The 13th Dalai Lama, Thupten Gyatso – Reforms and Modernization
The Thirteenth Dalai Lama was a farsighted leader who sought to modernize Tibet while safeguarding its cultural and spiritual heritage. Despite resistance from conservative factions within the traditional hierarchy, his reforms laid the foundation for a more self-reliant and forward-looking nation. Key initiatives included:
- Launched paper currency and coinage to establish a national economy; two Tibetan students were sent to Calcutta to study currency printing.
- In 1913, four Tibetan students were sent to study in Britain at Rugby School—Kyibuk Wangdhu Norbu (telegraphy), Mondong Khenrab Kunsang (mining), Gokar Sonam Gyatso (military training), and Rikhang Rigsen Dorje (electrical engineering).
- Designed the new National Flag of Tibet.
- Mandated the establishment of primary schools across all districts of Tibet to provide basic education.
- Reorganized the Tibetan army along British lines, with special training programs initiated in 1914.
- Founded the Central Medical College (Men-Tsee-Khang) in Lhasa in 1916.
- Introduced Tibet’s first postal and telegraph systems in 1913.
- Opened Tibet’s first English-language school in Gyantse and established Lhasa’s first Police Headquarters to maintain civic order, both in 1923.
- Oversaw the construction of the Drapchi Hydroelectric Power Station in 1924, one of Tibet’s earliest modern energy projects.
- Established Tibet’s embassy in Nanjing, China, in 1931 to strengthen international relations.
- Abolished capital punishment and corporal mutilation, except in cases involving treason against the state.
These pioneering efforts reflect the Dalai Lama’s commitment to ensuring Tibet’s stability, progress, and independence in a rapidly changing world.
In 1913, four Tibetan boys were sent to study engineering in Britain, accompanied by official Lungshar Dorjee Tsegyal.
In 1913, four Tibetan boys were sent to study engineering in Britain, accompanied by official Lungshar Dorjee Tsegyal.
A unit of the Tibetan army photographed in Lhasa in the late 1940s. The Dalai Lama initiated military reform in 1914.
Men-Tsee-Khang, founded in 1916, shown here during the Cultural Revolution when renamed “Laboring People Hospital.”
Workers installing a telegraph pole between Nagartse and Gyantse, 1920s. Tibet’s first Post and Telegraph Office opened in Lhasa in 1920.
Teacher and student at the Gyantse Englishlanguage school, opened in 1923 under Frank Ludlow. Closed after three years due to monastic opposition.
