Chogyal of Sikkim
| Chogyal of Sikkim | |
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| Details | |
| First monarch | Chogyal Phuntsog Namgyal |
| Last monarch | Chogyal Palden Thondup Namgyal |
| Formation | 1642 |
| Abolition | 16 May 1975 |
| Residence | Gangtok, Sikkim |
| Pretender(s) | Wangchuk Namgyal |
The Chogyal ("Dharma Kings", Tibetan: ཆོས་རྒྱལ, Wylie: chos rgyal, Sanskrit : धर्मराज:) were the monarchs of the former kingdoms of Sikkim and Ladakh in present-day India, which were ruled by separate branches of the Namgyal dynasty. The Chogyal was the absolute potentate of Sikkim from 1642 to 1975, when the monarchy was abrogated and its people voted in a referendum to make Sikkim India's 22nd state.
In Bhutan, Chogyal "Dharma King" or "Religious King" is a title which was also conferred upon a special class of temporal and spiritual rulers. In Bhutan, the Chogyal were given the respectful title Zhabdrung. In this context, the Chogyal was a recognised reincarnation (or succession of reincarnations) of Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, the 17th century Tibetan-born founder of Bhutan. A position of supreme importance, the Bhutanese Chogyal was above both the highest monastic authority, the Je Khenpo, and the highest temporal ruler, the Deb Raja or Druk Desi. There were two main lines of Zhabdrung incarnations in Bhutan.
From 1642 to 1975, Sikkim was ruled by the Namgyal Monarchy (also called the Chogyal Monarchy), founded by the fifth-generation descendants of Guru Tashi, a prince of the Minyak House who came to Sikkim from the Kham district of Tibet. Chogyal means 'righteous ruler', and was the title conferred upon Sikkim's Buddhist kings during the reign of the Namgyal Monarchy.
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