The Reign of Maharaja Bir Chandra Manikya (1862-1896) of Tripura: A Reassessment

Abstract Maharaja Birchandra Manikya ruled Tripura from 1862-1896. He is regarded as aharbinger of modernity in Tripura which was a princely state. However there are more waysto look at this reign. This paper tries to show that beyond the usual narratives of historiansdescribing princely rulers during colonial period in India either as conservatives or liberal,there are multiple ways to discuss the complex layers of functioning of a ruler. The papertakes up few important socio-political developments during the reign of Birchandra toconstruct a narrative of how an amazingly astute ruler that he was.