[16] It bordered Assam Province in the west and British Burma in the east, and in the 20th century covered an area of 22,327 square kilometres (8,621 sq mi) and contained 467 villages.

The location of the Kangla Fort on the banks of the Imphal River is believed to be where King Pakhangba built his first palace.

[19] After subjugating all the villages within their valley Kangleipak kings grew in power and began a policy of expansion beyond their territory.

In 1443 King Ningthoukhomba raided Akla (present day Tamu, Myanmar), an area ruled by Shan people, initiating a policy of Manipuri claims to the neighbouring Kabaw Valley.

After the death of Gharib Nawaz in 1754, Manipur was occupied by the Kingdom of Burma and the Meitei king Bhagyachandra (Meitei: Ching-Thang Khomba) sought help from the British, but when the British refused help he went to Ahom King Rajeswar Singha who sent a force of 40,000 under Haranath Senapati Phukan to free Manipur.

The exiled Manipur prince Gambhir Singh sought British help for raising a force and the request was granted.

[23] According to the British political agent McCulloch, by the treaty of Yandabo, Manipur was declared independent but being too weak by itself to remain so, and its position being in a military point of view, of too much importance to permit the chance of the Burmese obtaining the command of it, the British government has been compelled to guard against such a chance and to retain in the country a political agent, all border disputes having been settled by this officer.

After prolonged negotiations, the British agreed to return Kabaw Valley to Burma, on the ground that Marjit Singh had already ceded it earlier.

Damant was killed by an Angami Naga party, the king of Manipur assisted the British by sending troops to neighbouring Kohima.

The British attempt to remove Tikendrajit from his position as military commander (Senapati) and arrest him on 24 March 1891 caused a great stir.

Tikendrajit and those Manipuris involved in the killing of the British officers were tried and hanged, while the deposed King Kulachandra Singh and other leaders of the rebellion were sent to the Cellular Jail in the Andaman Islands.

On 22 September 1891 when Meidingngu Churachand (Churachandra), a 5-year-old boy, was put on the throne, power was restored nominally to the Manipuri crown over the state.

During the dynastic disturbances and the British intervention the Naga and Kuki hill tribes of the state lapsed into lawlessness, with numerous instances of murder and arson in the mountain villages, a situation that lasted well into 1894.

[23] The child ruler Churachand belonged to a side branch of the Manipur royal family, so that all the main contenders to the throne were bypassed.

While he was a minor the affairs of state were administered by the British Political Agent, which facilitated the introduction and implementation of reforms.

[36] Between March 1944 and July 1944 part of Manipur and the Naga Hills District of Assam Province were occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army.

[37][verification needed] On 14 August 1947, with the lapse of paramountcy of the British Crown, Manipur regained its political autonomy that it had prior to 1891.

[38][a] The Maharaja had signed the Instrument of Accession on 11 August 1947, which legality is argued by many,[41][42][43][44] ceding the three subjects of defence, external affairs and communications to the Union of India, while retaining internal political autonomy.