A Short History Of The Washington Consensus: Fill & Download for Free

1 IntroductionThis question has obviously been written with an inadequate knowledge of Chinese and American history and I hope I may correct some of the misconceptions in the Answer below.The ramifications of my Answer are obviously going to be almost as incomplete as this Question. Sorry about that. A full answer would be small novel length - about 60,000 words -and I don’t have the time for that.2 The Chinese LanguageThe Chinese, thanks to the Yellow Emperor, have one written language and hundreds of spoken languages. This development was due to the Qin Emperor. At Section 5.1 of my blog about How was China's development affected by its geography? I say“5.1 The Qin Emperor Imposed A Common Written Chinese And Ordered The Burning of the Previous Other Chinese Script BooksThe Chinese of today have many spoken languages and only one written language. The Qin Emperor imposed that change, All books written in the hundreds of previous Chinese ideograms were ordered to be collected by the army and burned to force the imposition of that common system of ideograms.“3 The Brilliant Response of A Chinese Emperor To A British AmbassadorOne British Ambassador was unwise enough to say “Why don’t the Chinese learn English so they can communicate with us?” and received the excellent response “Why don’t all the barbarians write their languages in Chinese ideograms so we could all communicate with one another?”That would be possible.Chinese is not impossible to learn, although I do think because of its polytonal basis it is relatively difficult for a European to master. [I have tried and failed.]See Mandarin Chinese - Wikipedia which comments“Mandarin is by far the largest of the seven or ten Chinese dialect groups, spoken by 70 percent of all Chinese speakers over a large geographical area, stretching from Yunnan in the southwest to Xinjiang in the northwest and Heilongjiang in the northeast. This is generally attributed to the greater ease of travel and communication in the North China Plain compared to the more mountainous south, combined with the relatively recent spread of Mandarin to frontier areas.Most Mandarin varieties have four tones. The final stops of Middle Chinese have disappeared in most of these varieties, but some have merged them as a final glottal stop. Many Mandarin varieties, including the Beijing dialect, retain retroflex initial consonants, which have been lost in southern dialect groups.”Mandarin Chinese has the greatest number of speakers in the world, with 873 million using it as their first language and another 178 m as their second (total 1,091 m) ; Hindi is second with 370 million native and 120 million second-language users (490 m. total); Spanish is third with 350 million native and 70 million second-language users (420 m. total); English is fourth with 340 million native and an estimated total of 510 million speakers. It is clear than Mandarin Chinese starts with an immense advantage in the numbers of its native and total speakers compared to English. SeeTop 30 Language Spoken in the World by Number of SpeakersGoogle Translate does provide some translation of short Chinese phrases but Chinese books (like Japanese books) are from the European viewpoint printed back to front and read in ideograms from the right and downwards. No system I know about yet allows computer page translation from Chinese to English because of that difference in layout, but I may not be fully informed.But there have been immense strides in translating spoken languages. SeeA Computer Can Now Translate Languages as Well as a Humanwhich includes the comment“Google is already using the new system for Chinese to English translation, and plans to completely replace its existing translation technique with the GMNT.”In future, people are going to be able to communicate with one another using a handheld programme which will probably be available in all mobile phones or their future minicomputer equivalent.It is likely that mobile phones will recognise your location and the local language and use a babel-type and GMNT-class associative software to provide an apt best system translation between communicating individuals. And massive tapped-into local computing power using fuzzy logic is likely to get many translations much more correct.4 The Future Political Power of ChinaAs history has attested during the last four centuries, political power is a result of economic power. The three cycles of British (I mistyped Brutish, and from the viewpoint of the colonial subjects that’s not entirely inaccurate) 70-year eras of hegemonic power was due to the industrial revolution in Britain.Of course the future political, ideological and cultural power of China will become completely dominant over that of the failed Washington Consensus system during the next three to four decades when China first matches the income per head of the USA and then grows to become the greatest inventive and innovative nation in the world. With an economy by 2060 at the latest of over 50% of the GDP of the world.4.1 The “Mandate of Heaven” rule in the interests of the people, not the richThe ideological power of China, like that of the other nations which have practised Shimomuran Macroeconomics, rests upon the simple fact that China is obeying the “Mandate of Heaven” and is rapidly improving (at about 7% pa during the last four decades) the living standards of its people. The failed Washington Consensus system - a true product of capitalist-serving economies - is only concerned with increasing the incomes of the rich, which produces a long-term decline in average living standards and reductions in economic growth as the rich flush their