For centuries, the politically and geographically isolated mountain kingdom of Tibet had been an enigma to Westerners. But in the dawn of the 20th century, its seclusion ended when British troops based in India were ordered to enter the Mystical Land of the Grand Lama. Heading an expedition which crossed the Tibetan border in July of 1903 was Col. Francis Younghusband, a veteran army officer and explorer. His assignment: to negotiate trade and border issues with the country's highest authorities.
Accompanying Younghusband as the political mission's "cultural expert" was Laurence Austine Waddell (1854-1938), a noted Orientalist, archaeologist, naturalist, physician and authority on Tibet. (Stationed for years with the Indian Army at Darjeeling, Waddell had repeatedly risked his life by disguising himself and crossing the border into Tibet - a country Europeans were forbidden to enter - to study the language and culture.) His detailed firsthand account of the battle-scarred march tot he capital and vivid impressions of Tibetan life are the subject of this remarkable book.
First published in 1905, Lhasa and Its Mysteries meticulously describes the political background of the mission, brutal military clashes, the immobilizing effects of the Tibetan winter on troop movements, the advance to Lhasa and role of the Dalai Lama, Buddhist temples, oracles and sorcerers, peace negotiations and many more absorbing topics.
Enhancing this impressive chronicle of events are 185 drawings and rare photographs (most taken by the author) of mountains, monasteries, monks, peasants, Tibetan officials, battle sites, soldiers, prayer wheels, hermits, talismans and much more. In addition, 17 appendixes provide a rich archive of meterological, ethnographic and geological data, the text of an agreement between Great Britain and China relating to Sikkim and Tibet, a diary of major event that occurred during the expedition, a report on the fauna of central and southwestern Tibet, the Anglo-Tibetan peace treaty and other valuable materials. Also included are eight maps.
Here is an astounding wealth of information for historians, students of history and Orientalists. For general readers fascinated by political intrigue, Far Eastern mysticism, military adventures and life in a far-off land, this well-written classic will prove especially engrossing.
530 pages, softback, 5 1/4 x 8 1/2"