Background
He was born on May 23, 1923 at the Royal Palace, Park Ridge, Gangtok.
He was born on May 23, 1923 at the Royal Palace, Park Ridge, Gangtok.
He later continued his studies at Saint Joseph"s College in Darjeeling and finally graduated from Bishop Cotton School in Shimla, in 1941.
At six, Namgyal became a student at Saint Joseph"s Convent in Kalimpong, but had to terminate his studies due to attacks of malaria. Namgyal served as adviser for internal affairs for his father, Sir Tashi Namgyal, the 11th Chogyal, and led the negotiating team which established Sikkim"s relationship to India after independence in 1949. Samyo Kushoe Sangideki died in 1957.
In 1963, Namgyal married Hope Cooke, a twenty-two-year-old socialite from New York City.
She was a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers on the state of New New York The marriage brought worldwide media attention to Sikkim.
The couple, who had two children, divorced in 1980. In 1975, as the result of a referendum, Sikkim became a state of India and the monarchy abolished.
He opposed the referendum and the annexation to India.
Namgyal was an amateur radio operator, call-sign AC3PT, and was a highly sought after contact on the airwaves. The international callbook listed his address as: P.T. Namgyal, The Palace, Gangtok, Sikkim. Palden died of cancer in Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, in the United States on January 29, 1982.
He founded the Order of the Precious Jewel of the Heart of Sikkim in September 1972.
1923–1941: Prince Palden Thondup Namgyal.
1923–1941: Prince Palden Thondup Namgyal. 1941–1947: Maharajkumar Sri Panch Palden Thondup Namgyal. 1947–1954: Maharajkumar Sri Panch Palden Thondup Namgyal, Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. 1954–1963: Maharajkumar Padma Bhushan Sri Panch Palden Thondup Namgyal, Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. 1963–1965: His Highness Muwong Chogyal Padma Bhushan Sri Panch Chempo Palden Thondup Namgyal, Maharaja Chogyal of Sikkim, Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. 1965–1982: Major-General His Highness Muwong Chogyal Padma Bhushan Sri Panch Chempo Palden Thondup Namgyal, Maharaja Chogyal of Sikkim, Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. (ribbon bar, as it would look today) Order of the Precious Jewel of the Heart of Sikkim (Founder), September 1972 Indian Independence Medal, 1947 Order of the British Empire (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire), January 1, 1947 Padma Bhushan, February 22, 1954 Order of the Black Star (Commandeur), 1956 King Mahendra Investiture Medal, May 2, 1956 King Jigme Singye Investiture Medal, June 2, 1974 King Birendra Investiture Medal, February 24, 1975.
Upon his death, 31 members of the State Legislative Assembly offered khadas to the Chogyal as a mark of respect.
