Editing Lhasa (section)

== History ==
[[File:Songstengampo.jpg|thumb|left|[[Songtsen Gampo]]]]

By the mid 7th century, [[Songtsen Gampo]] became the leader of the [[Tibetan Empire]] that had risen to power in the [[Yarlung Tsangpo River]] (whose lower reaches in India is known as the ''[[Brahmaputra River]]'') Valley.<ref name="Stein, R. A. 1962. p. 62">Stein, R. A. ''Tibetan Civilization'' 1962. Revised English edition, 1972, Faber & Faber, London. Reprint, 1972. Stanford University Press, p. 62. {{ISBN|0-8047-0806-1}} cloth; {{ISBN|0-8047-0901-7}} pbk., p. 59.</ref> After conquering the kingdom of [[Zhangzhung]] in the west, he moved the capital from the Chingwa [[Taktsé Castle]] in [[Chongye County]] ([[pinyin]]: Qióngjié Xiàn), southwest of [[Yarlung Valley|Yarlung]], to Rasa (Lhasa) where in 637 he raised the first structures on the site of what is now the [[Potala Palace]] on Mount Marpori.<ref>Dorje (1999), p. 201.</ref>
In CE 639 and 641, Songtsen Gampo, who by this time had conquered the whole Tibetan region, is said to have contracted two alliance marriages, firstly to a Princess [[Bhrikuti]] of Nepal,<ref>Snellgrove, David. 1987. ''Indo-Tibetan Buddhism: Indian Buddhists and Their Tibetan Successors''. 2 Vols. Shambhala, Boston, Vol. II, p. 416.</ref> and then, two years later, to [[Princess Wencheng]] of the Imperial [[Tang dynasty|Tang]] court. Bhrikuti is said to have converted him to [[Buddhism]], which was also the faith attributed to his second wife Wencheng. In 641 he constructed the [[Jokhang]] (or Rasa Trülnang Tsulagkhang) and [[Ramoche Temple]]s in Lhasa in order to house two [[Buddha statue]]s, the [[Akshobhya|Akshobhya Vajra]] (depicting the Buddha at the age of eight) and the [[Jowo (statue)|Jowo Sakyamuni]] (depicting Buddha at the age of twelve), respectively brought to his court by the princesses.<ref>Anne-Marie Blondeau, Yonten Gyatso, 'Lhasa, Legend and History,' in Françoise Pommaret(ed.) ''Lhasa in the seventeenth century: the capital of the Dalai Lamas,'' Brill Tibetan Studies Library, 3, Brill 2003, pp.15-38, pp15ff.</ref><ref>Amund Sinding-Larsen, ''The Lhasa atlas: : traditional Tibetan architecture and townscape,'' Serindia Publications, Inc., 2001 p.14</ref> Lhasa suffered extensive damage under the reign of [[Langdarma]] in the 9th century, when the sacred sites were destroyed and desecrated and the empire fragmented.<ref name="Dorje 1999, pp. 68-9">Dorje (1999), pp. 68–9.</ref>

A Tibetan tradition mentions that after Songtsen Gampo's death in 649 C.E., Chinese troops captured Lhasa and burnt the Red Palace.<ref>{{cite book |url={{Google books |U7C0I2KRyEUC |Tibet Past and Present |page=28 |plainurl=yes}} |title=Tibet Past and Present |first=Charles |last=Bell |author-link=Charles Alfred Bell |year=1924 |page=28 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/628q51XQN?url=http://www.billboard.com/#/artist/Rihanna/chart-history/658897?f=793&g=Singles |archive-date=2 October 2011}} Reprinted in 1992 by CUP Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|81-208-1048-1}}.</ref><ref name="W. D. Shakabpa, Derek F. Maher 2010 123">{{cite book |url={{Google books |lGyrymfDdI0C |One hundred thousand moons |page=123 |plainurl=yes}} |title=One hundred thousand moons, Volume 1 |first=W. D. |last=Shakabpa |author-link=Tsepon W. D. Shakabpa |orig-year=1976 |others=trans. by Derek F. Maher |year=2010 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-17788-8 |page=123 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/628q51XQN?url=http://www.billboard.com/#/artist/Rihanna/chart-history/658897?f=793&g=Singles |archive-date=2 October 2011}}</ref> Chinese and Tibetan scholars have noted that the event is mentioned neither in the Chinese annals nor in the Tibetan manuscripts of [[Dunhuang]]. Lǐ suggested that this tradition may derive from an [[Interpolation (manuscripts)|interpolation]].<ref>{{cite book |title=The historical status of Tibet |last=Li |first=Tiezheng |year=1956 |publisher=King's Crown Press, Columbia University |page=6}}</ref> [[Tsepon W. D. Shakabpa]] believes that "those histories reporting the arrival of Chinese troops are not correct."<ref name="W. D. Shakabpa, Derek F. Maher 2010 123"/>

