How Nepal's 'Hunting Diplomacy' kept Britain from colonising land of the Everest

The small and strategically important mountainous country of Nepal sits at the crown jewel of the Himalayas. It houses a diverse territory ranging from altitudes of 60 meters to 8,848 meters above mean sea level within its border of under 150,000 square kilometres.

According to the National Biodiversity Strategy of 2002 Nepal encompasses 118 different types of ecosystems. Home to big cats and one-horned rhinoceros, it is also home to nearly 12,000 different species of flora, and as such Nepal is positioned as one of the most unique nations in the world sandwiched between China and India with an abundance of natural resources.

Among its many marvels, wildlife conservation is an undeniable pride of its culture, heritage and national policy. However, this wasn't always the case as Nepal during colonial times actively advocated for hunting diplomacy.

What is hunting diplomacy?

Hunting Diplomacy was a common practice in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region, that existed in the form of gifts and monetary loans as means to strengthen bilateral relations. It is a well-documented fact that Rhinoceros Diplomacy in particular was famous for increasing foreign relationships and foreign diplomacy.

Nepal's royal connection

Nepal's royalty had an intimate connection with wildlife and often translated into means of developing international relations. An invaluable diplomatic tool that it was, served as expeditions with the sole purpose of impressing foreign dignitaries. It allowed diplomacy to be conducted on an informal yet important scale. Nepal's royal family would host elaborate hunting trips in Chitwan and Tarai jungles-although a leisure activity, it was an attempt to bridge connections with high-profile British visitors from India and elsewhere.

After the 1814-1816 war between the British empire and Nepal which ended in the latter losing a big chunk of territory to a colonial superpower, Nepal's foreign policy was distant and hazy, until the 1850s. It was then that Nepal reached out to the British in hopes that a friendly alliance was more suitable to maintaining Nepali sovereignty.

What is the origin of Nepal's wildlife diplomacy?

In the backdrop of a volatile 20th century with empires rising and falling,  Nepal's shikar campaigns offered the most spectacular hunting challenge. As "game stocks" depleted around the world, Nepal's Terai jungles and lowlands reached mythical status among British hunting elites. From Prince Albert to other British colonial elite frequented the country's lush hunting grounds and Nepal allowed it, as it stopped them from politically contaminating the leadership or instrumenting a divide as they did in India.

Most notable European figures who hunted in Nepal

Duke of Portland in 1884, Prince of Wales in 1890, Prince France Ferdinand in 1893, Viceroy of India Lord George Curzon in 1901, were just some of the famous names involved in Nepal's hunting diplomacy. 

Nepal's affinity with the British continued well beyond wildlife diplomacy from thereon when it offered them 10 battalions of Nepal finest army men to fight in the First World War. It also facilitated the recruitment of nearly 60,000 Nepalis into the various Gurkha battalions of the British which originated before the first great war as a means to avoid being pulled into the war directly or being taken over by either the British, Russians or Japanese kingdoms. 

According to historian Pratyoush Onta, notably, over 1 lakh Nepali soldiers were taken into supporting non-combative roles in units like the Army Bearer Corps and Labour Battalions. However, before this generous offer for the First World War, in which over 20,000 Gurkha soldiers were killed, King George V also visited Nepal for the 1911 great hunting expedition.

Between 1900-1938, it is estimated that over 700 tigers, hundreds of rhinos, sloth bears and elephants were slaughtered, and if that wasn't enough, Nepal closed a deal to send over 2 lakh soldiers to serve in the British units during Second World War. Hunting diplomacy was so popular in Nepal-almost as a way of life to maintain sovereignty and out of British wrath that almost all of the "Big game" are endangered in the country now. In 1972, hunting was outlawed, except in one reserve in the Himalayas-however, the damage to megafauna may already have been done.