Maharani Raj Rajeshwari Devi

Who is Maharani Raj Rajeshwari Devi?

Maharani Raj Rajeshwari Devi, was a Queen consort and twice regent of Nepal. She was married to Rana Bahadur Shah and mother of Girvan Yuddha Bikram Shah Deva.

She was the granddaughter of Sri Sri Sri Raja Shiva Shah, Raja of Gulmi. In 1799, her consort abdicated to become a sanyasi, and she became regent in the name of her under age son. She ruled alongside the other two wives of her consort, Sri Maharani Subarna Prabha Devi and Maharani Lalit Tipura Sundari Devi. Her first rule lasted from 1799 to 1800, and her second reign from 1802 to 1804. In 1804, her husband returned and resumed power. Two years later, her spouse was assassinated by his brother, and ten days later, on 5 May 1806, Maharani Raj Rajeshwari Devi, as a hindu widow, was forced to commit sati on the orders of Bhimsen Thapa. The sati took place on the bank of the Salinadi rivulet at Sankhu. Her co-regents, Maharani Subarna Prabha Devi and Maharani Lalit Tipura Sundari Devi, was not, however, forced to commit sati despite the fact that they were widows after the same man, and continued their rule as regents.