Provinces of Bhutan

Provincial lords gained power as the increasingly dysfunctional "Dual System of Government" eventually collapsed amid civil war.

[citation needed] Traditionally, Bhutan comprised nine provinces: Trongsa, Paro, Punakha, Wangdue Phodrang, Daga (also Taka, Tarka, or Taga), Bumthang, Thimphu, Kurtoed (also Kurtoi, Kuru-tod), and Kurmaed (or Kurme, Kuru-mad).

Increasingly secular regional lords (penlops and dzongpons) competed for power amid a backdrop of civil war over the Shabdrung and invasions from Tibet, and the Mongol Empire.

[2] The penlops of Trongsa and Paro, and the dzongpons of Punakha, Thimphu, and Wangdue Phodrang were particularly notable figures in the competition for regional dominance.

Because western regions controlled by the Penlop of Paro contained lucrative trade routes and the most fertile agricultural lands, it became the object of competition among aristocratic families.

Paro Dzong , administrative headquarters of historical Paro Province
Ugyen Wangchuck surrounded by his councillors at Punakha , Bhutan , 1905. Front Row: son of Thimphu Jongpen, Punakha Jongpen, Thimphu Jongpen, Trongsa Penlop , Zung Donyer [dronyer], Deb Zimpon, and elder son of Thimphu Jongpen.