Desi Sangye Gyatso

Timeline

1. 1653–1682Lhasa · LhasaSangye Gyatso grew up beside the Fifth Dalai Lama from childhood, mastering medicine, calendrics, and administration. In 1679 the Fifth Dalai Lama handed daily governance to him, appointing him desi while retiring to writing. When the Dalai Lama died in 1682, he was already effectively managing the Gelug regime's monastic and secular affairs.
2. 1682–1696Potala Palace · LhasaAfter the Fifth Dalai Lama's death, Sangye Gyatso publicly claimed the Dalai Lama was in retreat and unseen, still issuing documents to the Qing court and Mongols in his name, secretly seeking the reincarnation and building a stupa. He oversaw completion of the Red Palace of the Potala, finished around 1690–1694. In 1693 he also sought a title from the Kangxi Emperor in the Dalai Lama's name, receiving the title 'King' and a gold seal.
3. 1696–1705Lhasa · LhasaIn 1696, while pursuing Galdan, the Kangxi Emperor learned that the Fifth Dalai Lama had long since died and rebuked him sharply. Sangye Gyatso then announced the death, and in 1697 brought Tsangyang Gyatso to Lhasa to be enthroned as the Sixth Dalai Lama. His power struggle with the Khoshut Lha-bzang Khan intensified, and in 1705 he was defeated and killed, collapsing the power structure built during the concealed-death era.