Establishment of the Imperial Residents in Tibet

After entering the pass the Qing invested the Dalai Lama and Panchen Erdeni. In the early 18th century the Dzungars troubled Tibet, and in 1720 Qing troops entered Tibet, drove them out and stationed troops there. Fierce struggles then broke out among Tibetan nobles, and in 1727 civil strife erupted when Arbuba and others killed the chief minister Khangchenas. To strengthen administration of Tibet, the Yongzheng Emperor that year formally established the Imperial Residents in Tibet, stationing officials permanently at Lhasa to oversee local affairs on behalf of the central government and command the Qing troops there. The next year Qing troops entered Tibet and put down the strife, and the Qing appointed Polhanas, who had distinguished himself in the suppression, to run Tibetan affairs. In 1750 Polhanas's son Gyurme Namgyal plotted rebellion and the Residents Fuqing and Labdon killed him, and both Residents were killed by his followers. In 1751 the Qianlong Emperor promulgated the Thirteen-Article Ordinance, abolishing rule by a prince and setting up the "Kashag" as the Tibetan local government, made up of four kalons, authorizing the Dalai Lama and the Imperial Residents jointly to manage Tibet's religious and political affairs. "Ka" means command and "shag" means room, so Kashag means the place from which orders are issued. In 1793 the Qing promulgated the Twenty-Nine Article Ordinance, further defining the Residents as equal in status to the Dalai Lama and Panchen Erdeni, jointly managing Tibetan affairs and in charge of Tibet's military, foreign and financial matters. From 1727 to 1912 the Qing sent over a hundred Imperial Residents to Tibet.