The shifting of political centres was an important event in the political history of the Manikya kingdom of Tripura. The royal centre of Tripura has undergone many changes from Rangamati/Udaipur to Old Agartala and then to New Agartala. These changes were triggered by various political, military, geographical, administrative and economic factors. Rangamati was renamed Udaipur in 1567, during the reign of Uday Manikya. Later, Maharaja Krishna Manikya moved his capital to Old Agartala around 1760–61, particularly in the context of political instability and the conflict associated with Shamsher Gazi. During the reign of Maharaja Krishna Kishore Manikya (1830–1849), the establishment of Nutan Habeli/New Agartala marked another important stage in the political reorganisation of the kingdom. The paper also discusses the Dampier controversy of 1836 and the political developments of 1838 in the context of Tripura’s changing relationship with British India. Using indigenous, documentary, government and historical sources, the paper explores how the shifting of capitals reflected the changing political and geographical requirements of the Manikya state and contributed to the emergence of Agartala as the permanent political centre of Tripura.