Person

Jigme Dorji Wangchuck

1929–1972 · 20th century

Jigme Dorji Wangchuck was the third king of Bhutan, reigning from 1952 until his death in 1972. He began the country's modernisation, creating a national assembly in 1953, abolishing serfdom, reforming land ownership and starting planned development with Indian help. He made Thimphu the permanent capital and brought Bhutan into the United Nations in 1971.

Jigme Dorji Wangchuck
Image: Benjamin Goetzinger · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 1 state history

Kingdom of Bhutan

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Jigme Dorji Wangchuck. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/jigme-dorji-wangchuck
MLA
“Jigme Dorji Wangchuck.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/jigme-dorji-wangchuck. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Jigme Dorji Wangchuck.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/jigme-dorji-wangchuck.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Jigme Dorji Wangchuck’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/jigme-dorji-wangchuck (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