China Tibet Tourism-Introduction-History-16

Long long ago, Tibet was a boundless sea. A large piece of continental plate on orogenic-movement drifting from the south met together with the European plate. At that time, a large stretch of highland was uplifted on the earth. This region of today with a high altitude and cold weather had once been an area with a warm, humid climate of subtropical zone of grassland with low altitude which provided a profitable condition for ancient human beings who lived and multiplied in this land. The scientists' survey tells: the activity of the ancient human being in Tibet shows clear difference between areas. The earlier cultural remains were mainly discovered in the west and north of Tibet, which belonged to the earlier uplifted areas. But the later cultural remains were mainly distributed in the east and middle part of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. That is to say, the ancient human being in the Qinghai –Tibet plateau firstly originated and activated in today’s high altitude areas.
Before the 7th century, there were many tribes in Tibet. Wars broke out as the tribes tried to scramble for their domains. Among them, the Tubo tribe owned a large number of lands at its flourishing period in Yarlung. The earliest capital city of Tubo was in today’s Nedong County in Lhoka. After Namri Songtsen, the thirty-second generation of Tubo prince inherited the power and he consolidated and developed the Tubo’s territory. Later in order to refrain from the interior opposite influence between the tribes, Namri Songtsen moved the national capital from Nedong to Gyama area, present Medro Gongkar County, and built the Gyama palace. In the early 7th century, Songtsan Gampo, the son of Namri Songtsen, inherited the power, he completed his father’s cause and realized the unification of the Tibet plateau and set up the central slave regime---the Tubo Kingdom.
In order to consolidate the newly emerging power, Songtsen Gampo adopted a series of important measures. For instance, in the year 633, he moved the capital of Tubo Kingdom to Lhasa, built the Potala palace on the summit of the Red Hill and rebuilt the road and some other houses around the Potala palace. Step by step, Lhasa had become economic, political and cultural center of the Tubo Kingdom. To consolidate his regime, Songtsan Gampo advocated the advanced methods of the Tang Dynasty and set up system for civil and military officials, appointed the officials to control the garrisons in other areas and delimited the administrative regions etc. He divided the administrative areas into 18 big areas and established five big 'Ruchen' (Ru is Tibetan pronunciation at the time). Every Ruchen was divided into; up and down parts of Ru; every branch of "Ru" had 5000 families who are the common herdsman in peacetimes, but soldiers at war times. Meanwhile, he strengthened the system of discussing official business in alliance. He also remitted taxes, developed agricultural production and promoted economic prosperity. He sent people to ancient India to learn scripts and created the Tibetan written language and calendar and made great contribution to develop the Tubo’s culture.
During Songtsen Gampo’s time, the development of the Tubo Kingdom came to a period of great prosperity. In order to develop the relationship between Tubo and the surrounding countries, he sent envoys to Nepal firstly and then to the Tang’s court of China to make an offer of marriage in one hand. And by relying on his own armed strength to expand his territories steadily in other hand. With his territories expanding Guhuei to the north, he made an expedition to the west till they reached the four towns such as Gueizi, Yutian, Yianqi etc, where it connects with Nanzhuo, Dasi countries to the east. The Tubo kingdom had become the strongest military power in the west of China since the Qin and Han Dynasties.
Songtsen Gampo is the most important and well-known king of Tibet in Tibetan history. In 650, Songtsen Gampo died of illness. The Tubo Kingdom gradually declined. Because Trisong Detsan, the king of Tibet used force to fight against outside and went in for a large-scale construction and increased the heavy load of the people. He sharpened the social contradiction and led to successive turmoil. In 823, because of the aristocrats in the interior of the Tubo Kingdom fought for their power with each other, the society was in a turbulent situation. The slaves launched a large-scale uprising and stroke relentless blow at the rule of slavocracy’s class. Therefore, the Tubo Kingdom was thoroughly collapsed from then on.
In the Yuan Dynasty, Tibet was officially incorporated into China’s territory and finished the long term divisive situation in the interior of Tibet. The Tibetan people obtained the steady life. In the Ming and Qing Dynasty, the central government of China strengthened its administrative grip on Tibet. In recent years, the Tibetan people together with the Chinese people of all nationalities fought against the imperialist invasion and upheld the unified motherland of China.
In May 23,1951, the Central Committee of People’s Government and the local government of Tibet reached to an agreement –“the 17 Point Agreement on Measures of the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet.” In February 1952, the Military Area of Tibet was officially set up. In April 1956, the Tibet Autonomous Region was established.