In 2008, Bhutan emerged as the world's youngest democracy and crowned the world's youngest monarch. Today, it continues to enchant the rest of the world with its policy of Gross National Happiness and has become a popular travel destination. But despite its growing popularity and the rising scholarly interest in the country, Bhutan remains one of the most poorly studied places on earth.

Karma Phuntsho's The History of Bhutan combines both traditional perspectives and modern academic analysis and tells the full story of Bhutan for the first time in the English language. Primarily a historical account, it also includes substantive discussions of Bhutan's geography, culture and society to give readers an incisive introduction to the country.