Mangsong Mangtsen
Encyclopedia
Mangsong Mangtsen, Trimang Löntsen or Khri-mang-slon-rtsan (r. 650–676 CE) succeeded to the throne after the death of his grandfather, Songtsän Gampo, and was the second emperor of the newly created Tibetan Empire
.
As Songtsän Gampo's only son had died early, he was succeeded by his infant grandson Mangsong Mangsten. Real power was left in the hands of the minister Gar Tongtsen (Mgar-srong-rtsan, or sometimes just mGar).
China's territory. In 658 Mangsong "again" sent presents to the Chinese emperor asking for a princess to marry, but this request was refused.
He then consolidated Tibet's hold over the whole of the Tibetan plateau controlling both the 'Aza in the east and Zhang Zhung in the west. But, by 658 China had gained control of both Khotan
and Kucha
and established protectorates as far as Sogdia and Kashmir
.
Sometime prior to 662 Mangsong had allied himself with the Western Turks and together they began raiding Tang protectorates. They attacked Kashgar
in 663, and Khotan
in 665. In 667 the Turkic Nushibi
of the On oq submitted to Tibet, which also controlled the strategic Wakhan
valley.
Between 665-670 Khotan
was defeated by the Tibetans, and a long string of conflicts ensued with the Chinese Tang Dynasty
. In the spring of 670, Tibet attacked the remaining Chinese territories in the western Tarim Basin
. With troops from Khotan they conquered Aqsu, upon which the Chinese abandoned the region, ending two decades of Chinese control. They thus gained control over all of the Chinese Four Garrisons of Anxi
in the Tarim Basin
in 670 and held them until 692, when the Chinese finally managed to regain these territories.
, Mangsong Mangsten died in 676 but some sources say the Tibetans kept the death a secret for three years so that the Chinese would not be aware they were without a leader. The Chinese record his death in 679. He was buried in the royal burial grounds near Yarlung
.
He was followed by his young son, Tridu Songtsen. The Tang Annals say 'Dus-srong was eight years old (i.e. nine years old by Western reckoning) in 679. He was, therefore, presumably born in 670. Due to his young age he was enthroned with the minister Gar Tongtsen's second son, Khri-'bring, to act as regent
.
Tibetan Empire
The historic name for the Tibetan Empire is different from Tibet's present name.Traditional Tibetan history preserves a lengthy list of rulers, whose exploits become subject to external verification in the Chinese histories by the seventh century. From the 7th to the 11th century a series of...
.
As Songtsän Gampo's only son had died early, he was succeeded by his infant grandson Mangsong Mangsten. Real power was left in the hands of the minister Gar Tongtsen (Mgar-srong-rtsan, or sometimes just mGar).
Political and military activities
Relations between China and Tibet began to sour during this reign as he began to expand into TangTang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
China's territory. In 658 Mangsong "again" sent presents to the Chinese emperor asking for a princess to marry, but this request was refused.
He then consolidated Tibet's hold over the whole of the Tibetan plateau controlling both the 'Aza in the east and Zhang Zhung in the west. But, by 658 China had gained control of both Khotan
Khotan
Hotan , or Hetian , also spelled Khotan, is the seat of the Hotan Prefecture in Xinjiang, China. It was previously known in Chinese as 于窴/於窴 and to 19th-century European explorers as Ilchi....
and Kucha
Kucha
Kuchaor Kuche Uyghur , Chinese Simplified: 库车; Traditional: 庫車; pinyin Kùchē; also romanized as Qiuzi, Qiuci, Chiu-tzu, Kiu-che, Kuei-tzu from the traditional Chinese forms 屈支 屈茨; 龜玆; 龟兹, 丘玆, also Po ; Sanskrit: Kueina, Standard Tibetan: Kutsahiyui was an ancient Buddhist kingdom...
and established protectorates as far as Sogdia and Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
.
Sometime prior to 662 Mangsong had allied himself with the Western Turks and together they began raiding Tang protectorates. They attacked Kashgar
Kashgar
Kashgar or Kashi is an oasis city with approximately 350,000 residents in the western part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Kashgar is the administrative centre of Kashgar Prefecture which has an area of 162,000 km² and a population of approximately...
in 663, and Khotan
Khotan
Hotan , or Hetian , also spelled Khotan, is the seat of the Hotan Prefecture in Xinjiang, China. It was previously known in Chinese as 于窴/於窴 and to 19th-century European explorers as Ilchi....
in 665. In 667 the Turkic Nushibi
Nushibi
Nushibi was a Chinese collective name for five tribes of the right wing in the Western Turkic Kaganate, and members of On oq confederation found in the literature about the Western Turkic Kaganate as Ten arrows Türks...
of the On oq submitted to Tibet, which also controlled the strategic Wakhan
Wakhan
Wakhan or "the Wakhan" is a very mountainous and rugged part of the Pamir and Karakoram regions of Afghanistan. Wakhan District is a district in Badakshan Province.-Geography:...
valley.
Between 665-670 Khotan
Khotan
Hotan , or Hetian , also spelled Khotan, is the seat of the Hotan Prefecture in Xinjiang, China. It was previously known in Chinese as 于窴/於窴 and to 19th-century European explorers as Ilchi....
was defeated by the Tibetans, and a long string of conflicts ensued with the Chinese Tang Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
. In the spring of 670, Tibet attacked the remaining Chinese territories in the western Tarim Basin
Tarim Basin
The Tarim Basin is a large endorheic basin occupying an area of about . It is located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China's far west. Its northern boundary is the Tian Shan mountain range and its southern is the Kunlun Mountains on the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. The...
. With troops from Khotan they conquered Aqsu, upon which the Chinese abandoned the region, ending two decades of Chinese control. They thus gained control over all of the Chinese Four Garrisons of Anxi
Four Garrisons of Anxi
The Four Garrisons of Anxi were Chinese military garrisons installed by Tang Dynasty between 648 and 658 that stationed at the city and capital of the Indo-European statelet Kucha, Khotan, Kashgar and Karashahr, the capital of Kucha was also the seat of Protectorate General to Pacify the West...
in the Tarim Basin
Tarim Basin
The Tarim Basin is a large endorheic basin occupying an area of about . It is located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China's far west. Its northern boundary is the Tian Shan mountain range and its southern is the Kunlun Mountains on the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. The...
in 670 and held them until 692, when the Chinese finally managed to regain these territories.
Death and succession
According to the Tibetan AnnalsTibetan Annals
The Tibetan Annals, or Old Tibetan Annals , are composed of two manuscripts written in Old Tibetan language found in the early 20th century in the "hidden library", the Mogao Grottoes near Dunhuang, which is believed to have been sealed in the 11th century CE...
, Mangsong Mangsten died in 676 but some sources say the Tibetans kept the death a secret for three years so that the Chinese would not be aware they were without a leader. The Chinese record his death in 679. He was buried in the royal burial grounds near Yarlung
Yarlung
Yarlung can refer to:*Yarlung Kingdom, see also: Tibetan empire*Yarlung Dynasty, see also: List of emperors of Tibet*Yarlung Valley, formed by the Yarlung River and refers especially to the district where it joins with the Chongye River, and broadens out into a large plain about 2 km wide, before...
.
He was followed by his young son, Tridu Songtsen. The Tang Annals say 'Dus-srong was eight years old (i.e. nine years old by Western reckoning) in 679. He was, therefore, presumably born in 670. Due to his young age he was enthroned with the minister Gar Tongtsen's second son, Khri-'bring, to act as regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
.