Nepal’s Ousted King Gyanendra Quits Palace
Watch BBC video: Nepal’s Ousted King Gyanendra Leaves Palace
BBC: The deposed king of Nepal, Gyanendra, has moved out of the palace in the capital Kathmandu where his family lived for more than a century.

Mr Shah, as he is now known, and his wife Komal swept out of the compound in the back of a black Mercedes as scores of riot police guarded the main gate.

Earlier, he said he had returned his crown but would not go into exile and would work for the republic's benefit.

Last month, Nepal's Maoist-led assembly voted to abolish the monarchy.

The palace in the centre of Kathmandu is to become a museum.

Gyanendra and his wife are moving to a new, temporary residence outside the city.

'The people's verdict'

A police and army escort followed the ex-monarch's car as he left for Nagarjun, in the north-western suburbs of Kathmandu.

The couple will live in a large, comfortable but ordinary-looking house there.

A few loyalist onlookers called for Gyanendra to stay on as his car left but many in the crowd near the palace seemed happy to see him go, correspondents say.

"This marks the beginning of a new Nepal and the end of a dynasty that has done nothing but harm this country," Devendra Maharjan, a farmer who had come to Kathmandu to see the king leave the palace, told The Associated Press.

"If it had not been for the kings, Nepal would probably not have remained a poor nation."

Giving an unprecedented news conference at the palace earlier, the former monarch said he had given his priceless crown to the Nepalese government for its protection.

"I have no intention or thoughts to leave the country," Gyanendra said.

"I have assisted in and respected the verdict of the people." Nepal's Ousted King Quits Palace >>> | June 11, 2008

WIKIPEDIA:
Nepal >>>

The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Paperback - UK)
The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Hardback - UK)

King Gyanendra of Nepal Is Given Marching Orders; Nepal to Become a Republic
Photo of King Gyanendra of Nepal courtesy of Google Images
THE TELEGRAPH: Nepal swept away more than two centuries of history when the monarchy was abolished with barely a whimper from the palace.

King Gyanendra, whose seven-year reign began in tragedy, floundered in authoritarianism and ended in meek surrender, was given 15 days to leave his palace. After that, according to the new government, it will be turned into a museum.

An overwhelming majority of an elected assembly, charged with drawing up a new constitution, backed the creation of a republic in the Himalayan nation, which endured 10 years of war against Maoist rebels, who are now the dominant partners in the new political firmament.

The resolution passed by 560 votes with only four against states that Nepal will become "an independent, indivisible, sovereign, secular and an inclusive democratic republic nation".

It adds: "All the privileges enjoyed by the king and royal family will automatically come to an end."

King Gyanendra, who inherited the throne after 10 members of the royal family were massacred by Crown Prince Dipendra in 2001, was a victim of his own incompetence and historical forces beyond his control.

The royal bureaucracy was stuffed with elderly functionaries incapable of accepting change. As a Maoist insurgency gripped the country, especially after 2001, the establishment fell back on what it knew best – authoritarianism practised by a tiny elite. Nepal Abolishes Monarchy as King Gyanendra Given Fortnight to Vacate Palace >>> By Thomas Bell in Kathmandu | May 29, 2008

BBC:
Former Nepal King to Leave Palace >>> | June 11, 2008

BBC:
What Do Monarchs Do Next? >>> | May 30, 2008

DIE PRESSE:
Nepal: König räumt Palast - Mätresse bleibt >>> | 11.06.2008

DIE PRESSE:
Foto Galerie: Gestürzte Monarchien: Es war einmal ein Königreich... >>>

The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Paperback - UK)
The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Hardback - UK)