extra annual income into overseas tax havens. This is not based on any theory but upon detailed observation about what’s actually going on. SeeThe United Kingdom and the United States of America Have Both Lost “The Mandate of Heaven”The Tokyo Zone economies have produced rapidly rising living standards, and that is what most of the world’s poor want. Japan doubled the living standards of its population by implementing Shimomura’s “Income Doubling Plan” which was planned to take a decade from 1960–70 to deliver but produced that result in 1966, after six years. South Korea from 1960–80 grew at about 14% pa. , increasing its national income by a factor of about 13.75 during that period, and its people had about 70% of that growth, and their real incomes increased by an average of about 10% a year during that score of years. China has increased the living standards of its people by about 7% pa for over 40 years and China is just getting started.No supposed difficulty in learning Mandarin Chinese could possibly overturn the reality of these economic results. And to refer to another of my obsessions -hegemonic power theory - you might like to note Hegemonic stability theory - Wikipedia. Most of the economic data about GDPs in that source are wrong because the editors are using Exchange Rate Values (ERV) which understate the size of China’s economy by about 50% but their discussions in that entry are nonetheless enlightening.5 The Consequences of Different Systems of Economic UnderstandingThere have been five major systems of economic understanding in recent European/American/Asian history. This is the major focus of my ongoing studies at Southampton University and the Table below should be regarded as the provisional result of incomplete research, but the long-term results of each system is unlikely to be much modified during the next few years. Only systems 2, 4 and 5 are still active.6 The “Soft Power” of the USAThe entertainment industry of the USA is a brilliant “soft power” product, partially and musically often produced by the black people of America. Elvis conceded in his later years the immense influence of black ghetto culture on his singing and religious attitudes. Culturally the black people of America have dominated much of its singing and Michael Jackson was the outstanding example of that.The US film industry dominated the post war world. The cultural contribution of Americans and immigrants has been outstanding - Richard Feynman and quantum physics, Robert Oppenheimer and his oversight of the development of the atomic bomb, and Werner von Braun’s rocketry putting a man on the moon are but three outstanding examples of that.The profits of the Scottish Tobacco Lords (based upon slavery in the Eastern seaboard colonies of Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina) financed the Scottish Industrial Revolution 1700–1800. SeeThe Scottish Industrial Revolution, or The Scottish First Industrial Miracle 1700–18007 The Hard Power of the USAThe US through its presidents has not hesitated to use its military power against other countries or against its own rebelling citizens. SeeA map of all the countries the United States has invaded and K Yuen’s Quora Answer atHistorically, how many countries has the US invaded?Which concludes“Something to notice is that about half of our invasions of other countries happened in the past 50 years - we've invaded as many countries in the past 50 years as we have for the other 188 years of our existence.”8 The Ideological Power of the USASome commentators such as Milton Friedman have linked US ideology, theoretically about freedom, to US prosperity. But the United States has mutated from an operating democracy into an elective plutocracy, from a “Rule by the people, of the people, for the people” into a country ruled through the Republican Party of the rich, by the rich, and for the rich.Oswald Spengler thought that this process cannot be denied because he stated that the natural end of originally democratic societies is a millionaire-serving plutocracy. To be more precise, Wikipedia quotes that (under the heading of Democracy, Media and Money) that“Spengler asserts that democracy is simply the political weapon of money, and the media are the means through which money operates a democratic political system.The thorough penetration of money's power throughout a society is yet another marker of the shift from Culture to Civilization.”See The Decline of the West - WikipediaMuch of what Spengler asserted might be mistaken. But the rise of the political place and increasingly dominant influence of money in the previous democracies of the UK and the US cannot be denied.8 Conclusions8.1 The West and China The major ideological difference between the China and the USA is that Chinese Shimomuran Macroeconomics serves the people by rapidly increasing their living standards year after year while the Washington Consensus Macroeconomics (WC+) of Monetarism/ Neoliberalism/ Financialisation/Austerity prioritises the increases in the incomes of the rich, paid out of higher profits due to lower wage rises, higher government savings due to the destruction of the social contract (less funding for healthcare, education and social facilities such as roads and libraries) and the production of increasing inequalities in income and wealth.Western macroeconomics is practising a kind of “Marie Antoinette” solution to slow economic growth, and we all know where that ended previously. The technological control of populations by governments and media is now much more thorough than it was, but there seems little point in continuing to hope for “progress” in a WC+ economic system that has shown no capability during the last four decades for