Lhasa is the capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region and has been the centre of politics, economy, culture and religion since ancient times in its history of more than 1,300 years. The city has mainly developed in three distinct phases, the first one in the sixth and seventh centuries, in which the Jokhang and some other temples like e.g. the Ramoche Temple were constructed. The next major period of development stretched from the 15th century, three major monasteries were founded then, to the 17th century when the Potala Palace was built and the 18th century shaped by the construction of the Dalai Lama summer palace Norbulingka. The most recent phase of construction in Lhasa has been carried out under the Chinese occupation (from 1951 onwards), subjecting the city to unrelenting expansion and transformation, its polder buildings
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