Culture and history · Phodong
Tumlong, capital of Sikkim for a century
Below Phodong lies Tumlong, Sikkim's capital from 1793 to 1894 and the place where the Treaty of Tumlong was signed with the British in 1861. Little of the palace survives, but a short visit puts the whole region's history in place.
Sikkim's first capitals were in the west, at Yuksom and then Rabdentse. Raids from Nepal in the late 18th century made the west unsafe, and in 1793 Chogyal Tsugphud Namgyal moved the court to Tumlong, on the bank of the Dik Chu, further inland. The Chogyals kept a summer palace in the Chumbi valley, reached over the Cho La pass.
Tumlong was the capital through a turbulent century. In 1849, Joseph Hooker and Archibald Campbell were detained by the Sikkim court during Hooker's journey. In March 1861 the Treaty of Tumlong, signed by Sir Ashley Eden for the British and by Sidkeong Namgyal for Sikkim, gave the British wide control over Sikkim's affairs. In 1894 Thutob Namgyal moved the capital to Gangtok.
Today Tumlong is a village of about 400 people, with farms on the slope and a monastery above. Ask in Phodong how to reach the old palace site and what remains; much has gone. Walk the village quietly, and ask before photographing homes.
Cost: Free
Questions people ask
Good to know
When was Tumlong the capital of Sikkim?
Tumlong was the capital of the Kingdom of Sikkim from 1793, when Chogyal Tsugphud Namgyal moved the court from Rabdentse, until 1894, when Chogyal Thutob Namgyal moved it to Gangtok. Some sources give 1861 for the start of the move to Gangtok.
What was the Treaty of Tumlong?
The Treaty of Tumlong, signed in March 1861 by Sir Ashley Eden for the British and Sidkeong Namgyal for Sikkim, followed a British expedition into Sikkim. It secured British trade and influence and made Sikkim a protectorate in practice. It is also called the Anglo-Sikkimese Treaty of 1861.
Is there anything left of the Tumlong palace?
Very little of the old palace survives, and what remains is not developed as a tourist site. Ask in Phodong or Tumlong for directions and current access. The value of the visit is the setting and the story rather than ruins.
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