| Princess Princep | |
| Princess of Nepal | |
| Full Name: | Princep Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah of Nepal |
| House: | Rana dynasty (by birth) Shah dynasty (by marriage) |
| Type: | Dynasty |
| Father: | Nara Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana |
| Mother: | Uma Rajya Lakshmi |
| Spouse: | Prince Himalaya of Nepal |
| Birth Date: | 16 March 1930 |
| Birth Place: | Bahadur Bhawan, Kathmandu, Nepal |
| Religion: | Hinduism |
Princess Princep Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah of Nepal (March 16, 1930 - May 22, 1982) was, by marriage, a princess of Nepal. She was the wife of Prince Himalaya of Nepal, the second son of King Tribhuvan of Nepal. She was a sister-in-law of King Mahendra and Prince Basundhara.
In 1963, she helped establish the Nepal Red Cross Society, chairing the organisation for 20 years. She was awarded the Nansen Refugee Award in 1969.
Princess Princep Shah was born at the Bahadur Bhawan, Kathmandu, on March 16, 1930. She was the eldest daughter of General Nara Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana, KCVO, sometime Inspector-General of the Royal Nepal Police, by his first wife, Uma Rajya Lakshmi, of Doti.
She studied Nepali literature at Tribhuvan University.[1]
Princess Princep Shah was the older sister of Princess Helen Shah, first wife of his brother-in-law, Prince Basundhara of Nepal.
Princep married Prince Himalaya of Nepal on March 5, 1945, in Kathmandu.
Along with her husband, Princess Princep attended the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, at Westminster Abbey in London.
In 1965, the princess and her husband founded the Soaltee Crowne Plaza hotel, which was later renamed as the Soaltee Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza Kathmandu in 1994.[2]
Princess Princep Shah was the founder of Nepal Red Cross Society in 1963.[3]
She was awarded the 1969 Nansen Refugee Award for her leadership of the Nepal Red Cross Society's support for Tibetan refugees in Nepal.[5]
Princess Princep died at the Samitivej Hospital, Bangkok, on 22 May 1982.
United Kingdom : Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal (2 June 1953). United Kingdom : Dame of Justice of the Most Venerable Order of Saint John [DStJ] (11 December 1975).}