Lhendup Dorji
{{Short description|Bhutanese aristocrat and politician}}
{{For|the Bhutanese footballer|Lhendup Dorji (footballer)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Lhendup Dorji
| image =
| office1 = Prime Minister of Bhutan
{{small|Acting}}
| term_start1 = 25 July 1964
| term_end1 = 27 November 1964
| monarch1 = Jigme Dorji
| predecessor1 = Jigme Palden Dorji
| successor1 = Jigme Thinley
| birth_date = 6 October 1935
| birth_place = Bhutan House,
Kalimpong, India
| death_date = {{death date and age|2007|4|15|1935|10|6|df=y}}
| death_place = Lungtenphu, Thimphu
| alma_mater = Cornell University
| parents = Sonam Topgay Dorji
Chuni Wangmo
| spouse = Glenda Anne Dorji
| children = 4
}}
Dasho Lhendup Dorji ({{langx|dz|ལྷུན་གྲུབ་རྡོ་རྗེ}}, 6 October 1935 – 15 April 2007) was a member of the Dorji family of Bhutan. He was also the brother of the Queen of Bhutan, Ashi Kesang choden and uncle to the fourth king of Bhutan, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck. He served as acting Lyonchen (Prime Minister) following the assassination of his brother, Lyonchen Jigme Palden Dorji, on April 5, 1964. {{citation needed|date=June 2020}}
Early life and education
Lhendup Dorji was born to Gongzim Raja Sonam Topgay Dorji and Princess Rani Chuni Wangmo of Sikkim on October 6, 1935, at Bhutan House, Kalimpong, India.{{citation needed|date=June 2020}} He studied at the St. Joseph's School, Darjeeling, at the Choate Preparatory School and then went to the United States attending Cornell University, which he graduated from in 1959. He was the first Bhutanese to study in America.APFA News [http://www.apfanews.com/news/?id=343335fa874 Dasho Lhendup Dorji Laid to Rest] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071009092801/http://www.apfanews.com/news/?id=343335fa874 |date=2007-10-09 }} Retrieved on June 3, 2007 Dorji was an avid hunter and excelled in athletics, such as boxing, golf, and tennis.
Career
Dorji returned to Bhutan from the United States and his first assignment was to measure the length and breadth of the country; He spent months traveling around Bhutan calculating the terrain by hand using the most readily available measuring systems.
He later served as Postmaster General, Paro Thrimpon, Deputy and later Secretary General of the country's Development Wing.Kuensel Online [http://www.kuenselonline.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=8392 Dasho Lhendup Dorji Laid to Rest] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927051816/http://www.kuenselonline.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=8392 |date=2011-09-27 }} Retrieved on June 5, 2007 He was conferred The Red Scarf by the Third Druk Gyalpo Jigme Dorji Wangchuck in 1958. An avid sports man Dorji was the first Bhutanese to win various golf and tennis tournaments in Nepal and in India. He enjoyed playing sports and socializing having friends from all walks of life.{{cite news |title=Dasho Lhendup Dorji |url=https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60db41d3a091cb7a1fccaf6a/t/62dd69d5a6c55f515ae8da92/1658677719107/37.pdf |volume=37 |publisher=The Bhutan Society |date=Summer 2007}}
Popularity and death
He was a popular personality in the Calcutta racing circuit as well as in the United Kingdom.{{cite news |last1=Dasguupta |first1=Priyanka |title=Racing Ahead... and back |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/racing-ahead-and-back/articleshow/73092379.cms |date=January 4, 2020}}
He is referenced by Shirley MacLaine in her book, "Don't Fall Off the Mountain", which documents a visit she made to Bhutan during which she met him. Lhendup also sometimes made his own approximation of Bhutanese curry.
Dorji's nephew, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, went on to become the fourth Dragon King of Bhutan. On April 15, 2007, he died of cancer in Lungtenphu, Thimphu.
Honours
- {{Flag|Bhutan}} :
- 50px The Royal Red Scarf (1958).{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}
- 50px King Jigme Singye Investiture Medal (2 June 1974).{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}
- 50px Commemorative Silver Jubilee Medal of King Jigme Singye (2 June 1999).{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}
Ancestry
{{ahnentafel
|collapsed=yes |align=center
|boxstyle_1=background-color: #fcc;
|boxstyle_2=background-color: #fb9;
|boxstyle_3=background-color: #ffc;
|boxstyle_4=background-color: #bfc;
|boxstyle_5=background-color: #9fe;
|1= 1. Lhendup Dorji
|2= 2. Raja Sonam Tobgye Dorji
|3= 3. Rani Mayum Chonying Wangmo Dorji
|4= 4. Raja Ugyen Dorji
|5=
|6= 6. Sir Thutob Namgyal, 9th Maharaja of Sikkim
|7= 7. Yeshay Dolma
|8= 8. Sherpa Puchung, Dzongpon
|9= 9. Tsherim, a Lady from Tsento, Paro
|10=
|11=
|12= 12. Tsugphud Namgyal, 7th Maharaja of Sikkim
|13= 13. Maharani Menchi
|14= 14. Shiafe Uthok, of the Lhading House of Lhasa
|15=
|16= 16. Pala Gyeltshen
|17= 17. a Lady from Tsento, Paro
|18=
|19=
|20=
|21=
|22=
|23=
|24= 24. Tenzing Namgyal, 6th Maharaja of Sikkim
|25= 25. Anyo Karwang
|26=
|27=
|28=
|29=
|30=
|31=
}}
See also
{{s-start}}
{{s-off}}
{{Succession box
| title = Prime Minister of Bhutan
(acting)
| before = Jigme Palden Dorji
| after = post abolished 1964–1998
Jigme Thinley (1998)
| years = July – November 1964
}}
{{s-end}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070226183000/http://www.apfanews.com/about_bhutan/political_system.php Bhutan Political System]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070512211822/http://www.keystobhutan.com/bhutan/bhutan_king_brief.php The Royal Family of Bhutan]
{{History of Bhutan}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dorji, Lhendup}}
Category:Cornell University alumni