improving prosperity or health or human life.Chinese culture is immense, subtle, complex and another world. Chinese literature is a never ending surprise and although I have only been able to read it in translations it is a joyful experience. Chinese history is similarly complex and wonderfully engaging, and I am grateful for the Quora writings of Hoang Nghiem (see Matthew Nghiem) for advancing my knowledge about Chinese Empires and dynasties. The inventions and innovations of the Chinese are insufficiently recognised in the West and although I have noticed two major ones there may be many more. SeeGeorge Tait Edwards's answer to What are major Chinese innovations?8.2 China will enjoy every political, cultural and linguistic power. The rapid rate of its economic development will see to that. These powers hang from the real economic power of a country, and China is going to become again what it once was -the most significant inventive and innovative culture in the world. No supposed difficulty in learning Mandarin Chinese could possibly overturn the reality of these economic results. The idea that China can’t become everything that the USA once was, because Mandarin is difficult to learn, is just another mistaken hope.

The policy of Shimomuran-Wernerian macroeconomics is by far the most successful economic policy of all time, because it is based upon a detailed, realistic historical examination of how to produce an economy of abundant capital and widespread prosperity. Its foundation is in continual personal inventions, continuous factory innovations, a subservient central bank, and an economically intelligent government which fulfils its duty of care to all of its people because that is the prime condition for maximising the rate and quality of economic development.That macroeconomics is responsible for all of the greatest ongoing economic miracles now and those which occurred during the last century. To be more specific, it is responsible for the 20th century economic miracles of1 The Japanese colony in Manchuria from 1906–1945, which was run by the South Manchurian Railway Company (SMRC), a military organisation managed at one time by Shinzo Abe’s grandfather, which company provided 25% of the revenue of the Japanese Government during the 1920s as well as the fastest and best-appointed trains in Asia; about a million Japanese were repatriated to Japan in late 1945. SeeThe Comprehensive History of South Manchurian Railways Company [満鉄全史] - Japan Society of the UK2 Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Economic Miracle 1938–44, which doubled the size of the American economy in real terms despite millions of men being in the US military in 1943–44, achieving an average growth rate of 12.2% during these six years, and producing vast amounts of munitions to enable the winning of WWII, and establishing the USA as the predominant hegemonic power from 1945–2012. SeeFDR’s American Economic Miracle 1938-44, or the First Economic Bomb - The USA from 1938 to 1944 (Part 1)3 Japan’s Post-War Economic Miracle 1945–1973, when Japan grew rapidly from war devastation to industrial might, led by the “Manchurians” who had run the SMRC in China. SeeHow Japan Zoomed From War Devastation into Prosperity 1945–52Japan’s major priority in its quest for “Economic Growth First” has been and is the creation of an ongoing comparative trading advantage,4 South Korea’s Economic Miracle or the “Miracle on the Han River” when President Park in 1960 copied in his government the three key instruments of the Japanese miracle and achieved the highest rate of economic growth so far delivered - an average of 14% pa from 1960–1980. Park’s Head of Security assassinated him on 26 October 1979. One small part of the South Korean economic miracle is Samsung, which makes over 35% of the large screen TVs and a great many of the mobile phones in the world.5 Taiwan’s Economic Miracle where the government also copied Japanese investment-accelerating procedures, to the great benefit of the Taiwanese people and government revenues. The production of iPads in China is Taiwan’s most notable presence, but there is much else.6 China’s Ongoing Economic Miracle resulting from the post-rapprochement (29 September 1972) Chinese teams investigating how Japan had grown so quickly, and the subsequent post-1975 introduction in China of an all-developments-go plan for the complete modernisation and maximal development of all aspects to China’s economy.7 DiscussionThere are two major systems of macroeconomic thought and practice in today’s (2016) world. The first is the Washington Consensus of neo-classical economics, based on six theoretical postulates, all of them unlikely to be right - see the first six pages of Professor Richard’s bookSolving the Riddle of Japanese Macroeconomic Performance: Amazon.co.uk: Richard A. Werner: 9781403920744: BooksProbably the two most mistaken ideas in neoclassical macroeconomics (which is not short of wrong ideas built into its foundations) are that money creation can’t affect economic growth results (but it does when the money created is canalised to investment credit creation) and that everyone has perfect access to the same complete set of information (when that is obviously not true even in the field of economics).In four of the economic miracle nations, the Central Bankers have been persuaded to adopt Washington Consensus Economics.After the “Princes of the Yen” Japanese Central Bankers created the asset bubble in order to gain independence, which they did In 1991, Japan’s economic miracle ended, and Japan suffered more than two decades - a “lost generation” - of inadequate growth. Shinzo Abe, as he made clear in his speech referring twice and positively to