Lying 526-km north-west of New Delhi, Dharamshala is the headquarters of the Kangra District in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Kangra valley is one of the most pleasant, relaxing and spiritual places in the Himalayas. In 1855, Dharamshala had only two major areas where civilians settled in : McLeod Ganj, named after Lieutenant Governer of Punjab "David McLeod", and Forsyth Ganj, named after a Divisional Commissioner.
Lord Elgin, the British Viceroy of India (1862-63) fell in love with the natural beauty of Dharamshala because of its likeness with Scotland, his home in England. Lord Elgin died in 1863 while on a tour. He now lies buried in the graveyard of St. John's Church-in-Wilderness which stands in a cosy pine grove between McLeod Ganj and Forsyth Ganj.A Legend has it that Lord Elgin liked Dharamshala so much that he had sent a proposal to the British monarch to make Dharamshala the summer capital of India. However, the proposal was ignored. By 1904, Forsyth Ganj and McLeod Ganj had become nerve centres of trade , business and official work of Kangra District, But on April 4,1905, as a result of a severe earthquake, whole of the area was devastated.
Kangra district derives its name from Kangra town which was called Nagarkot in the ancient times Kangra proper originally was a part of the ancient Trigartha (Jullundur) which comprises of the area lying between the river "SHatadroo" (probably Sutlej) and Ravi.A tract of land to the east of Sutlej which probably is the area of Sirhind in Punjab also formed a part of Trigratha. Trigratha had two provinces. However, Katoch princes ruled over Kangra from the earliest times. At the time of invasion of Punjab by Alexander in 326 BC Trigartha was ruled by a Katoch prince. In 1809, Maharaja Ranjit Singh visited Jawalamukhi temple where Sansar Chand met him and entered into a treaty with him. It was agreed that the Maharaja should help Sansar Chand in expelling Gurkhas from the state and that in return the Maharaja would get the Kangra fort along with nearby 66 villages. Dessa Singh Majithia was appointed the Nazim or Governor of the fort and Kangra hills and from that day all states of the Jullundur Circle become tributary to the Sikhs. Sansar Chand returned to Tira Sujanpur where he died in 1823.
In 1805, General Amar Singh Thapa invaded Kangra and laid siege of the fort for four years. Maharaja Sansar Chand had to take assistance of Ranjit Singh of Lahore who in turn wanted to take over the fort before expelling the Gorkha invaders from the Kangra valley. Maharaja Sansar Chand had to agree to the demand of Ranjit Singh and in 1809 itself the fort was taken over by the Sikhs from Maharaja Sansar Chand.
After the death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the British violated the Treaty of Amritsar and defeated the sikh forces. It took them only 10 years to capture Punjab and along with Punjab, Kangra fell into their hands also. During the British rule, the fort remained in their control.The palace and the fort were destroyed by the earthquake in 1905 in Kangra. In the courtyard there are two temples. One is that of Lakshmi Narayan and the other of Ambika Devi, a family goddess of Katoch. Jain temple with Adinath in stone image also exists.Jains found this place as a tirtha and settled in Kangra. The fort remained neglected during the British period but now the Archaeological Department of the Government maintains it. The fort is still an attraction to the tourists and the pilgrims visiting Kangra.