45-658: Delek Namgyal The Tibet–Ladakh–Mughal war of 1679–1684 was fought between the Central Tibetan Ganden Phodrang government, with the assistance of Mongol khanates, and the Namgyal dynasty of Ladakh with assistance from the Mughal Empire in Kashmir. In the late 17th century, Ladakh sided with Bhutan in its dispute with Tibet. The Tibetans decided to punish Ladakh for interfering in their relations with Bhutan and
90-702: A religious dispute between Tibet and Bhutan, which resulted in an invasion by the Fifth Dalai Lama . Delek Namgyal sought assistance from the Mughal Empire who drove out the Tibetan forces. The Mughuls withdrew after being paid off by the 5th Dalai Lama. With the help of reinforcements from Galdan Boshugtu Khan , Khan of the Zungar Empire , the Tibetans attacked again in 1684. The Tibetans were victorious and concluded
135-666: A short time succeeded in expelling the invaders and placing the Raja once more on his throne. The Raja embraced the Mahomedan faith, and formally acknowledged himself as a feudatory of the Emperor, who honored him with the title of Raja Akibut Muhmood Khan, which title to the present day is borne by the Ruler of Cashmere. In recent times, Muslim migration to Leh from neighbouring Kargil and Kashmir has increased due to better opportunities, and relations between
180-589: A similar style and at roughly the same time, the Potala Palace in Tibet and Leh Palace, the royal residence, are frequently contrasted. Leh is at an altitude of 3,524 m (11,562 ft), and is connected via National Highway 1 to Srinagar in the southwest and to Manali in the south via the Leh-Manali Highway (part of National Highway 3 ). Leh was for centuries an important stopover on trade routes along
225-498: A sub-branch in Khalatse. They stayed until Indian Independence in 1947. In spite of their successful medical and educational activities, they were able to make only a few converts. Every year Sindhu Darshan Festival is held at Shey , 15 km from town, to promote religious harmony and the glory of the Sindhu river. Many tourists come to Leh for this. In Leh Leh is connected to
270-671: A treaty with Ladakh then they retreated back to Lhasa in December 1684. The Treaty of Temisgam in 1684 settled the dispute between Tibet and Ladakh, but its independence was seriously restricted. The Namgyal dynasty ended in 1842 after an invasion of Ladakh by the Dogra general Zorawar Singh and its subsequent annexation. By the beginning of the 19th century, the Mughal empire had collapsed and Sikh rule had been established in Punjab and Kashmir. However
315-519: A treaty with Raja Kehri Singh of Bashahr , granting him trade rights with Tibet. Galdan Chhewang's first campaign resulted in the defeat of the Ladakhi army led by Shakya Gyatso ( Wylie : Sakya rGya-mTsho , at Khan-dMar. The following year he defeated the Ladakhis again at Chang La ( Byan-la ) and occupied the country with the exception of the fortresses of Basgo , and Tinggmosgang , which held out against
360-473: A year can be grown there, while two can be grown at Khalatse . By the time crops are being sown at Leh in late May, they are already half-grown at Khalatse. The main crop is grim (naked barley , Hordeum vulgare L. var. nudum Hook. f., an ancient form of domesticated barley with an easier-to-remove hull. Tsampa , the staple food in Ladakh, is made from this barley. The water for agriculture of Ladakh comes from
405-713: Is a city in Indian-administered Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir region . It is the largest city and the joint capital of Ladakh. Leh, located in the Leh district , was also the historical capital of the Kingdom of Ladakh . The seat of the kingdom, Leh Palace , the former residence of the royal family of Ladakh, was built in the same style and about the same time as the Potala Palace in Tibet . Since they were both constructed in
450-612: Is currently under construction. Leh Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport has flights to and from Delhi , Jammu , Srinagar and Chandigarh . Air India , SpiceJet , IndiGo & Vistara operate Delhi to Leh daily with multiple flights at peak times. There is currently no railway service in Ladakh, however two railway routes are proposed: the Bhanupli–Leh line and Srinagar–Kargil–Leh line. List of functioning banks in Leh State-owned All India Radio Leh has
495-518: Is the ascent up the 3,505-metre-high (11,499 ft) Zoji-la , a tortuous pass in the Great Himalayan Wall. The Jammu and Kashmir State Road Transport Corporation (JKSRTC) operates regular deluxe and ordinary bus services between Srinagar and Leh on this route, with an overnight halt at Kargil. Taxis (cars and jeeps) are also available at Srinagar for the journey. Since 1989, the 473-kilometre-long (294 mi) Leh-Manali Highway has served as