From the fall of the monarchy in the 9th century to the accession of the [[5th Dalai Lama]], the centre of political power in the Tibetan region was not situated in Lhasa. However, the importance of Lhasa as a religious site became increasingly significant as the centuries progressed.<ref>Bloudeau, Anne-Mari &amp; Gyatso, Yonten. 'Lhasa, Legend and History' in Lhasa in the Seventeenth Century: The Capital of the Dalai Lamas, 2003, pp. 24-25.</ref> It was known as the centre of Tibet where [[Padmasambhava]] magically pinned down the earth demoness and built the foundation of the [[Jokhang Temple]] over her heart.<ref>Bloudeau, Anne-Mari &amp; Gyatso, Yonten. "Lhasa, Legend and History." In: ''Lhasa in the Seventeenth Century: The Capital of the Dalai Lamas''. Françoise Pommaret-Imaeda, Françoise Pommaret 2003, p. 38. Brill, Netherlands. {{ISBN|978-90-04-12866-8}}.</ref> Islam has been present since the 11th century in what is considered to have always been a monolithically Buddhist culture.<ref>The Ornaments of Lhasa, Islam in Tibet, Produced by Gray Henry</ref> Two [[Tibetan Muslim]] communities have lived in Lhasa with distinct homes, food and clothing, language, education, trade and traditional herbal medicine.

By the 15th century, the city of Lhasa had risen to prominence following the founding of three large [[Gelugpa]] monasteries by [[Je Tsongkhapa]] and his disciples.<ref name="Rinpoché Coghlan Zarpani 2012 p.">{{cite book | last1=Rinpoché | first1=H.E.C. | last2=Coghlan | first2=I. | last3=Zarpani | first3=V. | title=Hundreds of Deities of Tusita: Commentary on Lama Tsongkhapa Guru Yoga, Translated from Tibetan. Dga' Lha Rgyas Pa'i Bshad Byin Rlabs Kyi Sgo 'byed Ces Bya Ba Bzhugs So/ Commentary on Pabongkha Rinpoché's Zab Lam Dga' Ldan Brgya Ma'i Rnal 'byor Nyams Su Len Tshul Snyan Brgyud Zhal | publisher=Awakening Vajra Publications | year=2012 | isbn=978-0-9872094-4-3 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MjS6NAEACAAJ | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=}}</ref> The three monasteries are [[Ganden]], [[Sera monastery|Sera]] and [[Drepung]] which were built as part of the puritanical Buddhist revival in Tibet.<ref name="Dorje 1999, p. 69">Dorje (1999), p. 69.</ref> The scholarly achievements and political know-how of this Gelugpa Lineage eventually pushed Lhasa once more to centre stage.<ref name="Miche 2020 p. 38">{{cite book | last=Miche | first=D. | title=The Magician of Lhasa: A Matt Lester Spiritual Thriller | publisher=Hay House | year=2020 | isbn=978-1-4019-6258-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oAEGEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT38 | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=38}}</ref>

