Cooch Behar State

Cooch Behar
1586–1949
Flag of Cooch Behar
Flag
Coat of arms of Cooch Behar
Coat of arms
Cooch Behar and vicinity from The Imperial Gazetteer of India, 1931
Cooch Behar and vicinity from The Imperial Gazetteer of India, 1931
Capital
History 
• Established
1586
1949
Area
19013,385 km2 (1,307 sq mi)
Succeeded by
West Bengal
Today part ofIndia
Bangladesh
Nepal
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Cooch Behar State
Part of History of Assam
Part of History of Bengal
Lakshmi Narayan1586–1621
Bir Narayan1621–1626
Pran Narayan1626–1665
Madan Narayan1665–1680
Basudev Narayan1680–1682
Mahendra Narayan1682–1693
Rup Narayan1693–1714
Upendra Narayana1714–1763
Debendra Narayana1763–1765
Regent1763–1765
Dhairjendra Narayan1765–1770
Rajendra I Narayan1770–1772
Pensuthma –Bhutanese Regent1770–1772
Dharendra Narayan1772
Bijendra Narayan1772–1774
Dharendra Narayan1774–1775
Dhairjendra Narayan1775–1783
Harendra Narayan1783–1839
Regents1783–1801
Bajendra Narayan1836–1839
Shivendra Narayan1839–1847
Narendra Narayan1847–1863
Bajendra Narayan1847–1857
Regents1857–1860
Nripendra Narayan1863–1911
Regents1863–1883
Raj Rajendra Narayan1911–1913
Jitendra Narayan1913–1922
Jagaddipendra Narayan1922–1949
Cooch Behar monarchy data
Raikat (Royal family)
Cooch Behar (Capital of the kingdom)
Cooch Behar Palace (Royal residence)
The Cooch Behar Palace
Maharaja Shri Sir Jitendra Narayan Bhup Bahadur
Maharani Gayatri Devi, Rajmata of Jaipur, born as Princess Gayatri Devi of Cooch Behar, with her husband Man Singh II, the last ruling Maharaja of Jaipur State
Maharani Suniti Devi

Cooch Behar, also known as Koch Bihar,[1] was a princely state in India during the British Raj.[2] The state was placed under the Bengal States Agency, part of the Eastern States Agency of the Bengal Presidency. It was located south of the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, in present-day West Bengal.

Cooch Behar State was formed when the Kamata Kingdom under the Koch dynasty split following the death of Nara Narayan in 1586. The eastern portion, Koch Hajo, was soon absorbed by Ahom. The western portion, Koch Bihar, formed a separate unit that came under direct challenge by the Mughal Empire. After weathering the Mughal threat, a new foe emerged in the form of an expansionist Bhutanese kingdom. After a series of wars with the Bhutanese and Tibetans, the Northern threat was pushed back but not before a Bhutanese regent was installed in the royal court. The Koch Bihar court decided to invite British intervention. This came in the form of military assistance that—acting in concert with Koch Bihar forces—ended the Northern challenge once and for all. However the British East India Company sought guarantees whereby the independence of Koch Bihar was limited by treaties. When the British colonial rule was finally terminated in India, the Koch Bihar state immediately acceded to and merged with India in 1949 and became a part of West Bengal. The district, Cooch Behar District, is named after this erstwhile kingdom.

  1. ^ "The eastern division was known as 'Kamrup' in the local sources and as 'Koch Hajo' in the Persian chronicles. The western division known as Koch Behar was known as 'Kuc' (Koch) or 'Koch Behar' in Persian chronicles, or simply as 'Behar' in the Gurucharitas." (Nath 1989, p. 86)
  2. ^ Princely States of India