Bagyidaw ( my, ဘကြီးတော်, ; also known as Sagaing Min, ; 23 July 1784 – 15 October 1846) was the seventh
king
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...
of the
Konbaung dynasty
The Konbaung dynasty ( my, ကုန်းဘောင်ခေတ်, ), also known as Third Burmese Empire (တတိယမြန်မာနိုင်ငံတော်) and formerly known as the Alompra dynasty (အလောင်းဘ ...
of
Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
from 1819 until his abdication in 1837. Prince of
Sagaing, as he was commonly known in his day, was selected as
crown prince
A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the w ...
by his grandfather King
Bodawpaya in 1808, and became king in 1819 after Bodawpaya's death. Bagyidaw moved the capital from
Amarapura
Amarapura ( my, အမရပူရ, MLCTS=a. ma. ra. pu ra., , ; also spelt as Ummerapoora) is a former capital of Myanmar, and now a township of Mandalay city. Amarapura is bounded by the Irrawaddy river in the west, Chanmyathazi Township in t ...
back to
Ava in 1823.
Bagyidaw's reign saw the
First Anglo-Burmese War (1824–1826), which marked the beginning of the decline of the Konbaung dynasty. Bagyidaw inherited the largest Burmese empire, second only to King
Bayinnaung
, image = File:Bayinnaung.JPG
, caption = Statue of Bayinnaung in front of the National Museum of Myanmar
, reign = 30 April 1550 – 10 October 1581
, coronation = 11 January 1551 at Tou ...
's, but also one that shared ill-defined borders with
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
. In the years leading to the war, the king had been forced to suppress British supported rebellions in his grandfather's western acquisitions (
Arakan,
Manipur
Manipur () ( mni, Kangleipak) is a state in Northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It also borders two regions of ...
and
Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
), but unable to stem cross border raids from
British territories and protectorates.
[Owen 2005: 87–88] His ill-advised decision to allow the Burmese army to pursue the rebels along the vaguely defined borders led to the war. The longest and most expensive war in
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
n history
[Myint-U 2006: 112–113] ended decisively in British favor, and the Burmese had to accept British terms without discussion.
[Phayre 1883: 237] Bagyidaw was forced to cede all of his grandfather's western acquisitions, and
Tenasserim to the British, and pay a large indemnity of one million
pounds sterling, leaving the country crippled for years.
Devastated, Bagyidaw held out hope for some years that Tenasserim would be returned to him, and paid the balance of indemnity in 1832 at great sacrifice.
[Htin Aung 1967: 220–221] The British redrew the border with Manipur in 1830, but by 1833, it was clear the British would not return any of the former territories. The king became a recluse, and power devolved to his queen
Nanmadaw Me Nu
, image = Nanmadaw Me Nu.jpg
, succession = Chief queen consort of Burma
, reign = 5 June 1819 – 15 April 1837
, predecessor = Shin Paik Thaung
, successor = Thiri Pawara Ti L ...
(born in
Pha Lan Gon) and her brother.
[Steinberg et al 1987: 106] His brother Crown Prince
Tharrawaddy raised a rebellion in February 1837, and Bagyidaw was forced to abdicate the throne in April 1837. King Tharrawaddy executed Queen Me Nu and her brother but placed his brother under house arrest. Bagyidaw died on 15 October 1846, at age 62.
[
]
Early life
The future king was born Maung Sein to Crown Prince Thado Minsaw, Prince of Shwedaung and his half-sister Min Kye, Princess of Taungdwin, on 23 July 1784. The infant prince was granted Sagaing as his fief
A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form ...
by his grandfather King Bodawpaya, hence known as Prince of Sagaing. On 23 June 1793, the young prince, not yet 9, was made a general of the Northern and Southern Corps of Royal Cavalry. On 9 February 1803, the 18-year-old prince married 14-year-old Princess Hsinbyume
Princess Hsinbyume ( my, ဆင်ဖြူရှင်မယ်; ) was crown princess of Burma from 1808 to 1812, and first wife of King Bagyidaw of Konbaung dynasty. She married Bagyidaw when he was Prince of Sagaing on 9 February 1803. Hsinbyu ...
