Nepal's Maoist insurgency began on 13 February 1996 when members of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) carried out simultaneous raids on government offices, police posts and private businesses. The often-violent campaign that followed embroiled the government, the political parties, the king, the police, and the army in a conflict against a group of highly motivated guerilla fighters. By January 2003, the rebels' campaign had come to threaten the central institutions of the Nepali state.

A Kingdom under Siege is an authoritative and comprehensive overview of Nepal's Maoist insurgency. It describes how the state's neglect of many of its people combined with political instability and the growth of radical left politics in the Maoist heartlands of mid-western Nepal led to a build up of the tensions that were unleashed in February 1996. The insurgency quickly grew and gained favour with many of Nepal's poor and disadvantaged people as the rebels held out the promise of a more just and equitable society. The government's failure to tackle the causes of the rebellion and to engage the Maoists' agenda led to thousands of deaths and widespread destruction of infrastructure that peaked in 2001 and 2002.