Dr Osamu Shimomura (which his Japanese listeners picked up upon, but which the Westerners as usual ignored) intends to recreate a “Japan of abundant capital’”In South Korea, after the assassination of President Park, the (central) Bank of (South) Korea adopted Washington Consensus Macroeconomics and has an official target of keeping inflation below 2%. The country now suffers from sluggish growth, between 2% to about 4% annually.The other two nations now practising low-growth Washington Consensus economics are the USA and Taiwan.The macroeconomics of the Washington Consensus is a theoretical castle in the air which produces an excuse for malign governments to run the economy mainly of the benefit of the rich and privileged, which the UK and US governments have been doing since 1980. Shimomuran-Wernerian macroeconomics is akin to the German Historical School of Economics, based upon a detailed understanding of what really has worked in producing high economic growth and widespread prosperity. The Washington Consensus has spread poverty and misery over much of the globe and in the USA, the UK and Europe since 1980 and is a major reason for the popular uprising against previous government and their policies.If you wish to understand Shimomuran-Wernerian macroeconomics, then buy and read the two foundation books by Richard WernerJapan's Central Bankers and the Transformation of the Economy: Amazon.co.uk: Richard Werner: 9780765610492: BooksSolving the Riddle of Japanese Macroeconomic Performance: Amazon.co.uk: Richard A. Werner: 9781403920744: BooksAnd you might consider buying one of my books - “Lucky Bastards of the 20th Century - The Story of the Economic Bomb” which you can get atLucky Bastards of the 20th CenturyOr “Shimomuran Economics and the Rise of the Tokyo Consensus” which is available atShimomuran Economics and The Rise of The Tokyo ConsensusIn my opinion, Shimomuran-Wernerian economics is one key to the best future of mankind. It produces widely diffused prosperity through local banks supporting local SMEs and the conversion of invention into innovation. As I say in the conclusion to my Gresham College lecture on 3 March 2015 about “The Curious Case of the Economist the West Forgot - the Life and Times of Dr Osamu Shimomura (1910–89)”From GreshCollText&Slides&NotesVF.pages“1.This fresh-to-the-West economics is the major path to widespread prosperity for everybody. A sound economic understanding is the precondition for wealth creation.“2. One major wrong assumption in neo-classical economics is that everybody in the world has access to the same technology (when they don’t) and that new understandings spread instantaneously (when they don’t) especially not in economics.20“3. Debt has been demonised in the West, but the right kind of debt is the path to prosperity. Investment credit creation can increase investment and growth, enabling the rest to catch up with the West and requiring the West to become better, even in economic understanding.21 But it is neither a free lunch for borrowing companies nor a panacea!“4. Shinzo Abe, who I am delighted to note has recently won another election, spoke to the Japanese Press Club on 19 April 2013 about his “new” Shimomuran policies and spoke of a “Japan of Abundant Capital” based on no-cost investment credit creation. But this new economics is not just for abundant capital in a nation like Japan or for a region (like the Tokyo Consensus group) - it’s for the development of the whole world.“5. This economics is based on some of the insights of Keynes (but not as most know him, through his interpreters) and is consistent with MMT. It puts productive power behind the limitless ingenuity of mankind and validates Schumpeter’s key insight that the innovator is the crucial player in the economic development process. Professor Richard Werner was the first 1991 Shimomura fellow, but the Development Bank of Japan told Werner nothing about Shimomura, yet Richard has reverse-engineered much of Shimomuran economics from Japan’s financial statistics, using the relatively new technology of Granger Predictive Analysis - a very impressive feat.“6. Finally, thank you for your attention to this lecture. I know my omissions about this new economics are much greater than my inclusions. Shimomuran economics is a big and complex macroeconomic system, not just a few key observations, and there is an entire raft of the machinery of government, a big set of policies, and feedback monitoring which are indispensable parts of making this better macroeconomics work well, as well as methods for the control of inflation and a set of preconditions including Central Bank subsidiarity, and these of abundant capital to accelerate the greening of all economic activities which I have not covered - but I do hope I have said enough to let you see the possibility of a newer, lovelier world of abundant capital, where poverty can really be made history and where the boundless ingenuity of mankind and womankind can flourish to bring about a much more satisfactory and sustainable world for all of us. And so be it, preferably soon.22”That’s why I am studying for a PhD at Southampton University, where the major focus of my work is “The integration of Shimomuran With Wernerian Macroeconomics,” which I hope might, just maybe, change the way the world thinks about economic issues.© George Tait Edwards 2017.