, a granddaughter of Bodawpaya. The young prince was fond of shows, theater, elephant catching and boat racing.[
]
Crown Prince
His father Crown Prince Thado Minsaw died on 9 April 1808. Nine days later, the young prince at 23 was suddenly elevated to the position of Crown Prince by his grandfather King Bodawpaya. The prince was also allowed to inherit his father's fiefs of Dabayin and Shwedaung. The Crown Prince was Master-General of the Ordnance in the Burmese-Siamese War of 1808, which ended in a stalemate. His elevation to crown prince also brought his royal servants, including Maung Yit (later Gen. Maha Bandula
General Maha Bandula ( my, မဟာဗန္ဓုလ ; 6 November 1782 – 1 April 1825) was commander-in-chief of the Royal Burmese Armed Forces from 1821 until his death in 1825 in the First Anglo-Burmese War. Bandula was a ...
) of Dabayin and Maung Sa (later Lord of Myawaddy) of Sagaing to prominence. Myawaddy became his longtime adviser and personal secretary (''atwinwn'') until his abdication in 1837. He promoted Maung Yit to governor of Ahlon-Monywa.
In 1812, his first queen Princess Hsinbyume died of childbirth in Mingun near Ava. The crown prince built a beautiful white stupa
A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation.
In Buddhism, circum ...
in memory of his first wife named Myatheindan Pagoda at Mingun. He took on five more queens as crown prince (of the eventual number of 23 queens). His third and later chief queen Nanmadaw Me Nu
, image = Nanmadaw Me Nu.jpg
, succession = Chief queen consort of Burma
, reign = 5 June 1819 – 15 April 1837
, predecessor = Shin Paik Thaung
, successor = Thiri Pawara Ti L ...
built the Maha Aungmye Bonzan Monastery in 1818, more commonly known as ''Me Nu Ok Kyaung'' (Me Nu's Brick Monastery), unusual in that Burmese monasteries traditionally are wooden structures.
During his stay as crown prince, his grandfather Bodawpaya renewed his expansionism in the west. In February 1814, a Burmese expeditionary force invaded Manipur, placing Marjit Singh
Marjit Singh was a Meitei king who ruled Manipur kingdom between 1812 and 1819 as a vassal of Burma, but was eventually expelled by the Burmese.: "Marjit ruled over Manipur for seven years (1812-1819) as a vassal of the Burmese King." The Burm ...
, who grew up in Ava, as vassal king.
In 1816, the Ahom governor of Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
in Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
, Badan Chandra Borphukan
Borphukan (Ahom language: ''Phu-Kan-Lung'') was one of the five (councillors) in the Ahom kingdom, a position that was created by the Ahom king Prataap Singha. The position included both executive and judicial powers, with jurisdiction of the ...
visited the court of Bodawpaya to seek help in order to defeat his political rival Purnananda Burhagohain Buragohain (Ahom language: ''Chao Phrung Mung'') was the first of the two original counsellors in the Ahom kingdom. He was selected by the Ahom king from members of the Ahom nobility (''Satgharia Ahom''),who vowed not to fight for the position of ...
, the Prime Minister of Ahom Kingdom in Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
. A strong force of 16,000 under the command of Gen. Maha Minhla Minkhaung was sent with Badan Chandra Borphukan
Borphukan (Ahom language: ''Phu-Kan-Lung'') was one of the five (councillors) in the Ahom kingdom, a position that was created by the Ahom king Prataap Singha. The position included both executive and judicial powers, with jurisdiction of the ...
