In the spring of 1934, a Chinese mission led by GeneralHuang Musong, then Deputy Chief of the General Staffof the Guomindang regime, was dispatched to Lhasawith the official purpose of offering condolences tothe late 13th Dalai Lama who died in late 1933.Huang's visit to Tibet undoubtedly was the mostpolitically symbolic event in Sino-Tibetan relationssince the collapse of the Qing dynasty. He becamethe most high-profile of Chinese officials to haveentered Lhasa since 1911, when the Chinese Republicwas created. Before returning to Nanking, Huang lefta representative office, along with a wireless setin Lhasa; these could be actions which the Chineseconsidered marked their authority in Tibet.