The story of Sikkim is unlike any other state in India. It is a story filled with ups and downs, spies and princes, an American Princess under the shadow of a Socialist state in the coldest years of the Cold War, a tangled web of political intrigue under the shadows of Kanchenjunga.Sounds a bit James Bondesque, doesn’t it?A traditional mask dance being performed by a Lama during the Phanglabsol festivalFor our story to start we have to take a trip down the memory lane, all the way back to August 1947, when a young leader in Delhi was full of dreams for his nation.“Long years ago, we made a tryst with destiny; and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour…”Wait. Not that one. This one.Introducing Maharajkumar Sri Panch Palden Thondup Namgyal, the 23-year-old Crown Prince of Sikkim.As India became Independent on that fateful night of August, almost half of India was still not a part of it yet. These were the Princely States, ruled not by the British directly but via a local Maharajah or a Nawab.These states and their rulers were very diverse with respect to their language, culture and religion. Some were ardent Indian nationalists, while some wanted nothing to do with India. Some were rich and some were poor. I won’t go too much into this topic but will merely compare two extremes among 500+ princely states, i.e. Vejanoness and Hyderabad.The Nizam of Hyderabad ruled over a Kingdom the size of Laos consisting of a population of over 16 million people. The yearly revenue of the state in 1901 was 417 million rupees. He had his own Army, Civil Service, Currency, Postal Service, Anthem, Railways and Airline. The last Nizam’s son was married to Dürrüşehvar Sultan, daughter of the last Caliph of the Ottoman Empire, Abdul Mejid II.The Thakore of Vejanoness, on the other hand, ruled over an area of 0.76 sq. km and a population of 193. The yearly revenue of the state in 1901 was 750 rupees.The only thing similar between them was that both of them had to submit in front of the Indian State.However, the young prince had achieved something incredible during his visit to Delhi! A promise from Nehru that Sikkim along with the other Himalayan states were “special” unlike the other Princely states, and that their future would be negotiated separately.These Himalayan kingdoms were:The Kingdom of Nepal under the Shah dynasty,The Kingdom of Bhutan under the Wangchuk dynasty andThe Kingdom of Sikkim under the Namgyal dynastyOf these three kingdoms, Sikkim was in the weakest position in all possible parameters. But their biggest problem was demographic.You see, the Namgyals of Sikkim were minoritarian monarchs, not unlike the present-day Al Khalifas of Bahrain. Bhutia Buddhist monarchs ruling a largely Nepali Hindu populace. This was a result of the massive Nepali migration into the region during the British rule, eventually turning Sikkim Hindu majority(~75% of the population).H. H. Risley notes in the 1894 edition of ‘The Gazetteer of Sikkim’:“Hinduism will assuredly cast out Buddhism and the praying wheel of the Lama will give place to the sacrificial implements of Brahman.”The Buddhist rulers of Sikkim who were known by the title of Chogyal and their feudal underlings the Kazis were very autocratic and oppressive towards their Nepalese Hindu subjects.So while the Durbar was delighted at having a chance of being a separate kingdom, they weren’t ready to reform the terribly antiquated feudal system of Sikkim. On December 1947, protests broke out against the exorbitant rents extracted from the tenant farmers, led by 22-year-old young Nepali youth named CD Rai. The group decided to deliver a petition to the Political Officer(Representative of Delhi to Gangtok), Arthur Hopkinson, in the hope that he might support their call for change.He didn’t.The Residency, home of the Political Officer in GangtokHowever, those protests changed the political culture of Sikkim, bringing the disenfranchised ordinary Sikkimese Nepalis into the political arena in a way that had previously been unthinkable. A political party was formed, the Sikkim State Congress (SSC) which made it’s three demands:‘Landlordism’ must be abolishedAn Interim government must be formedSikkim should agree to accede to India.The Crown Prince was willing to fulfil the first demand, but the remaining two demands were almost impossible for him to fulfil. Having a truly democratic government would alienate his Buddhist subjects who served as his power base. Eventually, though the Prince agreed on creating an Interim government consisting of 5 members :3 elected members(One each from the Bhutia, Lepcha and Nepali communities)2 nominated members chosen directly by the PalaceA new political party, the Sikkim National Party(SNP) sponsored by the Palace emerged as well. It was Pro-Monarchy and Pro-Independence and was expected to win the two seats reserved for Bhutias and Lepchas, which along with the two Palace nominated members would have reduced the Nepali majority to political irrelevance.Protests broke out and a mob of 5000 Nepalis broke through the Palace gates and demanded reform. The Prince fled and took refuge in the Residency. Hopkinson by now had been replaced by Harishwar Dayal as the new Political Officer to Gangtok, and he dissolved the interim government and ordered the two companies of Indian Army present in the kingdom to restore order.These actions were not happening in a vacuum. As it was increasingly being clear that the Chinese civil war reaching its end, the ambiguous nature of the Tibet was increasingly coming into question. Tibet and Sikkim had extremely close cultural relations. Apart from both Tibet and Sikkim having the same state religion, the ruling Namgyal family had its roots in Tibet, the Prince’s wife was from a Tibetan noble family, his sisters were married to Tibetan nobles. By the end of 1950, CCP had taken over Tibet.Indo-Sikkimese treaty of 1950 was signed which officially turned Sikkim into an Indian protectorate. Article III(1) of the treaty states:The Government of India will be responsible for the defence and territorial