Jamyang Pelmo (byam dbyangs dpal mo), also known as Tseyang Pelmo (tshe dbyangs dpal mo), was born in the water-ox year, 1913. She was the daughter of the king of Nangchen. Derge historian Lodro Puntsok (blo gros phun tshogs) describes her as confident and dynamic with strong faith in the dharma.[1]
She married the king of Derge Tsewang Dudul (tshe dbang bdud 'dul, 1916–1942), in 1938 and gave birth to their son, Orgyen Rigdzin Jigme Garwang Dorje (o rgyan rig 'dzin 'jigs med gar dbang rdo rje, 1940–1992), known also as Orgyen Kyab (o rgyan skyabs), two years later. Derge at the time was officially part of Xikang Province under control of the Chinese Nationalist governor Liu Wenhui (劉文輝 1895–1976), who had driven the Tibetan army out of the region in 1932.
In 1942 Tsewang Dudul passed away, and Jamyang Pelmo was chosen to serve as regent for her infant son. Jago Tobden (bya rgod stobs ldan, 1898–1960), a Lhasa-educated Derge minister and local strongman, attempted to arrange a marriage between Jamyang Pelmo and Tsewang Dudul's cousin, Kelzang Wangdul (bskal bzang dbang 'dul, 1912–1984). Kelzang Wangdul was the son of Ngawang Jampel Rinchen (ngag dbang 'jam dpal rin chen, d. 1918), who had engaged in a year-long civil war with Tsewang Dudul's father, Dorje Sengge (rdo rje seng ge, 1877–1919). Jago and his family had been supporters of Jampel Rinchen, and the move would have effectively put Jago in control of Derge. Liu and Derge chieftains opposed the plan, as Kelzang Wangdul had been raised in Lhasa as a Tibetan aristocrat. Jago refused to allow the appointment as regent of the Eleventh Tai Situ, Pema Wangchuk Gyelpo (ta'i si tu 11 padma dbang mchog rgyal po, 1886–1952), who had served as regent for Tsewang Dudul when he was an infant. As a compromise, Jamyang Pelmo herself took command of the kingdom.[2]
Jago Tobden posed a threat to the queen's authority from the start. Jago had been increasing his authority in the region to a point where he began to eclipse the power of the royal family. He ran afoul of Liu Wenhui in 1944 when he had a rival Nationalist official in Kandze assassinated. He narrowly escaped execution as a result of the killing. The queen ordered Jago's assassination soon afterwards, tasking the treasurer Wokma Sonam Tsering ('og ma bsod nams tshe ring) with poisoning him. Jago received warning and fled to his wife's estate in Yilhung, from where he instigated multiple rebellions against the Derge royal family. The chieftains who rejected the queen or who took over from deposed families fell in line behind Jago, and by 1950 he controlled more than twice the territory that Jamyang Pelmo did. Jago dominated Pelyul, Denkhok and Sershul, while Jamyang Pelmo held on to Gonchen, Mesho, and Pelpung. The queen requested help from her brother, the king of Nangchen, when the Communist defeated the Nationalists and the political landscape in Kham changed.[3]
The Number 18 army of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) arrived in Derge Gonchen on June 9, 1950. Most elites immediately wrote to officials to pledge their support, including Jago. Queen Jamyang Pelmo did as well, sending representatives to welcome the PLA. Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平, 1904–1997) and He Long (賀龍 1896–1969), then the regional party chief and the military leader, respectively, corresponded with Jago and urged him to set aside his conflict with Jamyang Pelmo and work for the common good, and the two soon reconciled.[4]
On March 24, 1950, Kham was declared liberated, and on March 27 the Dartsedo Military Committee was established in Dartsedo to supervise the organization of a new Kham prefecture. It formally abolished Derge's traditional government and assumed authority over the former kingdom. On November 24, 1950, the Xikang Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture People's Government (nub khams zhing chen bod rigs rang skyong ljong mi dmangs srid gzhung) was established, of which Jago Tobden was appointed the vice-chairman. Jamyang Pelmo was appointed a member of the Regional People's Government Committee—the first of many ceremonial titles she would receive alongside other former aristocrats—and on May 27, 1951, Derge was officially absorbed into the new People's Republic of China with the inauguration of the Derge County People's Government (sde dge rdzong mi dmangs srid gzhung).[5]
The former queen and royal family were not appointed to functional offices. The first county magistrate (rdzong dpon) was a man named Ronggyab Soga (rong rgyab bsod dga'), while two men served as vice-magistrates, Drayab Kunga Gyeltsen (brag yab kun dga' rgyal mtshan) and Jara Alon (ja ra a blon). According to Lodro Puntsok, Jamyang Pelmo went on to be appointed to the Chamdo Regional Liberation Committee (chab mdo bcings 'grol u yon lhan khang), the Xikang Tibetan Autonomous Prefectural government (nub khams zhing chen bod rigs rang skyong khul), and as a representative to the National People's Congress (rgyal yongs mi dmang 'thus mi tshogs chen), a vice-chair of the Sichuan Provincial Government Conference (si khron zhing chen srid gros), and a member of the Chinese National Women's Federation (rgyal yongs bud med mnyam 'brel las khungs).[6]
Jamyang Pelmo died in 1988, in Chengdu.[7]
[1] Blo gros phun tshogs, p. 91.
[2] Blo gros phun tshogs, pp. 91, 198; Tsomo, p. 385.
[3] Blo gros phun tshogs, pp. 198–199; Tsomo, pp. 385–388.
[4] Tsomo, p. 389, Blo gros phun tshogs, p. 91.
[5] Tsomo, p. 390, Blo gros phun tshogs, pp. 91-92.
[6] Blo gros phun tshogs, p. 93. See Tsomo (p. 390, note 58) for an alternate list of Jamyang Pelmo's appointments: vice-chairman of Xikang Provincial Tibetan Autonomous Regional Political Conference (Xikang sheng zangzu zizhiqu zhengxie). deputy-director of Kangding Regional National Consultative Conference (Kangding diqu minzu xieshanghui), member of Southwest Democratic Women's Federation (xinan minzhu funü lianhehui), deputy-director of Xikang Provincial Women’s Federation (Xikang sheng fulian), and executive committee member of All China Democratic Women’s Federation (Zhonghua quanguo funü lianhehui).
[7] Blo gros phun tshogs, p. 93.
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Bibliography
Blo gros phun tshogs. 1995. Zhar byung bya rgod stobs ldan dang de'i khyim rgyud kyi lo rgyus rags rim. In Sde dge'i lo rgyus, pp. 185–205. Derge: Srid gros sde dge rdzong rig gnas lo rgyus rgyu cha bsdu sgrig u yon lhan khang. TBRC W26569.
Lha lung 'chi med rdo rje and Zla g.yang. 2009. Khams sde dge rgyal po'i srid don lo rgyus. Beijing: Krung go'i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang.
Tsomu, Yudru. 2019. "The Rise of a Political Strongman in Dergé in the Early Twentieth Century. The Story of Jagö Topden." In Frontier Tibet: Patterns of Change in Sino- Tibetan Borderlands, Stéphane Gros, editor. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.