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#1732848763988540-563: Is the now-ruined fort and gon-khang (Temple of the Guardian Divinities) built by King Tashi Namgyal . Tashi Namgyal ruled in the final quarter of the 16th century CE. The Namgyal (also called "Tsemo Gompa" (Red Gompa), or dGon-pa-so-ma (New Monastery), a temple, is the main Buddhist centre in Leh. There are some older walls of fortifications behind it which Francke reported were once known as
585-458: Is the second-largest religion with 35.4% adherents. Islam and Sikhism form 15.14% and 2.7% of the population respectively. Religion in Leh City (2011) Since the 8th century, people of different religions, particularly Buddhism and Islam, have lived in Leh. They co-inhabited the region from the early Namgyal dynasty and there are no records of any conflict between them. Meer Izzut-oollah wrote in
630-610: Is written in the Ladakh Chronicles . According to the Ladakh Chronicles , the Namgyal dynasty was founded by Bhagan , the son of Bhara in the kingdom of Maryul . Bhagan was described as warlike, and established the Namgyal dynasty in 1460 after he formed an alliance with the people of Leh and dethroned the Maryul king Lodrö Chokden ( Blo-gros-mc'og-ldan ) and his brothers Drünpa Aliand Lapten Dargyé ( Slab-bstan-dar-rgyas ). He took
675-729: The Fifth Dalai Lama employed fear and violence over the Tibetan territories. In 1684, the Ganden Phodrang Prime Minister Desi Sangye Gyatso and the King Delek Namgyal of Ladakh signed the 1684 Treaty of Tingmosgang to end the war. According to the Ladakh Chronicles , the treaty fixed the Tibet-Ladakh border at the Lhari stream near Demchok , and regulated trade and tribute missions between Ladakh to Tibet. Delek Namgyal The Namgyal dynasty
720-620: The Indus Valley between Tibet , Kashmir , India and China . The main goods carried were salt, grain, pashm or cashmere wool , charas or cannabis resin from the Tarim Basin , indigo , silk yarn and Banaras brocade . Although there are a few indications that the Chinese knew of a trade route through Ladakh to India as early as the Kushan period (1st to 3rd centuries AD), and certainly by
765-649: The Leh Palace and the rebuilding of several gompas , the most famous of which are Hemis and Hanle . He expanded the kingdom into Zanskar and Spiti , but was defeated by the Mughals , who had already occupied Kashmir and Baltistan . His son Deldan Namgyal (1642–1694) had to placate the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb by building a mosque in Leh . However, he defeated the Mughal army in Baltistan. His son Delek sided with Bhutan in
810-772: The Punjab via Mandi , the Kulu valley , the Rohtang Pass , and Lahaul to the Indus Valley, then downriver to Leh. The route from Srinagar was roughly the same as the road that today crosses the Zoji La (pass) to Kargil , then up the Indus Valley to Leh. From Baltistan there were two difficult routes: the main one ran up the Shyok Valley from the Indus, over a pass and then down the Hanu River to
855-492: The Tang dynasty , little is actually known of the history of the region before the end of the 10th century, when Tibetan prince Skyid lde nyima gon (or Nyima gon ), a grandson of the anti-Buddhist Tibetan king, Langdarma (r. c. 838 to 841), founded the kingdom. He conquered Western Tibet, although his army originally numbered only 300 men. Several towns and castles are said to have been founded by Nyima gon, and he apparently ordered
900-407: The "Dard Castle." If it was indeed built by Dards , it must pre-date the establishment of Tibetan rulers in Ladakh over a thousand years ago. The Sankar Labrang (Bsam dkar bla brang) is a small, two-storeyed building owned by Sankar monastery . Sankar monastery is the seat of Bakula Rinpoche, immediately to the northwest of Leh. The monastery's Labrang building is located in the old town of Leh, in
945-490: The 434 km Srinagar -Leh highway and the 428 km Leh-Manali Highway . Both roads are only open on a seasonal basis. Although the roads from Srinagar and Manali are often blocked by snow in winter, the local roads in the Indus Valley usually remain open due to the low levels of snowfall. Leh has a cold desert climate ( Köppen climate classification BWk ) with long, cold winters from late November to early March, with minimum temperatures well below freezing for most of
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#1732848763988990-448: The Buddhist and Muslim communities have soured due to socio-political conflicts. Other religions such as Christianity, Hinduism and Sikhism do exist in Leh. The small Christian community in Leh descend from Tibetan Buddhists converted by German Moravian missionaries, who established a church at Keylong in Lahaul in the 1860s, and were allowed to open another mission in Leh in 1885 and had
1035-551: The Dogra region of Jammu remained under its Rajput rulers (who ruled under the maharaja ranjit singh) Rajput ruler were given the control of their states but under the name of Punjab and they were part of khalsa empire, General Zorawar Singh invaded Ladakh in 1834. King Tshespal Namgyal was dethroned and exiled to Stok where they still had a small jagir until the post independence political integration of India . The kings of Namgyal dynasty along with their periods of reign are as follows: Leh Leh ( / ˈ l eɪ / )