integrity of Sikkim. It shall have the right to take such measures as it considers necessary for the defence of Sikkim and security of India, whether preparatory or otherwise, and whether within or outside Sikkim. In particular, the Government of India shall have the right to station troops anywhere within Sikkim.So not only was Sikkim relieved of handling its external affairs and defence, but its internal powers were curtailed as well. An Indian bureaucrat named JS Lall was appointed as the Dewan(Prime Minister). Neighbouring Bhutan got away with much better terms, not only was it guaranteed complete internal freedom, New Delhi was to only ‘guide’ Thimphu’s foreign policy and Thimpu was to ‘consult’ with New Delhi regarding foreign and defence affairs.The only positive thing for the Namgyals during this time was the creation of the “Parity formula” which was a delicate balancing act between the Bhutia-Lepchas and the Nepalis. The Bhutia-Lepcha community (by now only 25 per cent of the population) was to have at least 50 per cent of the seats in elections reserved for them. The other 50 per cent of seats was reserved for the Nepali community (roughly 75 per cent of the electorate). For the Nepalis, this was an improvement but no way near the fully representative government they had desired.On the summer of 1959, the Prince was sitting in the Windamere Hotel in the iconic town of Darjeeling. Much had changed since he last visited here. His septuagenarian father had retired from all public affairs, and he was de facto ruling the kingdom. His wife had passed away, leaving him alone with three children. It was to visit his children in a local boarding school he had come here. That is where he met her.Hope.The 19-year-old American teen majoring in Asian Studies. The future queen of Sikkim.Washington Post called her the “Grace Kelly of the East”. The marriage was a hot topic for the US press in those days and was covered by the Time and the National Geographic as well. However, the reactions from New Delhi were grim, as these were the coldest years of the Cold War and an American on the throne on Gangtok made New Delhi uneasy. However, they chose to keep their objections private for now, as deeper concerns in the far north had their attention.Rare video footage of their marriage.Shortly after Namgyal's marriage, his father died, and Thondup was crowned as the 12th Chogyal on an astrologically favourable date in 1965Things, however, were not so rosy in India. The 60s would turn out to be one of the darkest decades of India.In 1962, the Sino-Indian war broke out which resulted in the defeat of India and the occupation of Aksai Chin which continues to this day.In 1964, India would lose its first Prime Minister.Nehru’s death came as a big shock to the Chogyal. He was a supporter of Sikkim and all the Himalayan Kingdoms. He had a special corner in his heart for Sikkim and had chosen it to be his place where he would like to retire.The Chogyal personally admired Nehru a lot and had warmly welcomed him when the Indian Prime Minister had visited his Kingdom in 1958.Thondup and Hope attended the funeral, which drew more than two million mourners. But his mind was set on Sikkim.“I don’t know” he said, “what’s for Sikkim now.”After the mysterious death of Lal Bahadur Shashtri during the Tashkent talks, Indira Gandhi became the Prime Minister of India.And with that Sikkim became the playground of the three tenacious ladies. Each playing hardball to get their own objectives fulfilled.Let me introduce you to the last member of the trio, Kazini Elisa Maria KhangsarpaBorn in Scotland, she was a lifelong traveller. In the 1920s, she emigrated to Myanmar with her husband, an Anglo-Burmese gentleman where she claimed to be a close acquaintance of George Orwell. Few marriages later, she ended up as the Royal Tutor to a Nepali Prince, and from there being the wife one of the most important nobles of Sikkim, Kazi Lhendup Dorji Khangsarpa. She also claimed to be a relative of Field Marshal Mannerheim, founder of Modern Finland. As it turns out now, her entire identity might have been an elaborate fabrication.[1]The Khangsarpa clan was an old Sikkimese Noble family. Since the inception of the Sikkimese kingdom, the royal house of Namgyals and the Khangsarpas never saw eye to eye. Although both of them were Buddhist by faith, the former were of Tibetan origin and the latter were of indigenous Lepcha origin.Since the 1890s British had encouraged massive Nepali Hindu immigration into the Buddhist kingdom much to the chagrin of the Namgyals as they feared the dilution of the Buddhist character of their state. The Khangsarpas had a different view of this and saw the Nepalis as cheap labour who could be utilised. Dorji was convinced that his connections with the Nepali majority would provide rich political dividends for him if the system was more democratized. Thus he took a very dim view of the Namgyal pretences of being Independent. Such was his popularity that his party the Sikkim National Congress(SNC) eclipsed the SSC in terms of popular support.In 1967, The Sino-Sikkimese border was on fire again. The Chinese troops had started digging trenches on the Sikkimese side and after repeated refusals to the Indians who asked them to go back, clashes ensued. Hundreds of casualties later, the Chinese withdrew restoring the status quo.It was not as if the ambiguous nature of Sikkim was already causing a lot of headache to New Delhi, an article was published in the Bulletin of Tibetology, that was brought into the desk of Indira Gandhi herself.Bulletin of Tibetology was the obscure academic journal of the Institute of Tibetology in Gangtok, which was opened to promote the scholarly study of Tibet