The 5th [[Dalai Lama]], [[Lobsang Gyatso]] (1617–1682), unified Tibet and moved the centre of his administration to Lhasa in 1642 with the help of [[Güshi Khan]] of the [[Khoshut]]. With Güshi Khan as a largely uninvolved overlord, the 5th Dalai Lama and his intimates established a civil administration which is referred to by historians as the ''Lhasa state''. The core leadership of this government is also referred to as the [[Ganden Phodrang]], and Lhasa thereafter became both the religious and political capital.<ref name="Berzin Early">{{cite web |last=Berzin |first=Alexander |title=The History of the Early Period of Buddhism and Bon in Tibet |url=http://studybuddhism.com/web/en/archives/study/history_buddhism/buddhism_tibet/details_tibetan_history/history_early_period_buddhism_tibet/Part_1.html |work=The Historical Interaction between the Buddhist and Islamic Cultures before the Mongol Empire |publisher=Study Buddhism |access-date=20 June 2016 |year=1996 |quote=With Tibet conceived as a demoness lying on her back and locations for the temples carefully selected according to the rules of Chinese acupuncture applied to the body of the demoness, Songtsen-gampo hoped to neutralize any opposition to his rule from local malevolent spirits. Of the thirteen Buddhist temples, the major one was constructed eighty miles from the imperial capital, at the site that later became known as "Lhasa" (Lha-sa, The Place of the Gods). At the time, it was called "Rasa" (Ra-sa, The Place of the Goats). Western scholars speculate that the Emperor was persuaded to avoid building the temple at the capital so as not to offend the traditional gods.}}</ref> In 1645, the reconstruction of the [[Potala Palace]] began on Red Hill.<ref name="Laird, Thomas 2006 pp. 175">Laird, Thomas. (2006). ''The Story of Tibet: Conversations with the Dalai Lama'', pp. 175. Grove Press, New York. {{ISBN|978-0-8021-1827-1}}.</ref> In 1648, the ''Potrang Karpo'' ([[Potala#White Palace|White Palace]]) of the Potala was completed, and the Potala was used as a [[winter palace]] by the Dalai Lama from that time onwards.<ref name="autogenerated1">Karmay, Samten C. (2005). "The Great Fifth", p. 1. Downloaded as a pdf file on 16 December 2007 from: [http://www.iias.nl/nl/39/IIAS_NL39_1213.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130915182901/http://www.iias.nl/nl/39/IIAS_NL39_1213.pdf|date=15 September 2013}}</ref> The ''Potrang Marpo'' ([[Potala#Red Palace|Red Palace]]) was added between 1690 and 1694. The name Potala is derived from [[Mount Potalaka]], the mythical abode of the Dalai Lama's divine prototype, the [[Bodhisattva]] [[Avalokiteśvara]].<ref>[[Rolf Stein|Stein, R. A]]. ''Tibetan Civilization'' (1962). Translated into English with minor revisions by the author. 1st English edition by Faber & Faber, London (1972). Reprint: Stanford University Press (1972), p. 84</ref> The Jokhang Temple was also greatly expanded around this time. Although some wooden carvings and [[lintel (architecture)|lintel]]s of the Jokhang Temple date to the 7th century, the oldest of Lhasa's extant buildings, such as within the Potala Palace, the Jokhang and some of the monasteries and properties in the Old Quarter date to this second flowering in Lhasa's history.
[[File:Lhasa gateway 1905.png|thumb|left|Lhasa's (western gate)- the [[Tibetan people|Tibetans]] called this [[Stupa|chorten]], [[Pargo Kaling]] pictured here at the time of the 1904 [[British expedition to Tibet]].]]
By the end of the 17th century, Lhasa's [[Barkhor]] area formed a bustling market for foreign goods. The Jesuit missionary, [[Ippolito Desideri]] reported in 1716 that the city had a cosmopolitan community of Mongol, Chinese, Muscovite, Armenian, Kashmiri, Nepalese and Northern Indian traders. Tibet was exporting musk, gold, medicinal plants, furs and yak tails to far-flung markets, in exchange for sugar, tea, saffron, Persian turquoise, European amber and Mediterranean coral.<ref>Emily T. Yeh,'Living Together in Lhasa: Ethnic Relations, Coercive Amity, and Subaltern Cosmopolitanism,' in Shail Mayaram (ed.) ''The other global city,'' Taylor &amp; Francis US. 2009, pp.54-85, pp.58-7.</ref> The [[Qing dynasty]] army entered Lhasa in 1720, and the Qing government sent resident commissioners, called the [[Amban]]s, to Lhasa. On 11 November 1750, the murder of the regent by the Ambans triggered a [[Lhasa riot of 1750|riot in the city]] that left more than a hundred people killed, including the Ambans. After suppressing the rebels, Qing [[Qianlong Emperor]] reorganized the Tibetan government and set up the governing council called [[Kashag]] in Lhasa in 1751.
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 135-KA-07-089, Tibetexpedition, Mönche mit Blasinstrumenten.jpg|thumb|1938 Lhasa with the Potala as seen from the roof of Men-Tsee-Khang or Tibetan Medical College founded by the 13th Dalai Lama|262x262px]]
In January 1904, a [[British Empire|British]] [[British Indian Army|expeditionary force]] invaded and captured Lhasa during the [[British expedition to Tibet]]. The expedition's leader, [[Francis Younghusband|Sir Francis Younghusband]] negotiated the [[Treaty of Lhasa|Convention Between Great Britain and Tibet]] with the remaining Tibetan officials after the [[13th Dalai Lama|Dalai Lama]] had fled to the countryside. The treaty was subsequently repudiated and was succeeded by [[Convention Between Great Britain and China Respecting Tibet|a 1906 Anglo-Chinese treaty]]. All Qing troops left Lhasa after the [[Xinhai Lhasa turmoil]] in 1912.<ref name="Upadhya 2012 p. 3">{{cite book | last=Upadhya | first=S. | title=Nepal and the Geo-Strategic Rivalry between China and India | publisher=Taylor & Francis | series=Routledge Studies in South Asian Politics | year=2012 | isbn=978-1-136-33550-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M8nfCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA3 | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=3}}</ref>

