The rear of the White Palace, completed in 1653 by the fifth Dalai Lama, on the original site of King Songtsen Gampo's palace in the 7th century, is part of the Potala Palace, finished in 1694. Past residence of Dalai Lamas, seat of Tibetan government, on the UNESCO World Heritage List, now empty, the Potala Palace sits atop Marpo Ri, Red Hill, and overlooks Lhasa, Tibet, China.