and Buddhist related subjects. After the Chinese takeover of Tibet, this institute was opened and the Dalai Lama himself had laid the foundation stone.The article had an anodyne title, “The Sikkimese theory of landholding and the Darjeeling Grant” but the content was extremely provocative, to say the least. It's author, the Queen asked for the return of The District of Darjeeling (which had been granted to British India by the Chogyal way back in 1835) back to Sikkim. This was a direct challenge to the territorial integrity of India.The headlines such as ‘CIA Agent on Borrowed Plumage’ and ‘American Trojan Mare in Gangtok’ were splashed across India Dailies[2]In 1967, the Naxalbari uprising erupted in Darjeeling and there was a fear among the Delhi political circles that if the restive Nepali majority in Sikkim wasn’t given its due rights, Maoism may cross over the border.In 1967 elections were held in Sikkim, with farcical divisions made to undermine the Nepali majority. Out of the 24 seats:Six were appointed by the ChogyalSeven were for the Lepcha-Bhutia communitySeven were for the Nepali communityOne was for the Limbu/Tsong CommunityOne was for the Buddhist MonasteriesOne was for the Scheduled CastesOne was a general seatThe results were: SNC: 8; SSC: 2 and SNP: 5.Due to the incredibly fragmented structure, there was no way the Nepali parties could form a majority in the Parliament, the best they could hope for was an appointment into the Executive council which directly advised the Chogyal.This was a golden opportunity for the Chogyal to appoint the Kazi into the Executive council and build the much-needed consensus in the fractured kingdom.The Chogyal refused.He instead appointed a rival leader inside the SNC, in an attempt to divide the party. In an ensuing interview, the Chogyal referred to the Kazi as the “Al Capone of Sikkim”.Surrounded by Yes Men on all sides, Chogyal increasingly started to become detached from reality. He created a think-tank consisting of Pro-Monarchy intellectuals called the “Study Forum” which was to help in “nation-building” a project which was directly opposed by the Kazi.Sikkim Assembly HouseThe Study Forum under the Queen(Gyalmo) did do a lot of symbolical things to promote nation-building in Sikkim. Their main objective was to seek a revision of the Indo-Sikkimese treaty of 1950. They wanted Sikkim to then join the Colombo plan, print its own stamps and earn foreign exchange and eventually gain control of its border so as to control Nepali immigration from both Nepal and India.Before 1967, Sikkim had no educational structure of its own and depended on India for its curriculum and its teachers. In the next five years, literacy rates doubled and education was provided in as many as four languages: Denjoke(Sikkimese dialect of Tibetan), Lepcha, Nepali and English. Seats for the Tashi Namgyal Academy(the most prestigious school in Sikkim) were equally divided among the Bhutia-Lepchas and Nepalis.Gangtok started searching for symbols of nationhood and tried to find international attention whatever way possible. Sikkimese artisans were sent into the World Craft Council in 1968. Sikkimese representatives were also present in the Manila Conference of 1967. The Royal Couple used to visit London and New York twice every year tried their best to promote Sikkimese handicraft and textiles among the Chic crowd there. The Palace itself became a centre for lavish parties for foreigners making their way to the last Shangri La.A national anthem(Why is Denzong (Sikkim) Blooming So Fresh and Beautiful?)[3]was constituted and the Royal Bodyguard of Chogyal was raised to a company size led by a retired Indian Army officer. The Chogyal himself had a ceremonial position of a Major General in the Gurkha Regiment of the Indian Army. In 1972, the Chogyal created his own personal intelligence service led by Karma Topden.An official documentary about Sikkim by commissioned by the Chogyal as well which was directed by the auteur Satyajit Ray. The movie was banned in 1974 but since the 2000s the ban has been overturned.A Sikkimese Noblewoman flanked by two Sikkim guardsIn 1973 elections, the Pro-Monarchy Sikkim National Party won a majority of seats in the State Council. The opposition led by SNC and SSC responded by alleging that the election had been rigged. Protests and Counter Protests started in South Sikkim but the Chogyal ignored them.Chogyal instead concentrated on his 50th birthday celebrations which were to be held over a course of two days.Chogyal, Gyalmo and the Princess during the birthday celebration.The protests swelled and swelled and eventually, riots broke out. Sikkim Police which was under the direct control of the Palace opened fire, killing two protesters.Now the Kazi had the evidence he needed. He rushed to the Residency(Now the India house and under the P.O. K Bajpai) and asked for Indian assistance.Indians strongly advised the Chogyal to accept Indian help and he relented. The Protests stopped. Immediately.Indian Army which was already stationed throughout Sikkim and protected its borders took over the administration of the Kingdom. B.S. Das, an Indian bureaucrat was appointed as the Dewan.As Das reached Gangtok, he visited the Palace only to find a very belligerent Chogyal who blasted away at him:“Mr Das, Sikkim is not Goa that the Government of India has sent you to take over as Chief administrator. We have our separate identity and Indo-Sikkimese relations are governed by a Treaty. The so-called ‘popular leaders’ are nothing but a bunch of scoundrels propped up by outside forces. If my Police had not been disarmed and dishonoured by the Indian Army, I would have exposed each and every one of them. I shall never forgive