1080-472: The Indus again below Khalsi (Khalatse). The other ran from Skardu straight up the Indus to Kargil and on to Leh. Both summer and winter routes ran from Leh to Yarkand via the Karakoram Pass and Xaidulla . A couple of possible routes also ran from Leh to Lhasa . The first recorded royal residence in Ladakh, built at the top of the high Namgyal ('Victory') Peak overlooking the present palace and town,
1125-472: The Indus, which runs low in March and April when barley-fields have the greatest need for irrigation. Grapes, apricots, currants, walnuts, and apples are also grown in the arid temperate climate. As of the 2011 India census , Leh had a population of 30,870. Males constituted 70% of the population and females 30%, due to a large presence of transient labourers, traders and government employees. The child sex ratio
1170-517: The Kashmir Valley, due to trade and recently to the transfer of tourism from the Kashmir Valley to Ladakh. Ladakh receives very large numbers of tourists for its size. In 2010, 77,800 tourists visited Leh. Visitor numbers have swelled rapidly in recent years, increasing 77% from 2005 to 2010. This growth is largely caused by an increase in domestic Indian travellers. Buddhism is the largest religion in Leh, followed by over 43.8% of people. Hinduism
1215-544: The LAHDC. The current Deputy Commissioner of Leh district is Santosh Sukhdeve. The old town of Leh was added to the World Monuments Fund 's list of 100 most endangered sites due to increased rainfall, due to climate change among other reasons. Neglect and changing settlement patterns in the old town have also threatened the long-term preservation of the site. The rapid and poorly planned urbanisation of Leh has increased
1260-540: The Ladakhi kings. During the reign of Delegs Namgyal (1660–1685), the nawab of Kashmir, then a province in the Mughal Empire , arranged for the Mongol army to temporarily leave Ladakh, though it returned later. As payment for assisting Delegs Namgyal in the Tibet-Ladakh-Mughal War of 1679–1684, the nawab made a number of onerous demands. One of the least was construction of a large Sunni Muslim mosque in Leh, at
1305-646: The Manikhang neighbourhood. Manikhang is the area between the main bazaar of Leh and the historic Stalam path that leads up to the royal palace. Four huge stūpas standing at this point mark the beginning of historic Leh. In recent memory, the Sankar Labrang had a metalsmith's workshop downstairs, while upstairs lived the monk caretaker of the White Maitreya Temple (Byams khang dkar po), also known locally as "Street Maitreya". The White Maitreya Temple dates back to
1350-504: The Tibetan attacks for the next three years. The stalemate was broken with the Mughal Empire 's intervention in the war. Kashmir was a Mughal province at this time and included Ladakh in its sphere of influence . In 1683 an army led by Fidai Khan, son of governor Ibrahim Khan of Kashmir, defeated the Tibeto-Mongol army and lifted the siege of Basgo , continuing the pursuit until Lake Pangong . The Kashmiris helped restore Ladakhi rule on
1395-532: The condition that a mosque be built in Leh and that the Ladakhi king convert to Islam. The Mughals retreated after signing a treaty with the Ladakhis. Kashmiri historians assert that, after this, the Ladakhi king converted to Islam in return. However, the Ladakhi chronicles do not mention such a thing and the Ladakhi people refute it. The king agreed to give tribute to the Mughals in return for their help. Johan Eleverskog writes that in his struggle for power over Tibet,
Tibet–Ladakh–Mughal war - Misplaced Pages Continue
1440-452: The construction of the primary sculptures at Shey . "In an inscription, he says he had them made for the religious benefit of the Tsanpo (the dynastical name of his father and ancestors), and of all the people of Ngaris (Western Tibet). This shows that already in this generation Langdarma's opposition to Buddhism had disappeared." Shey , 15 km east of modern Leh, was the ancient seat of
1485-499: The early 19th century: This mosque was built by Ibraheem Khan (in the mid 17th century), who was a man of noble family in the service of the descendants of Timoor. In his time the Kalimaks (Calmuck Tartars), having invaded and obtained possession of the greater portion of Thibet [Ladakh], the Raja of that country claimed protection from the Emperor of Hindoostan. Ibraheem Khan was accordingly deputed by that monarch to his assistance, and in
1530-531: The oppression of Gelug monasteries in Ladakh. In 1679 the 5th Dalai Lama appointed the lama of the Tashilhunpo Monastery , the Koshut Golden Chhewang ( Wylie : Dga' ldan Tshe dbang ), as the commander of the Tibeto-Mongol expedition to Ladakh. He is said to have done so against the advice of his prime minister not to send the expedition. Galdan Chhewang first secured his flanks when he made
