Birendra

Birendra (1945 - June 1, 2001) was king of Nepal from 1972 until 2001, and the son of Mahendra, whom he succeeded.

He was more open to parliamentary democracy than his father, and restored it after a referendum in 1990. However, the quarrels between various political parties and numerous social problems caused a Maoist rebellion which has been escalating since 1996. His country's stability was threatened even more when he and most of his family were killed by his oldest son and heir, Dipendra.