Amar Singh Thapa

Amar Singh Thapa Chhetri, also known as Badakaji Amar Singh Thapa, or Amar Singh Thapa The Elder, (also spelled Ambar Simha), or known by the honorific name Bada Kaji ("Senior Kaji") or Budha Kaji ("The Old Kaji") was a Gorkhali military general, governor, and warlord in the Kingdom of Nepal. In the Kingdom of Nepal, he was the overall commander of the Nepal Army in the conquest of the Western Provinces, as well as the authoritative ruler of Kumaon and Garhwal. The King of Nepal referred to him as Mukhtiyar (equivalent to Prime Minister) of the Western Provinces of Kumaon and Garhwal . He is often referred to as the Living Tiger of Nepal and he was posthumously regarded as one of Nepal's national heroes, who led the Anglo-Nepalese War for the Gorkhali Army. Amar Singh Thapa is commemorated by the names Amar Singh Chowk Pokhara and Shree Amarsingh Model Higher Secondary School.

Amar Singh was a religious figure who built numerous forts throughout Nepal and India. He constructed the original Gangotri Temple in Uttarakhand, which is part of the Chhota Char Dham pilgrimage circuit. He constructed the Sri Ram Temple, the oldest temple in the Mithila city of Janakpur, Nepal. In 1807, after establishing full Gorkha authority over Palpa and the adjacent Terai, he constructed the Amar Narayan temple at Tansen in the hills above Butwal.

Hamilton, a British historian, compared him to the ancient Carthaginian General Hannibal. The village of Amaragadhi in western Nepal is named after him. Amar Singh Thapa Khukuri is a Khukuri sword named after him. This Khukuri is based on the real Khukuri he used. The real Khukuri Amar Singh used is archived at the National Museum of Nepal and is curvier in nature than other traditional Khukuris.