. The Burmese force entered Assam in January 1817 and defeated the Assamese force in the battle of Ghiladhari. Meanwhile, Purnananda Burhagohain died and Ruchinath Burhagohain Buragohain (Ahom language: ''Chao Phrung Mung'') was the first of the two original counsellors in the Ahom kingdom. He was selected by the Ahom king from members of the Ahom nobility (''Satgharia Ahom''),who vowed not to fight for the position of ...
, the son of Purnananda Burahgohain fled to Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
. The reigning Ahom king Chandrakanta Singha came in terms with Badan Chandra Borphukan
Borphukan (Ahom language: ''Phu-Kan-Lung'') was one of the five (councillors) in the Ahom kingdom, a position that was created by the Ahom king Prataap Singha. The position included both executive and judicial powers, with jurisdiction of the ...
and his Burmese allies. He appointed Badan Chandra Borphukan as Mantri Phukan (Prime Minister). An Ahom princess Hemo Aideo was given for marriage to Burmese King Bodawpaya along with many gifts to strengthen the ties with the Burmese monarch. The Burmese force returned to Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
soon after. A year later, Badan Chandra Borphukan was assassinated and the Ahom king Chandrakanta Singha was deposed by rival political faction led by Ruchinath Burhagohain, the son of Purnananda Burhagohain. Chandrakanta Singha and the friends of Badan Chandra Borphukan appeal for help to Bodawpaya. In February 1819, the Burmese forces invaded Assam for second time and reinstalled Chandrakanta Singha on the throne of Assam.
Reign
Troubles on the western front
Bodawpaya died on 5 June 1819, and Bagyidaw ascended to the throne without opposition. On 7 June 1819, he was crowned at Amarapura with the reign name of Sri Pawara Suriya Dharmaraja Maharajadhiraja. It was later expanded to Siri Tribhawanaditya Dhipati Pawara Pandita Mahadhammarajadhiraja.[Yi Yi 1965: 53] Bagyidaw inherited the second largest Burmese empire but also one that shared a long vaguely defined borders with British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
. The British, disturbed by the Burmese control of Manipur and Assam which threatened their own influence on the eastern borders of British India, supported rebellions in the region.[
The first to test Bagyidaw's rule was the Raja of Manipur, who was put on the Manipuri throne only six years earlier by the Burmese. Raja Marjit Singh failed to attend Bagyidaw's coronation ceremony, or send an embassy bearing tributes, as all vassal kings had an obligation to do. In October 1819, Bagyidaw sent an expeditionary force of 25,000 soldiers and 3,000 cavalry led by his favorite general Maha Bandula to reclaim Manipur.][Aung Than Tun 2003] Bandula reconquered Manipur but the raja escaped to neighboring Cachar, which was ruled by his brother Chourjit Singh.[Phayre 1883: 233–234] The Singh brothers continued to raid Manipur using their bases from Cachar and Jaintia, which had been declared as British protectorates.
The instabilities spread to Assam in 1821, when the Ahom king of Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
, Chandrakanta Singha tried to shake off Burmese influence. He hired mercenaries from Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
and began to strengthen the army. He also began to construct fortification to prevent further Burmese invasion. Bagyidaw again turned to Bandula. It took Bandula's 20,000-strong army about a year a half, until July 1822, to finish off the Assamese army. Bagyidaw now scrapped the six- century-old Assamese monarchy and made Assam a province under a military governor-general. This differs with the Assamese versions of history where it is written that Bagyidaw installed Jogeswar Singha
Jogeswar Singha was installed as the king of Ahom kingdom in 1821 CE, by the Burmese. He was more or less a puppet in the hands of the Burmese, who held the real power of administration. His reign witnessed Burmese atrocities on the people of Ass ...
