-old American socialite who was a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College. The marriage brought worldwide media attention to Sikkim. The couple, who had two children, Palden and Hope Leezum, divorced in 1980.

Shortly after their marriage, his father died and Namgyal was crowned the new Chogyal on an astrologically favorable date in 1965. In 1975 Sikkim joined the union of India through a referendum receiving a 97%-majority election vote, thus ending his rule.

P.T. Namgyal was an amateur radio operator, callsign AC3PT, and was a highly sought contact on the airwaves. The international callbook listed his address as: P.T. Namgyal, The Palace, Gangtok, Sikkim.

Palden died of cancer in New York City, in the United States on January 29, 1982.[1] Upon his death, 31 members of the State Legislative Assembly offered khadas to the Chogyal upon his death as a mark of respect.

His son from his first marriage, Wangchuk Namgyal, was named the 13th Chogyal, but the position no longer confers any official authority.

Contents

Titles

  • 1923-1941: Prince Palden Thondup Namgyal
  • 1941-1947: Maharajkumar Sri Panch Palden Thondup Namgyal
  • 1947-1954: Maharajkumar Sri Panch Palden Thondup Namgyal, OBE
  • 1954-1963: Maharajkumar Padma Bhushan Sri Panch Palden Thondup Namgyal, OBE
  • 1963-1965: His Highness Muwong Chogyal Padma Bhushan Sri Panch Chempo Palden Thondup Namgyal, Maharaja Chogyal of Sikkim, OBE
  • 1965-1982: Major-General His Highness Muwong Chogyal Padma Bhushan Sri Panch Chempo Palden Thondup Namgyal, Maharaja Chogyal of Sikkim, OBE

Honours

Footnotes

External links

Palden Thondup Namgyal
Born: 23 May 1923 Died: 29 January 1982
Regnal titles
Preceded by
Tashi Namgyal
Chogyal of Sikkim
December 2, 1963–1975
Title abolished
Sikkim joined India by referendum
Titles in pretence
New title — TITULAR —
Chogyal of Sikkim
1975 – January 29, 1982
Succeeded by
Wangchuk Namgyal

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Namgyal — Namgyal, a Tibetan deity, has been a personal name in several countries; see (inter alia): Namgyal dynasty, rulers in Sikkim Namgyal dynasty of Ladakh, rulers in Ladakh Namgyal Institute of Tibetology Namgyal Monastery, any of several Tibetan… …   Wikipedia

  • Tashi Namgyal —  Ne pas confondre avec Tashi Namgyal Khamsitsang, dissident et exilé tibétain, membre de l Advisory Board de WikiLeaks …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Tashi Namgyal — For the 16th century Tibetan Buddhist scholar, see Dakpo Tashi Namgyal. Tashi Namgyal in 1938 Tashi Namgyal (Sikkimese: བཀྲ་ཤིས་རྣམ་རྒྱལ་; Wylie: Bkra shis Rnam rgyal) (October 26, 1893 – December 2, 1963) was the ruling Chogyal (King) of Sikkim… …   Wikipedia

  • Wangchuk Namgyal — Chogyal Wangchuk Tenzing Namgyal (b. April 1, 1953) is the second son of Palden Thondup Namgyal, the last sovereign king of Sikkim. He is also the present heir of the Namgyal dynasty and claimant to the Sikkim throne.He was crowned as Sikkim s… …   Wikipedia

  • Chogyal — of Sikkim Former Monarchy Seal of Sikkim …   Wikipedia

  • History of Sikkim — Not much is known about Sikkim s ancient history, except for the fact that the first inhabitants were the Lepchas or Rong (ravine folk). They were later encompassed and absorbed by other clans. Sikkim also finds its mention on many hindu texts as …   Wikipedia

  • Sikkim (Film) — Filmdaten Originaltitel Sikkim Produktionsland Indien, Sikkim …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Liste der Könige von Sikkim — Sikkim war ein asiatisches Königreich ab 1641, bis es 1975 ein Staat der indischen Union wurde. König (Chogyal) von Sikkim Regierungszeit Phuntsog Namgyal 1642–1670 Tensung Namgyal 1670–1686 Chador Namgyal 1686–1717 Gyurmed Namgyal 1717–1733… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Sikkim — For other uses, see Sikkim (disambiguation). Sikkim འབྲས་མོ་ལྗོངས་ सिक्किम   S …   Wikipedia

  • Hope Cooke — (born San Francisco, California, June 24, 1940) is an American socialite who was the Gyalmo (Queen consort) of the 12th Chogyal (King of Sikkim).Birth and childhoodHer father was John J. Cooke. Her mother was Hope Noyes (the former Mrs. James… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”