the Indian Army for this”The situation was getting tenser. A mob of Bhutias loyal to their King had arrived in Gangtok. Nepalis from the ever porous Indo-Sikkimese borders were filling in as well. Chogyal’s and Gyalmo’s supporters abroad started making direct accusations against the Indira Gandhi administration, including the Chogyal’s sister Princess Coocoola, who was in Hong Kong then directly accused the Indians of fomenting trouble inside in Sikkim as did the Crown Prince Tenzing who was in London then.Finally, the Chogyal relented under pressure and signed the Tripartite agreement with popular leaders which reduced his power significantly. An inebriated Chogyal arrived into the signing ceremony and accused the leaders of being Desh Bechwas(Ones who sold the country).Things were morose inside the Palace as well. The Royal Couple’s marriage was incredibly strained and an article in the Newsweek which called Hope as the “Himalayan Marie Antoinette” had offended her deeply.On the 15th of August, Hope Cooke left Sikkim for New York for the last time along with her three children.The Chogyal was now a broken man. His traditional powers had been snatched away from him. His wife and children had left him. His chief source of information, Topden was exiled by India to Calcutta. However, he still was the Ceremonial Figurehead of the Kingdom of Sikkim, a protectorate of India.Finally, the Chogyal decided to visit Indira Gandhi in Delhi itself. Once a champion for the revision of the 1950 treaty now he asked for the reinstatement of his rights promised in that treaty. Although the Chogyal was warmly welcomed by the Iron Lady, his pleas were ignored. Disappointed, He flew to New York to persuade his Queen to return to Gangtok. She refused.Elections were held in 1974 for the last time in the Kingdom of Sikkim. Under the gerrymandered constituencies which heavily favoured the Kazi, SNC won 31 out of 32 seats. The lone opposition seat was the one reserved for the Monasteries. Kazi took the position of Chief Minister of Sikkim. He immediately asked for Sikkim’s integration with India’s political institutions.After negotiations seemed to fail the Chogyal felt that his time may have come to an end. He asked his trusted friend Captain Sonam Yongda to prepare the Sikkim Guards for the worst. He had planned to flee to Kathmandu wearing a Monk’s robes. The Captain requested him to place the entire Guards company into the Palace Compound and to engage the Indian troops if they entered. He also advised him to ask Pakistan or China for Diplomatic support. The Chogyal being a devout Buddhist, refused any such violent plan.Next day, Captain Yongda was arrested.Princess Coocoola, a staunch supporter of the Chogyal returned to Delhi from Hong Kong to find her being received by Indian troops for her protection. On reaching Sikkim house she found that the phone lines were cut and there was no way for her to reach Gangtok.Droves of Indian troops in full battle gear had entered Gangtok. A worried Chogyal called the new Political Officer, Gurbachan Singh. Singh assured that it was only a military exercise and that he was to meet Mrs Gandhi two days later in Delhi.The meeting was never to happen.On the 9th of April, 1974, few of the guards saw unusual activity by the Indian troops. The two sentry boxes at the Palace were fired at. Basanta Kumar Chettri, the Hindu Nepali bodyguard of the Buddhist King, was shot dead. The remaining Palace guards hands raised high, were packed into trucks and taken away. As they left they were singing: "Dela sil, li gi, gang changka chibso". It was the national anthem of a nation which no longer existed.Three centuries of Namgyal rule in Sikkim ended in thirty minutes.On the 14th of April, a referendum was held. 97% of voters chose to abolish the Kingdom and become a state. The institution of Chogyal was already abolished by the Assembly. The way the referendum was conducted was criticised by many, including Indian journalists.And thus ends our long Saga.Our Royal couple divorced a few years after that in 1980. Palden Thondup Namgyal, the deposed Chogyal died two years later due to Cancer in New York.Hope still lives in New York and since then has become a published author and an urban historian. She writes chiefly on the history of New York City. In 1983 she married Mike Wallace, a Pulitzer Prize-winning Historian but divorced him soon after.Crown Prince Tenzing died even before his father did due to a car accident. His younger brother Wangchuk Namgyal is the current titular Chogyal.Kazi Lhendup Dorji would suffer a devastating defeat in the next election and lost all political relevance. A young Nepali school teacher, Nar Bahadur Bhandari emerged as the new leader. Kazi was ironically tarred as a “Desh Bechwa” by his political opponents. In 1995, Kazi did a U-turn and expressed regret at the annexation and the role he played in it. The couple had to leave Sikkim eventually and settle in Kalimpong. Kazini would die there dreaming of returning to Scotland. Kazi was left alone, and lived a depressing and lonely life. He passed away at the age of 103 in 2009. [4]Sikkim unlike other states in India’s North-East never had a secessionist movement. It remains as of now one of the most peaceful states in the Indian union.Ending this by adding that unreleased documentary directed by Satyajit Ray. I recommend giving it a watch.Sources:Smash and Grab: Annexation of Sikkim by Sunanda K. Datta-RaySikkim: Requiem for a Himalayan Kingdom by Andrew DuffThe Sikkim Saga by Brajbir Saran DasNote: All the images were taken from GoogleFootnotes[1] Ethel Maud Shirran, born 1904[2] Where have all the comrades gone?[3] National Anthem of Sikkim[4] The Pain of losing a Nation