- Güshi Khan
Güshi (or Gushri) Khan (1582-1655), a Khoshut-Oirat prince and leader of the Khoshut
Mongol tribe, who had supplanted theTumed ["The New Encyclopædia Britannica", 15th Edition (1977), Vol. 18, p. 380h.] descendants ofAltan Khan . His military assistance to theGelug school enabled the 5th Dalai Lama to establish political control overTibet . Güshi Khan's original name was Torbaikh Khan.In 1637, Güshi Khan defeated a rival Mongolian prince Tsogt Khun Taij, a
Kagyu follower, nearKokonor .Conquest of Tibet and installation of the 5th Dalai Lama
Sonam Rapten, the Regent during the youth of
Lozang Gyatso , the 5th Dalai Lama, sought the help of Gushri Khan to end persecution of the Gelugpa school, and unify Tibet. It took three years for Gushri Khan to install Lozang Gyatso as the head of a unified Tibet.The campaign was prepared in 1639. In the winter of 1640, Gushri conquered
Kham with western Mongol cavalry from theQoshot tribe assisted by Tibetans, overcoming resistance fromKhalkha andChahar Mongol tribes, allies of the king ofTsang and other anti-Gelug forces. The eastern Mongols were defeated in Tibet at the same time as they were being destroyed inMongolia by invadingManchu s. [Laird, Thomas. (2006). "The Story of Tibet: Conversations with the Dalai Lama", pp. 158-161. Grove Press, New York. ISBN 978-0-8021-1827-1.]His invasion of Tibet resulted in overthrowing the prince of Tsang in 1642, displacing the rival dominant school of the
Karmapa s, and the Fifth Dalai Lama was then seated on the throne of the deposed king. 5th Dalai Lama then gave Gushri Khan the title of "King of Tibet". [Laird, Thomas. (2006). "The Story of Tibet: Conversations with the Dalai Lama", pp. 158-161. Grove Press, New York. ISBN 978-0-8021-1827-1.]Death and succession
Gushri Khan died in 1655 leaving ten sons. Eight of them, with their tribes, settled in the strategically important
Koko Nur region inAmdo and quarreled constantly over territory. The 5th Dalai Lama sent several governors in 1656 and 1659. The Mongols were gradually Tibeanised and played an important role in extending the Gelug school's influence in Amdo. [Karmay, Samten C. (2005). "The Great Fifth", p. 2. Downloaded as a pdf file on 16th December, 2007 from: [http://www.iias.nl/nl/39/IIAS_NL39_1213.pdf] ]Footnotes
External links
* [http://www.iias.nl/nl/39/IIAS_NL39_1213.pdf Karmay, Samten C. (2005). "The Great Fifth". Downloaded as a pdf file on 16th December, 2007.]
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