Kaji Jayant Rana Magar was a Gorkhali

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

of the

Gorkha Kingdom Gorkha Kingdom ( ne, गोरखा राज्य) was a member of the Chaubisi rajya, a confederation of 24 states on the Indian subcontinent ruled by Khas people. In 1743 CE, the kingdom began a campaign of military expansion, annexing se ...

, and the

Kingdom of Kantipur Kantipur (from kanti ''light'', pur ''city'') was a medieval kingdom in the Malla (Nepal), Malla confederacy of Nepal. The name of the kingdom was derived from the Sanskrit name of its capital city, now known as Kathmandu. History The kingdom ...

who commanded one battle for Gorkha, and two battles for Kantipur against the invasion of Nuwakot. He died in 1774 after ordering to be skinned alive by

Prithvi Narayan Shah Maharajadhiraj Prithvi Narayan Shah (1723–1775) ( ne, श्री ५ बडामहाराजाधिराज पृथ्वीनारायण शाह देव) was the last ruler of the Gorkha Kingdom and first monarch of the ...

, first King of Nepal.

Biography

King of Gorkha, Nara Bhupal Shah, made Jayant Rana commander of his army with Maheshwar Panta. In 1736, the king sent both commanders to attack Nuwakot, territory controlled by the

but the attack was unsuccessful. They made a retreat back to Gorkha, however, both commanders blamed each other for the defeat. Fearing for his life, Rana quitted the army of Gorkha, subsequently joined the Kantipur army. King of Kantipur, Jaya Prakash Malla, appointed Rana to defend attacks from Gorkha as he had inside information on their strengths and weaknesses.

ascended the throne of the Gorkha Kingdom in 1743 after the death of his father Nara Bhupal Shah. Like his father, he attacked Nuwakot, but he failed to win, thus he began to improve military technology and manpower. When preparing for a war against Nuwakot, Prithvi Narayan Shah, wrote a letter to Jayant Rana to join Gorkha, mentioning his ex-relations, however, he declined to join his side, adding "I am yours, but I have already eaten the salt of Jaya Prakash. Now I would die for him". Later, Jayant Rana became aware of an oncoming attack from Gorkha and he assigned his son Sankhamani Rana to defend Nuwakot, then Jayant went to Kantipur to get more soldiers. However, Kantipur was celebrating a major festival of Indra Jatra, thus he failed to get any additional soldiers to defend Nuwakot. Meanwhile, Prithvi Narayan Shah attacked Nuwakot, as soldiers were unprepared so they started to run away to Belkot. Rana's son, Sankhamani was killed in action. On 1 October 1744, Gorkha Kingdom won the war, subsequently, Jayant Rana was going back to Nuwakot but decided to stay at Belkot for a counterattack, and started to prepare for another battle with Gorkha. Later Prithvi Narayan Shah attacked Belkot and won a nearly

Pyrrhic victory A Pyrrhic victory ( ) is a victory that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat. Such a victory negates any true sense of achievement or damages long-term progress. The phrase originates from a quote from P ...

, upon victory, Rana was captured. In 1744, Shah brought Rana to Nuwakot and ordered him to be skinned alive with the presence of people from Gorkha, and Nuwakot. Jayant Rana is remembered for being one of the "recorded act of violence" of

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* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rana, Jayant 1744 deaths 18th-century Nepalese people Gurkhas People executed by flaying People from Gorkha District Unification of Nepal People of the Nepalese unification Nepalese prisoners of war