Early Life and First Reign
Prince Gyanendra was born in the old Narayanhity Royal Palace, Kathmandu, as the second son of Crown Prince Mahendra and his wife Crown Princess Indra. After his birth, his father was told by a court astrologer not to look at his newborn son because it would bring him bad luck, so Gyanendra was sent to live with his grandmother.
In November 1950, during a political plot, both his father and his grandfather King Tribhuvan, along with other royals, fled to India, leaving the young Prince Gyanendra as the only male member of the royal family in Nepal. He was brought back to the capital Kathmandu by the Prime Minister Mohan Shamsher, who had him declared King on 7 November 1950. Gyanendra was not only crowned but coins were issued in his name. The Rana Prime Minister provided a three hundred thousand rupee annual budget as expenditure for the King. After opposition to the hereditary rule of the Rana Prime Ministers from India, a deal was reached in January 1951, and his grandfather King Tribhuvan returned to Nepal and resumed the throne. The actions of the Rana regime to depose his grandfather and place Gyanendra on the throne was not internationally recognized.
He studied with his elder brother King Birendra in St. Joseph's College, Darjeeling, India; in 1969, he graduated from Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu.
Prince Gyanendra served as the chairman of the Advisory Committee for the Coronation of his brother King Birendra in 1975. He is a keen conservationist and served as Chairman of the King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation (later known as National Trust for Nature Conservation) from 1982 until his ascension to the throne in 2001.
Prince Gyanendra married Komal Rajya Laxmi Devi Shah on 1 May 1970 in Kathmandu. They have two children.
- His Royal Highness Prince Paras Bir Bikram Shah Dev (born 30 December 1971)
- Her Royal Highness Princess Prerana Rajya Lakshmi Devi Singh (born 20 February 1978).
Read more about this topic: Gyanendra Of Nepal
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