Political and Military Activities
In 763 Trisong Detsän sent an army of 200,000 men to the border with Tang China, defeating the forces there and then continuing on to take Chang'an, the Chinese capital, forcing the Tang Emperor to flee the capital. In 783 a peace treaty was negotiated between China and Tibet giving Tibet all lands in the Kokonor region. At that time, the Tang Empire had started its decline due to the Anshi Rebellion.
The King also formed an alliance with King Imobsun of Siam in 778, joining forces to attack the Chinese in Sichuan.
Trisong Detsän next sought to expand westward, reaching the Oxus River and threatening the Arab Caliph, Harun al-Rashid. The Caliph was concerned enough to establish an alliance with the Chinese emperor, and perhaps this alone prevented Tibet from taking control of the Middle East and points beyond. Through the remainder of his reign the King would be preoccupied with Arab wars in the west, taking pressure off his Chinese opponents to the east and north, until his rule ended in 797.
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