King Jayabhimadeva

Introduction to Jayabhimadeva

Jayabhimadeva ruled Nepal from 1258 A.D. to 1271 A.D. as the successor of Jayadeva Malla and Abhay Malla. Jayabhimadeva was the Feudal Lord of House Bhonta, the most powerful family of the Early Medieval Period.

They previously ruled the Region of Banepa as Feudal Lords and slowly accumulated Power through the passing of Time.

Reign of Jayabhimadeva

Jayabhimadeva belonged to House Bhonta which ruled the Banepa Region of Nepal as Feudal Overlords. However, they were very close to the throne of Nepal. He also sided with King Jayadeva Malla and assisted him in ruling Nepal for a temporary period.

After the death of both sons of King Jayadeva Malla and Jayadeva Malla himself, a huge insufficiency was observed in the Royal Throne of Nepal.

To deal with these problems, two of the largest houses decided to conduct an oral settlement to crown the King of Nepal. The Two Houses were House Bhonta led by Jayabhimadeva and Tripura Royal Family led by Jayasimha Malla. The Agreement concluded that both Houses would alternately rule Nepal replacing each other.

With the Agreement of House Bhonta and the Tripura Royal Family, the reign of Jayabhimadeva began in 1258 A.D. He has four documents up to date in his name. He had two sons named Adityadeva and Anandadeva through his eldest Wife.

Gopal Raja Bansawali portrays him in a positive and negative light. He sold and emptied the Treasury of Changunarayan including the rare copper chains available there.

However, His Reign, unlike the chaotic reign of his predecessors saw the decline of Famine and Earthquakes but saw increasing grain Harvest in Nepal. King Jayabhimadeva ruled Nepal for 13 years and was eventually replaced or deposed.

Gopal Raja Bansawali

Conclusion

He was certainly not a Malla King and belonged to the House Bhonta of Banepa who stepped up to the throne of Nepal due to the indecisiveness of Malla’s heir.

Although he isn’t remembered well, his reign commemorates the end of Natural Disasters but introduces External Invasions that destroyed Nepal and were stopped only after Jayastithi Malla.

References