The East India Company’s Missions to Bhutan and Tibet

 

The East India Company’s Missions to Bhutan and Tibet[1]

The East India Company had desire to have trade relations with Tibet and also with China through lands. The company extended its influence towards north. Trade was being carried out with Tibet through Nepal. But, at the same time, Gorkha also expanded its influence towards south. There were cases of conflict between the two. This affects the company’s trade with Tibet. The Board of Directors asked the Warren Hastings to explore alternative trade routes on 3 May 1771[2].   The golden opportunities knock the door of company, when the Panchen Lama sent a letter to Warren Hastings asking him to cease the hostilities with Bhutan in 1774. This was the first ever contact between Tibet and the Company. Warren Hastings immediately prepared to send the mission to Tibet through Bhutan.

 George Bogle’s Mission to Tibet in 1774

There were many energetic and able officers of the Company. But Hastings’s choice fell on Mr. George Bogle.  Mr. Bogle was an Assistant Secretary to the Board of Revenue at Bengal. He was only 28 years of age. Hastings also officially appointed Bogle his deputy. He chose Mr. Bogle to lead the Mission. He also appointed an assistant surgeon Dr. Alexander Hamilton to attend Mr. Bogle.

The following is the appointment order and the instructions given to George Bogle by Warren Hastings. 

 

Appointment of Mr. Bogle

Fort William, 13th May, 1774.

Sir, —Having appointed you my deputy to the Teshu Lama, the sovereign of Bhutan, I desire you will proceed to Lhasa, his capital, and deliver to him the letter and presents which I have

given you in charge. The design of your mission is to open a mutual and equal communication of trade between the inhabitants of Bhutan and Bengal, and you will be guided by your own judgment in using such means of negotiation as may be most likely to effect this purpose. You will take with your samples for a trial of such articles of commerce as may be sent from this country according to the accompanying Hst, marking as accurately as possible the charge

of transporting them.

You will inquire what other commodities may be successfully employed in that trade. And you will diligently inform yourself of the manufactures, productions, goods, introduced by the intercourse with other countries, which are to be procured in Bhutan, especially such as are of great value and easy transportation, such as gold, silver, precious stones, musk, rhubarb, munjit, etc.

Whatever observations you may make on these or any other subjects, whether of useful knowledge or curiosity, I desire you will communicate to me from time to time, reporting the success of your negotiations. The period of your stay must be left to your discretion. I

wish you to remain a sufficient time to fulfil the purposes of your deputation, and obtain a complete knowledge of the country and the points referred to your inquiry. If you shall judge that a residence may be usefully established at Lhasa without putting the Company to any expense, but such as may be repaid by the advantages which may be hereafter derived from it, you will take the earhest opportunity to advise me of it ; and if you should find it necessary to come away before you receive my orders upon it, you may leave such persons as you shall think fit to remain as your agents till a proper resident can be appointed, and you will apply to the Lama for his permission and the necessary passports for the person who may be hereafter deputed in this character. You will draw on me for your charges, and your drafts shall be regularly answered. To these I can fix no limitation, but empower you to act according to your discretion, knowing that I need not recommend to you to observe a strict frugality and economy where the good of the service on which you are commissioned shall not require a deviation from these rules.

 

Mr. George Bogle.

I am. Sir,

Your most obedient servant,

Warren Hastings.

 

P.S.—I have appointed Mr. Alexander Hamilton, assistant surgeon, to attend you on this deputation.

The main term of reference for the Bogle to carry out with Panchen Lama was as follows:[3]

§  Bogle was to open a communication of trade between Tibet and Bengal

§  Bogle was to take note of the markets and resources of Tibet

§  Bogle was to inv of Tibetestigate the relations between Tibat and China

§  Bogle was to find out all he could about people, politics, manner, morals

The Bogle’s Mission to Tibet through Bhutan

Mr. Bogle began his journey in the mid May 1774 from Calcutta. He arrived at Cooch Behar on 31 May 1774. From Cooch Behar, he travelled to Buxa Duar and reached in the evening.

On 9th June 1774, he began his journey from Buxa Duar to Thimphu. Bhutanese officials at Buxa Duar arranged them two tangun ponies. After two days of his arrival at Thimphu, he was given an audience by new Desi with traditional ceremony in the Tashihchodzong on 5th July 1774.

Bogle’s next step is to march towards Tibet. At first, he was denied permission to enter into Tibet. There were many reasons given, saying that no foreigners were allowed to Tibet, an outbreak of smallpox was unsafe to travel in Tibet and Chinese were objecting the Bogle’s coming to Tibet. So, Mr. Bogle was asked to return to Calcutta.

“The Tashi Lama to Mr. Bogle: Is glad to hear that he has arrived at Cooch Behar and intends to proceed to him. His country is under the dominion of the King of China who has ordered that no Indian, Mughal, Pathan or European should be admitted into it. Regrets his inability to see him and requests him therefore to go back to Calcutta. Letters etc., if he has any for him, may be made over to someone travelling this way. Will send a representative, when the summer season is over”.[4]

 Later Bogle came to know the reason that Panchen Lama mistook for a sort of military expedition when he heard two foreigners with large porters reached Bhutan in their way towards Tibet. Therefore, Panchen Lama denied the Bogle’s permission to enter into Tibet. However, in time, Panchen Lama was informed that the group was on peaceful mission. Then only Panchen Lama sent a letter to Desi of Bhutan to inform the Bogle and his team to proceed to Tibet.