1575-589: The period when the Portuguese Jesuit priest Francisco de Azevedo visited Leh in 1631, and made no mention of it, and Sengge Namgyal's death in 1642. The Leh Palace is nine storeys high; the upper floors accommodated the royal family, and the stables and storerooms are located on the lower floors. The palace was abandoned when Kashmiri forces besieged it in the mid-19th century. The royal family moved their premises south to their current home in Stok Palace on
1620-471: The reign of King Drakpa Bumd´e (Grags pa 'bum lde, r. ca 1410–1435), following the arrival of a mission sent to Ladakh by the Tibetan lama Tsongkhapa . Below this are the Chamba (Byams-pa, i.e. , Maitreya ) and Chenresi (sPyan-ras-gzigs, i.e. Avalokiteshvara ) monasteries which are of uncertain date. The royal palace , known as Leh Palace , was built by King Sengge Namgyal (1612–1642), presumably between
1665-525: The rest of India by two high-altitude roads, both of which are subject to landslides and impassable in winter due to snows. The National Highway 1 from Srinagar via Kargil is generally open longer. The Leh-Manali Highway can be troublesome due to very high passes and plateaus. A third road is under construction. The overland approach to Ladakh from the Kashmir valley via the 434-km. National Highway 1 typically remains open for traffic from April/May to October/November. The most dramatic part of this journey
1710-569: The risk of flash floods in some areas, while other areas, according to research by the Climate and Development Knowledge Network , suffer from the less dramatic, gradual effects of 'invisible disasters', which often go unreported. The city is located on the bank of the Indus River. The mountains dominate the landscape around the Leh, as it is at an altitude of 3,500m. Peaks such as Nanga Sago can reach well above 5,500m. The principal access roads include
1755-484: The second land approach to Ladakh. Open from June to late October, this high road traverses the upland desert plateaux of Rupsho, whose altitude ranges from 3,660 m (12,010 ft) to 4,570 m (14,990 ft). There are a number of high passes en route among which the highest one, known as Tanglang La , is sometimes incorrectly claimed to be the world's second-highest motorable pass at an altitude of 5,325 metres (17,470 ft) As of 2024, this third road to Leh
1800-413: The southern bank of the Indus River. In 2010, Leh was heavily damaged by the sudden floods caused by a cloud burst . The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) is in charge of governance in Leh. It has 30 councillors, 4 nominated and 26 elected. The Chief Executive Councillor heads and chairs this council. The Deputy Commissioner of Leh also holds the power of Chief Executive Officer of
1845-516: The surname Namgyal (meaning victorious) and founded a new dynasty which still survives today. King Tashi Namgyal (1555–1575) managed to repel most Central Asian raiders, and built a royal fort on the top of the Namgyal Peak. Tsewang Namgyal (1575–1595) extended his kingdom as far as Nepal . Sengge Namgyal (r. 1616-1642), known as the "Lion" King, made efforts to restore Ladakh to its old glory by an ambitious and energetic building program including
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1890-401: The upper end of the bazaar in Leh below Leh Palace. The mosque reflects a mixture of Islamic and Tibetan architecture and can accommodate more than 500 people. This was apparently not the first mosque in Leh; there are two smaller ones that are said to be older. Trade routes have traditionally converged on Leh from all four directions. The modern-day highway follows the most direct route from
1935-445: The winter. The city gets occasional snowfall during winter, which is very cold by Indian standards, mainly due to its high elevation. The weather in the remaining months is generally fine and warm during the day. Average annual rainfall is only 35 mm (1.37 inches). In 2010, the city experienced flash floods that killed more than 100 people. Leh is located at an average elevation of about 3500 metres, which means that only one crop
1980-475: Was 987. Leh had an average literacy rate of 90%, higher than the national average of 74.04%; male literacy was 94.89%, and female literacy was 78.85%. In Leh, 5.5% of the population was under 6 years of age. The people of Leh are ethnic Tibetans who speak Ladakhi , a Tibetic language . The Muslim presence dates back to the annexation of Ladakh by Kashmir, after the Fifth Dalai Lama came to Ladakh from Tibet. Since then, there has been further migration from
2025-613: Was a dynasty whose rulers were the monarchs of the former kingdom of Ladakh that lasted from 1460 to 1842 and were titled the Gyalpo of Ladakh. The Namgyal dynasty succeeded the first dynasty of Maryul and had several conflicts with the neighboring Mughal Empire and various dynasties of Tibet , including the Tibet–Ladakh–Mughal War . The dynasty eventually fell to the Sikh Empire and Dogras of Jammu . Most of its known history
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