Nepal emerged as a unified state over 200 years ago, centred on the Kathmandu Valley its 2000 years of urban civilisation. While John Whelpton's history focuses nt he period since the overthrow of the Rana family autocracy in 1950-1, the early chapters are devoted to the origins of the kingdom and the evolving relations of its diverse peoples. By drawing on recent research on Nepal's environment, society and political institutions from the earliest tiems,t he author protrays a country of extraordinary contasts,w hich has been constantly buffeted through history by its neighbours, the two Asian giants,China and India. Economic and political turmoil over the last fifty years came to a climax in the massacre of the royal family in 2001, when the country erupted into civil war. The book presents the first widely available one-volume treatment in English of the whole span of Nepalese history to appear for over a generation. Its comprehensive and accessible approach will appeal to students, professionals and those visiting the region for the first time.