On 2 November 1949, the local Tibetan government sent a letter to [[Mao Zedong]] (then [[Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party]]) expressing its desire for talks. [[Tsepon Shargyalpa]] and [[Tsejang Khenpo Tubten Gyalpo]] were sent as representatives, but no consensus was reached.<ref name="红旗出版社 1998 p.">{{cite book | title=共和国相册, 1949-1998 | publisher=[[Red Flag Publishing House]] | series=“大镜头”纪实 | issue=v. 1 | year=1998 | isbn=978-7-5051-0240-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eeNdAAAAIAAJ | language=zh | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=}}</ref> On 7 October 1950, the Chinese People's Liberation Army launched the [[Battle of Chamdo]]. After the battle, the PLA ceased military operations, released all Tibetan prisoners, and expressed its hope for a settlement through peace talks. At the invitation of the Central Government, the Dalai Lama and a Tibetan government delegation traveled to [[Beijing]] for peace talks, and in April 1951, a five-member delegation headed by [[Ngapo-Ngawang Jigme]] traveled to Beijing and reached a [[Seventeen Point Agreement|consensus on peace talks]].<ref name="[[Social Sciences Literature Press]] 2015 p. 492">{{cite book | title=西藏历代的边事边政与边吏 | publisher=[[Social Sciences Literature Press]] | series=西藏历史与现状综合研究项目 | year=2015 | isbn=978-7-5097-7191-4 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-VV0EAAAQBAJ&pg=PA492 | language=zh | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=492}}</ref><ref name="Norbu 2001 p. 345">{{cite book | last=Norbu | first=D. | title=China's Tibet Policy | publisher=Taylor & Francis | year=2001 | isbn=978-1-136-79793-4 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EGqyIgOlUCIC&pg=PA345 | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=345}}</ref><ref name="Samkar 2022 p. 204">{{cite book | last=Samkar | first=N. | title=A Brief History of the Kingdom Guge: History of Ngari Rosary of White Pearl, A Youngster's Ornament | publisher=Library of Tibetan Works & Archives | series=Tibetan Historical Studies | year=2022 | isbn=978-93-90752-73-7 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dzxjEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA204 | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=204}}</ref>

