Democratizing Monarch: A Memoir of Nepals King Birendra
Author:
Francis G Hutchins
Category: Nepal 
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On the evening of June 1, 2001, the King and Queen of Nepal, their daughter and younger son were murdered, evidently by their older son, whose own mysterious death ended the slaughter. The King’s younger brother succeeded to the throne amidst rumors that he had masterminded the massacre. Years of turmoil followed, from which Nepal is just now beginning to emerge.
For me, Kathmandu’s June One massacre was traumatic because it ended three and a half decades of quiet empathy I had felt for a man who had taught me as I was teaching him. In the weeks that followed his death, I collected articles on the tragedy, but felt principally disbelief as I read them. It took more than three years before it began to seem to me that it might be healing and helpful to try to characterize Birendra, his life, his death, his role in my life, and what may be his enduring significance in the history of Nepal.
-Excerpt from the Introduction of Democratizing Monarch: A Memoir of Nepal’s King Birendra by Francis G. Hutchins
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