So, on 18th August 1774, Desi of Bhutan read him a letter from Panchen Lama of Tibet informing that Panchen Lama had written to Lhasa authority about the passport and he obtained it.  Panchen Lama further informed that Bogle should have limited number of attendants to come to Tibet.

He left Thimphu on 13th October 1774 to Phari after receiving welcoming note from Panchen Lama of Tibet. Mr. Bogle, Hamilton and Purander were joined by Mirza Setter a Kasmiri, Pema who was sent by Panchen and Desi’s attendant to reach them till the border between Bhutan and Tibet.

Finally, on 7th December 1774, Mr. Bogle arrived at Tashi Lhunpon Monastery. Bogle’s first meeting with the Panchen Lama went well. Both spoke Hindi. Mr. Bogle spent more than five months at Zhigatse with Panchen Lama.

  The Panchen Lama requested Bogle if the Company could repair the Buddhist temple in Calcutta that had been destroyed by Muslims. As soon as Warren Hastings learned of the Panchen Lama's request, Hastings ordered a Buddhist temple to be built.

 Bogle could not go to Lhasa. He returned and reached Bhutan on 8 May 1775.  Bogle signed a treaty with the Desi of Bhutan in 1775 on his return journey from Zhigatse. This is a complementary of the Anglo-Bhutanese of 1774, which conceded some privileges to Bhutanese traders. But Desi of Bhutan allowed only Hindu and Muslim to travel through Bhutan to Tibet.

Warren Hastings adopted a soft policy towards Bhutan. The terms of the Anglo-Bhutanese treaty were lenient to Bhutanese is shown in the territorial concession made to Bhutan. Warren Hastings knew that if the trans-Himalayan trade is to be successful, then Company should adopt such policy and implement to serve their interests.

Bogle finally came back at Calcutta on 3o May 1775. Bogle was appointed as the Collector of Rangpur.  He organized a fair at Rangpur to encourage the both Tibetan and Bhutanese merchants to come and carry out trade with company.

Warren Hastings was about to send Bogle to Tibet for the second time in 1779, unfortunately unsuccessful as the Panchen Lama passed away in 1780 and Bogle himself died at Calcutta in 1781 at the age of 35.

 

Dr. Hamilton’s Mission to Bhutan – 1776 – 1777 

Dr. Hamilton accompanied Mr. George Bogle to Tibet through Bhutan in 1774. He had traveled through Bhutan and reached Zhigatse of Tibet. Warren Hastings, the Governor General of Bengal sent Dr. Hamilton to Bhutan in 1776. He was all alone. He arrived in the Bhutanese frontier in January 1776. There, he received a letter of invitation from the Desi of Bhutan. He proceeded to Punakha straight and reached Punakha on 6 April 1776. The following month, in May 1776, he came to Thimphu.

The objective of the Mission was to investigate the claims of the Desi of Bhutan about the districts of Ambari-Falakata and Japesh. Dr. Hamilton found the Bhutanese claims right. Dr. Hamilton insisted that Ambari-Falakata and Japesh should be given to Bhutan. He reasoned that the Company would be benefitial in term of trade.[5] Another hidden reason of the Company was that the company was expecting Bhutan would levy favourable transit duty on the Compnay goods passing through Bhutan.[6]

Then, Dr. Hamilton returned to Calcutta. But in the following year, Dr. Hamilton was again sent to Bhutan. This time, the main purpose of the Mission was to congratulate the new Desi. The new Desi was the Jigme Sengye (reign: 1775-1788), an incarnation of the 10th Desi Mipham Wangpo (reign: 1729-1736) who were the reincarnations of Gyalse Tenzin Rabgye, the fourth Desi of Bhutan.

Samuel Turner Mission - 1783

 Lieutenant Samuel Turner was a relative of Warren Hastings. He joined the East India Company in 1780. In February 1782, news reached at Calcutta that the reincarnation of the 3rd Panchen Lama was discovered. 

Warren Hastings sent the mission to Tibet to congratulate the reincarnate new Panchen Lama. Turner was appointed on 9 Jan. 1783 chief of the mission. He followed the route previously taken by Bogle.  Turner reached the summer palace of the Desi of Bhutan early in June 1783. Captain Turner ceded, by order of his Government, the districts of Ambari Fala-kottah and Jalpaish to Bhutan, in accordance with the advice of Dr. Hamilton.  

Samuel Turner stayed till 8 September in Bhutan for about three months, and then went on to Tashi-lhunpo, a monastery of Zhigatse.  He arrived there on 22 September 1783.

On 4th December 1783, he had an audience with the young Panchen Lama. Turner presented all the presents and gifts of the Governor General to the Young Lama. The young lama was 18 months old only.

The route followed by Bogle, Hamilton and Turner while visiting Tibet through Bhutan

Note: The route is not to the scale.

---

[1] The information is based on the “Narratives of the Mission of the George Bogle to Tibet and the Journey of the Thomas Manning to Lhasa by Clements R. Markham.

[2] Sigh (1988)

[3] Lamb (1986), Singh (1988)

[4] Substance of a letter from Tashi Lama to Bogle, who received it at Tashichodzong and sent it on to Calcutta, where it arrived on 8 August 1774 quoted by Lamb

[5]Ghoshal, (1942)

[6] Singh (1988)