As I stated in one of my earlier blog entries, my plan is to move rapidly through time to get to the present events in Tibet. I must say that it's fortunate that I decided to "hit the wave tops" because the histories of both Tibet and China are both very extensive. If I tried to to cover the histories of both countries in this format I would not be able to do them justice. With that said, it's time to get started on the next phase of the journey.
My last entry concluded with the Mongols running roughshod over Tibet and China. For more information about the Mongols visit the Columbia University website. The Mongols accomplished an amazing feat with their conquests but the size of their empire is not the focus here. What is important for our purposes is the fact that by the 13th century, they dominated both Tibet and China. In Tibet they were firmly in control but for the most part they left the Tibetans to their own devices as long as Mongol authority was not challenged. For example as I mentioned earlier, the Buddhist faith grew and spread, even into Mongolia itself. The Mongols may have even helped with this at times. In the prologue to her book "Tears of Blood, A Cry For Tibet" Mary Craig describes the situation under both the Mongols and later the Manchus as "benign, remote and caused barely a ripple on the unchanging surface of Tibetan life" (18). I'll address the Manchus later but for now what is important is that although the Tibetan people were no longer independent, their way of life seems to have changed very little under Mongol rule. It may even be safe to say that if not for outside interference, the Tibetans may have stayed under Mongol rule indefinitely.
The situation in China was a bit different. The Manchus were on the rise and by 1624 were engaging and defeating the Mongols in battle. In 1632 they had, "succeeded in wringing from China official recognition of Manchu superiority over the Mongols in rank" (Li 33). By 1633 they were on the march southwards and had all the Mongols in eastern China either submitting or fleeing. Soon China would be under Manchu domination with only Mongols to the north and west remaining as a threat. Eventually, China under the Manchus would turn her attention to the west, and Tibet.
As China turned her attention to the west I think it is important to remember that the Chinese goal here did not seem to be domination of Tibet and her people, but rather the elimination of the Mongol threat. We should remember that China had just liberated herself from Mongol occupation, however, the Mongols were still a formidable force and still in control of Tibet. Also of concern to China was the possibility of a "Mongol Empire including Tibet under a common religion..." (Li 39). In 1718 the Chinese Emperor took action and the Tibetans found themselves in the middle of a struggle for supremacy between the Manchus and the Mongols. This power struggle culminated in victory for the Manchus in 1720. It was then that a Manchu army allied with a Tibetan army drove the Mongols from Tibet. This effectively ended Mongol domination of Tibet and ushered in a new period of Manchu domination.
In my next installment I will discuss Tibet under Chinese domination until the early 20th century.
References:
Craig, Mary. Tears of Blood A Cry for Tibet. Washington, DC: Counterpoint, 1999.
Li, Tieh-Tseng. The Historical Status of Tibet. New York: King's Crown Press, 1956.
My last entry concluded with the Mongols running roughshod over Tibet and China. For more information about the Mongols visit the Columbia University website. The Mongols accomplished an amazing feat with their conquests but the size of their empire is not the focus here. What is important for our purposes is the fact that by the 13th century, they dominated both Tibet and China. In Tibet they were firmly in control but for the most part they left the Tibetans to their own devices as long as Mongol authority was not challenged. For example as I mentioned earlier, the Buddhist faith grew and spread, even into Mongolia itself. The Mongols may have even helped with this at times. In the prologue to her book "Tears of Blood, A Cry For Tibet" Mary Craig describes the situation under both the Mongols and later the Manchus as "benign, remote and caused barely a ripple on the unchanging surface of Tibetan life" (18). I'll address the Manchus later but for now what is important is that although the Tibetan people were no longer independent, their way of life seems to have changed very little under Mongol rule. It may even be safe to say that if not for outside interference, the Tibetans may have stayed under Mongol rule indefinitely.
The situation in China was a bit different. The Manchus were on the rise and by 1624 were engaging and defeating the Mongols in battle. In 1632 they had, "succeeded in wringing from China official recognition of Manchu superiority over the Mongols in rank" (Li 33). By 1633 they were on the march southwards and had all the Mongols in eastern China either submitting or fleeing. Soon China would be under Manchu domination with only Mongols to the north and west remaining as a threat. Eventually, China under the Manchus would turn her attention to the west, and Tibet.
As China turned her attention to the west I think it is important to remember that the Chinese goal here did not seem to be domination of Tibet and her people, but rather the elimination of the Mongol threat. We should remember that China had just liberated herself from Mongol occupation, however, the Mongols were still a formidable force and still in control of Tibet. Also of concern to China was the possibility of a "Mongol Empire including Tibet under a common religion..." (Li 39). In 1718 the Chinese Emperor took action and the Tibetans found themselves in the middle of a struggle for supremacy between the Manchus and the Mongols. This power struggle culminated in victory for the Manchus in 1720. It was then that a Manchu army allied with a Tibetan army drove the Mongols from Tibet. This effectively ended Mongol domination of Tibet and ushered in a new period of Manchu domination.
In my next installment I will discuss Tibet under Chinese domination until the early 20th century.
References:
Craig, Mary. Tears of Blood A Cry for Tibet. Washington, DC: Counterpoint, 1999.
Li, Tieh-Tseng. The Historical Status of Tibet. New York: King's Crown Press, 1956.
1 comment:
More good history. I wonder (and this is probably at a tangent to your writing here), are you interested in Buddhism? Because Tibet is so entertwined with Buddhist beliefs, do you think you'll write an entry on that at all?--Just curious.
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