Tibet came under the control of People’s Republic of China (PRC) after the Government of Tibet accepted the Seventeen Point Agreement under Chinese pressure in October 1951. This occurred after attempts by the Tibetan government to gain international recognition, efforts to modernize its military, negotiations between the Government of Tibet and the PRC, and a military conflict in the Chamdo area of western Kham in October 1950. The series of events came to be called the ‘Peaceful Liberation of Tibet’ by the Chinese government and the ‘Chinese invasion of Tibet’ by the Central Tibetan Administration and the Tibetan diaspora.
The Government of Tibet and the Tibetan social structure remained in place in the Tibetan polity under the authority of China until the 1959 Tibetan uprising, when the Dalai Lama fled into exile and after which the Government of Tibet and Tibetan social structures were dissolved on this day.
In some Western opinions, the incorporation of Tibet into China was an annexation. The Chinese government rejects any labels of “invasion” or “annexation” and maintains that Tibet had always been a part of China.
-Wikipedia
Photo Caption – The Potala Palace, Lhasa – A dzong fortress that was the winter palace of the Dalai Lamas from 1649 to 1959, has been a museum since then, and declared a World Heritage Site since 1994 – Wikipedia