History of Sikkim

The earliest history of Sikkim dates back to 8th century AD when Buddhist saint Guru Rinpoche entered the land and preached Buddhism here. The Guru is said to have blessed the land, and established monarchy here which continued for over thousand years.

In 1642, the fifth generation descendant of Khye Bumsa, Phuntsog Namgyal, was consecrated as the first Chogyal (king) of Sikkim by the three venerated Lamas who came from the north, west and south to Yuksom, marking the beginning of the monarchy.

In the early 17th century, Sikkim was invaded by Bhutanese. In later periods the Tibetans and Nepalese attacked Sikkim and occupied some of its areas.

Also for sometime, the land came under the rule of British East India Company. But with India’s independence in 1947, Sikkim became a tributary to India in which India controlled its external defence, diplomacy and communication.

A state council was established in 1955 to allow for constitutional government for the Chogyal monarchy.

However, in early 1970s the Chogyal became extremely unpopular with the people; and the people demanded fresh election based on which Sikkim would become a state of the Indian union.

A referendum was held in 1975 in which 97.5% of the people voted to join the Indian Union. Finally on May 16, 1975, Sikkim officially became the 22nd state of Indian Union, and monarchy was abolished.