The land of Sikkim was an independent state during the early 17th century. Its boundaries extended as far as eastern Nepal. The king of Nepal, Prithvi Narayan Shah conquered Sikkim. As Darjeeling was a part of Sikkim in those days, Prithvi Narayan Shah added Darjeeling to the Nepali kingdom. At the end of the 1813, the British East India Company declared a war against Nepal. Under the leadership of General Ochterlony the British gained victory over Nepal. A treaty was signed at the close of 1816 in a place called Sugauli. It was decided that Nepal surrender 4,000 sq. miles of its territory to the British. On the 10th of February 1817, another treaty was signed called the treaty of Titaliya. According to this treaty the area of Darjeeling was handed over to the Raja of Sikkim. In 1828, Darjeeling was chosen as a sanitarium for British soldiers. The cool climate of Darjeeling resembled London in many ways, so it was chosen also as a residential colony for the wives and children of the British soldiers labouring in the hot and humid parts of India. In 1835, after a lot of discussions and pressure from the British government, the Raja of Sikkim was persuaded to hand over Darjeeling to British India as a “gift”. In return the British would pay a certain amount of money as annual subsidy to the Raja of Sikkim, Chogyal Tsudphud Namgyal. So the East India Company under Lieutenant Napier founded a hill station. From the year 1860 rapid progress was made in the fields of road construction and school establishments. Tea plantations also started to develop in Darjeeling and population also started to increase rapidly. After India’s independence on 15th August 1947 Darjeeling district was retained in the state of West Bengal in India. The Tea industry continues to occupy a major role in the economy of the area. The name Darjeeling is composed of two words “Dorje” and “ling”. “Dorje” means “thunderbolt” and “ling” means “place”. So, Darjeeling is “the Land of Thunderbolt”.