Planning and Architecture

Throughout its history Leh has served as an important halt for caravans which travelled along the fabled Silk Route. Traders and merchants would halt here to exchange goods or to continue on to other cities located along the trade route. The development of Leh town probably began with the reign of the famous King Sengge Namgyal who ruled in the 17th century and during whose reign the kingdom expanded to its fullest extent. His most visible contribution to the town was the nine-storeyed palaces, which still dominate it today. The area around the palace developed with the houses of several noblemen and residences and temples belonging to different monasteries dotted along the slopes of the hill. The city of Leh traditionally comprised of many ancient localities known as Skyangos Gogsum, Chhubi Yangrtse, Kharyok and Stagofilok. The present city has evolved from some of these ancient localities. Many of the houses and monasteries are built on elevated, sunny sites facing the south, and are often constructed from a mixture of rocks, wood, cement and earth.

The architecture of the historic core uses the same indigenous materials that are used in other traditional buildings of this region. These are sun-dried mud bricks and stone, which have been used with great skill by the local masons to create buildings that have survived several centuries. The layout of the old town, with its narrow alleys and lanes surrounded by ancient adobe structures, gives a rare glimpse of the town’s past.

The central area of Ladakh has the greatest concentration of major Buddhist monasteries or gompas. Many of these monasteries were built in the past under the direct patronage of members of the ruling Namgyal dynasty. The monastic architectural tradition of this region reflects the underlying principles and approach of Buddhism. The monasteries are situated on the isolated hillock in the vicinity of villages. The monasteries are the focal point of religious faith for the highly religious Buddhist people. Monasteries are the places of worship, isolated meditation and religious instruction for the young. The approach to the monasteries is lined with mane walls and chortens. Mane walls are made of votive stones on which prayers and holy figures are inscribed, while chortens are semi-religious shrines or reliquaries containing relics of holy people or scripts.

Today Leh is developing as a major urbanized city and is expanding towards Choglamsar along the Leh-Manali road and towards Phyang on the Leh-Srinagar National Highway.