1959 Tibetan uprising

Belligerents

Tibetan and Khampa protesters and guerrillas

Ongoing rebellion in Kham and Amdo:

Commanders and leadersSeveral leadersTan GuansanCasualties and losses 10,000 deaths (PRIO estimate); 85,000–87,000 deaths (TGIE claim) 2,000 killed1959 Tibetan armed rebellionTraditional Chinese1959年西藏武裝叛亂Simplified Chinese1959年西藏武装叛乱1959 Tibetan anti-riot movementTraditional Chinese1959年西藏抗暴運動Simplified Chinese1959年西藏抗暴运动1959 Tibetan unrestsTraditional Chinese1959年藏區騷亂Simplified Chinese1959年藏区骚乱

The 1959 Tibetan uprising or Lhasa uprising began on 10 March 1959 as a series of protests in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa, fueled by fears that the government of the People's Republic of China planned to arrest the Dalai Lama. Over the next ten days, the demonstrations evolved from expressions of support for the 14th Dalai Lama to demands for independence and the reversal of the 1951 Chinese annexation of Tibet. After protesters acquired weapons, China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) shelled protesters in the Dalai Lama's summer palace and deployed tanks to suppress the demonstrations. Bloody fighting continued for the next three days while the Dalai Lama escaped to India. Thousands of Tibetans were killed during the 1959 uprising, but the exact number is disputed.

The 10 March anniversary of the uprising is observed by exiled Tibetans as Tibetan Uprising Day and Women's Uprising Day. On 19 January 2009, the PRC-controlled legislature in the Tibet Autonomous Region chose 28 March as the national anniversary of Serfs Emancipation Day. American Tibetologist Warren W. Smith Jr. describes the move as a "counter-propaganda" celebration following the 10 March 2008 unrest in Tibet.