[[File:PLA marching into Lhasa.jpg|thumb|right|On 26 October 1951, the advance troops of the Chinese People's Liberation Army marched into Lhasa with red flags in their hands.]]
In 1959, following a failed [[1959 Tibetan uprising|uprising]], the 14th Dalai Lama and his associates fled Tibet. Lhasa remained the political, economic, cultural and religious center of Tibet. In January 1960, Lhasa City was established.<ref name="[[Social Sciences Literature Press]] 2015 p. 9">{{cite book | title=拉萨史话 | publisher=[[Social Sciences Literature Press]] | series=中国史话. 社会系列 | year=2015 | isbn=978-7-5097-6290-5 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-7h4EAAAQBAJ&pg=PA9 | language=zh | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=9}}</ref> In 1964, the autonomous region and Lhasa city leaders jointly formed the Lhasa City Municipal Construction Command, led from the country's brother provinces and cities to mobilize the construction team, has built the Lhasa City YuTuo Road, KangAng East Road, NiangJe South Road, JinZhu East Road, DuoSen South Road and Beijing West Road. Lhasa local officials paved more than 100,000 square meters of asphalt. The new city center of Lhasa is three times larger than the old city center, and the population of the city has increased by more than 20,000 people.<ref>{{cite book |last1=中国城市发展研究会 |title=中国城市年鉴 1994 |date=1994 |publisher=中国城市年鉴社 |page=605}}</ref> In September 1965, the Tibet Autonomous Region was established, and Lhasa became the capital of the region.<ref name="等贺新元 2015 p. 386">{{cite book | author=等贺新元 | title=和平解放以来民族政策西藏实践绩效研究 | publisher=[[Social Sciences Literature Press]] | year=2015 | isbn=978-7-5097-7163-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=81V0EAAAQBAJ&pg=PA386 | language=zh | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=386}}</ref>

Of the 22 parks (''lingka''s) which surrounded the city of Lhasa, most of them over half a mile in length, where the people of Lhasa were accustomed to picnic, only three survive today: the [[Norbulingka]], Dalai Lama's Summer Palace, constructed by the [[7th Dalai Lama]];<ref name="Dorje 1999, p. 69"/> a small part of the Shugtri Lingka, and the [[Lukhang]]. Dormitory blocks, offices and army barracks are built over the rest.<ref>Robert Barnett, ''Lhasa: Streets with Memories,'' Columbia University Press, 2010 p.67: "Today, except for the Dalai Lama's Summer Palace, a small part of the Shugtri Lingka (now renamed the People's Park), and the [[Lukhang]], those parks have disappeared."</ref>

The [[Guan Yu|Guāndì miào (關帝廟)]] or [[Epic of King Gesar|Gesar]] Lhakhang temple was erected by the Amban in 1792 atop Mount Bamare {{convert|3|km|0|abbr=off}} south of the Potala to celebrate the defeat of an invading [[Gurkha]] army.<ref>Emily T. Yeh,'Living Together in Lhasa: Ethnic Relations, Coercive Amity, and Subaltern Cosmopolitanism,' p.60; The monument however does not commemorate the Tibetan epic hero, but the Chinese figure. See Lara Maconi, 'Gesar de Pékin? Le sort du Roi Gesar de Gling, héros épique tibétain, en Chinese (post-) maoïste,' in Judith Labarthe, ''Formes modernes de la poésie épique: nouvelles approches,'' Peter Lang, 2004 pp.371–419, p.373 n.7. Relying on H. Richardson, and R. A. Stein, Maconi says that this was erected by the Chinese general Fu Kang'an (福康安).</ref> The main gate to the city of Lhasa used to run through the large Pargo Kaling [[chorten]] and contained holy relics of the Buddha Mindukpa.<ref>Tung (1980), p.21 and caption to plate 17, p. 42.</ref>

In 2000 the urbanised area covered {{convert|53|km2}}, with a population of around 170,000. Official statistics of the metropolitan area report that 70&nbsp;percent are Tibetan, 24.3 are Han, and the remaining 2.7 Hui, though outside observers suspect that non-Tibetans account for some 50–70&nbsp;percent. According to the Sixth Population Census in 2010, the population of Tibetans is 429,104, accounting for 76.70% of the total population of Lhasa. The second most populous ethnic group is the Han Chinese, with a population of 121,065, accounting for 21.64% of Lhasa's total population. These two ethnic groups account for the vast majority of Lhasa's total population, while other ethnic minorities account for only about 1.66% of Lhasa's total population.<ref name="[[Social Sciences Literature Press]] 2015 p. 23">{{cite book | title=西藏藏族人口相关数据分析研究 | publisher=[[Social Sciences Literature Press]] | year=2015 | isbn=978-7-5097-7316-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IVZ0EAAAQBAJ&pg=PA23 | language=zh | access-date=2024-03-13 | page=23}}</ref>