Shey is a village in the Leh district of Ladakh, India. It is located in the Leh tehsil, 15 km from Leh towards Hemis. Shey was founded as the summer capital of Ladakh, by the king Lhachen Palgyigon in the 10th century, with Leh being winter capital. It was gradually eclipsed by Leh around the 17th century after the growth of Central Asian trade.