A Tibetan aristocratic family in eighteenth-century Tibet: A study of Qing-Tibetan contact (China)

This dissertation is a case study on the Manchu Qing-Tibetan contacts during the eighteenth century by investigating the precarious political career of one of the most eminent Tibetan aristocratic families in central Tibet, the Rdo ring (or Dga' bzhi) family. Drawing upon multi-lingual first-hand sources, mainly Rdo ring Bstan 'dzin dpal 'byor's autobiography, this research intends to shed new light on the connections between Tibetan lay aristocrats and Qing officials on the official as well as personal level.; Utilizing the current research trend of micro-historical approach, the Rdo ring family's political career in four generations will be put into the context of eighteen-century Qing and Tibetan politics and the change of Qing court policy in ruling Tibet. The rise and fall of the Rdo ring family throughout the eighteenth century reflects the change of Qing Tibetan policy. The Rdo ring family emerged as eminent Tibetan aristocrats as a result of the Qing's early pro-lay aristocracy policy following the Dzungar incursion to Tibet and Tibetan civil war. The ascent of the family political power was greatly attributed to the strong tie that Pho lha nas had with the Qing court. In the late eighteenth century, the downturn of the Rdo ring family's political power signaled serious and fundamental problems in Qing Tibetan policy. Lay aristocracy failed the court; the Dalai Lama's dominant power both in the political and religious realms cannot ensure a balanced power structure, and regency was not reliable in face of chaotic situation. The Qing court was left with no other choices but to turn to its own ambans.; This research concludes that the ultimate failure of Qing Tibetan policy resulted from the temporary and opportunistic features of the policies themselves, the inefficiency of the amban system and the decline of the Qing empire as a whole that started from the late eighteenth century. The Qing suzerainty over Tibet was largely wishful thinking. Deeply troubled by the overall imperial administrative laxity and socioeconomic disturbances in all aspects, Tibet was left out of the major picture of the Qing empire in the post-Qianlong era. The decline of the Rdo ring family epitomizes the Qing-Tibetan contacts and the change of the Qing Tibetan policy in the eighteenth century.