Almora

Almora stands on a ridge in the Kumaon hills, with the Koshi and Suyal rivers below and the snowy Himalayas beyond. Founded by Kalyan Chand in 1568, it became the seat of the Chand kings of Kumaon. Local tradition connects its name with a plant gathered to clean the vessels of the sun temple at nearby Katarmal.

The Chand rulers adorned their capital with temples. In 1688 Udyot Chand built several shrines to mark victories over Garhwal and Doti; one later became the Nanda Devi temple. In 1791 Gorkhali forces invading from Nepal captured Almora and held it for more than two decades. Their defeat in the Anglo-Nepalese War brought Kumaon under the East India Company, and the old Lal Mandi fort was renamed Fort Moira.