Princess Wencheng is the most beloved queen in Tibetan history. A beautiful and intelligent woman, she brought the Tibetans many of the scientific and agricultural advances of the Tang dynasty and is also credited with the introduction of Buddhism into the region. Born the daughter of a courtier, Wencheng became royal only later in life. Emperor Taizong of the Tang dynasty needed to find a bride for King Songtsen Gampo, the new ruler of the Tubo Kingdom (Tibet), and smart and pretty Wencheng seemed an ideal match. She was conferred the title of princess and sent west.
In AD 641, she set out from Chang’an, capital of the Tang dynasty, accompanied by envoys from both sides where they met King Songtsen Gampo in Baihai (Qinghai province). The delighted king ordered the construction of a nuptial palace by the Zhaling and E-ling lakes. They were married and honeymooned in the mountain valleys further towards Tibet.
On their way to Tibet, Princess Wencheng taught the locals how to cultivate vegetables, grind wheat flour and distill wine. Grateful villagers carved her footprints into rocks and by the early 8th century, a temple was constructed in her honor in Yushu.
When she finally arrived in Tibet, she was surprised to find Buddhism hadn’t yet reached her husband’s kingdom. She set about introducing the religion, and had her husband build the first Potala Palace; it later burned down and was rebuilt in the 17th century.
She was also responsible for the Jokhang Temple, one of the oldest examples of Tibetan architecture still standing. Having decided from her knowledge of Tang astrology and geomancy that a particular large pool upset the balance of the elements, she insisted a flock of special white goats fill it in. The spot was given the name “goat-earth,” which in Tibetan is “rasa.” Later generations modified the sound and the city around the temple came to be known as Lhasa.
Frescoes on the wall of the temple and the Potala Palace record many of her other achievements. Tibetan people learned how to cultivate corn, soybeans and wheat in the highland environment, and horses, donkeys and camels were bred to assist the yaks.
As far as political marriages go, Princess Wencheng’s was a great success. Relations between the Tang dynasty and the Tubo steadily improved, and when Emperor Taizong died in AD 649, the new emperor promoted King Songtsen Gampo to the position of “Treasured Prince.”
Around AD 710, Jincheng, another princess from the Tang court was married to another Tubo king, one of King Songtsen Gampo’s descendants.