, a brother of Hemo Aideo, the Ahom princess who was married to Bodawpaya as the new Ahom king of Assam and a military governor-general was appointed to look after the administration.[E. A. Gait 1926 ''A History of Assam'': 228–230] The defeated Assamese king fled to British territory of Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
. The British ignored Burmese demands to surrender the fugitive king, and instead sent reinforcement units to frontier forts.[Shakespear 1914: 62–63] Despite their success in the open battlefield, the Burmese continued to have trouble with cross border raids by rebels from British protectorates of Cachar and Jaintia into Manipur and Assam, and those from British Bengal into Arakan.
At Bagyidaw's court, the war party which included Gen. Bandula, Queen Me Nu and her brother, the lord of Salin, made the case to Bagyidaw that a decisive victory could allow Ava to consolidate its gains in its new western empire in Arakan, Manipur, Assam, Cachar and Jaintia, as well as take over eastern Bengal.[Myint-U 2001: 18–19] In January 1824, Bandula allowed one of his top lieutenants, Maha Uzana, into Cachar and Jaintia to chase away the rebels. The British sent in their own force to meet the Burmese in Cachar, resulting in the first clashes between the two. The war formally broke out on 5 March 1824, following border clashes in Arakan.
War
In the beginning of the war, battle-hardened Burmese forces, who were more familiar with the terrain which represented "a formidable obstacle to the march of a European force", were able to push back better armed British forces made up of European and Indian soldiers.[Phayre 1883: 236–237] By May, Uzana's forces had overrun Cachar and Jaintia, and Lord of Myawaddy's forces had defeated the British inside Bengal, causing a great panic in Calcutta.
Instead of fighting in harsh terrain, the British took the fight to the Burmese mainland. On 11 May, a British naval force of over 10,000 men, led by Archibald Campbell entered the port city of Yangon
Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
, taking the Burmese by surprise.[ Bagyidaw ordered Bandula and most of the troops back home to meet the enemy at Yangon. In December 1824, Bandula's 30,000 strong force tried to retake Yangon but was soundly defeated by the much better armed British forces. The British immediately went on an offensive on all fronts. By April 1825, the British had driven out the Burmese forces from Arakan, Assam, Manipur, Tenasserim, and the Irrawaddy delta where Gen. Bandula died in action. After Bandula's death, the Burmese fought on but their last-ditch effort to retake the delta was repulsed in November 1825. In February 1826, with the British army only 50 miles away from Ava, Bagyidaw agreed to British terms.
As per the Treaty of Yandabo, the British demanded and the Burmese agreed to:][
# Cede to the British ]Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
, Manipur
Manipur () ( mni, Kangleipak) is a state in Northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It also borders two regions of ...
, Arakan, and Tenasserim coast south of Salween river
, ''Mae Nam Salawin'' (
, name_etymology =
, image = Sweet_View_of_Salween_River_in_Tang_Yan_Township,_Shan_State,_Myanmar.jpg
, image_size =
, image_caption = Salween River in Shan State, Myanmar
, map ...
,
# Cease all interference in Cachar
Cachar district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. After independence the undivided Cachar district was split into four districts in Assam: Dima Hasao district (formerly North Cachar Hills), Cachar district alongside ...
and Jaintia,
# Pay an indemnity of one million pounds sterling in four installments,
# Allow for an exchange of diplomatic representatives between Ava and Calcutta,
# Sign a commercial treaty in due course.
After the war
The treaty imposed highly severe financial burden to the Burmese kingdom, and effectively left it crippled. The British terms in the negotiations were strongly influenced by the heavy cost in lives and money which the war had entailed. Some 40,000 British and Indians troops had been involved of whom 15,000 had been killed. The cost to the British India's finances had been almost ruinous, amounting to approximately 13 million pounds sterling. The cost of war contributed to a severe economic crisis in India, which by 1833 had bankrupted the Bengal agency houses and cost the British East India Company its remaining privileges, including the monopoly of trade to China.[Webster 1998:142–145]
For the Burmese, the treaty was a total humiliation and a long-lasting financial burden. A whole generation of men had been wiped out in battlefield. The world the Burmese knew of conquest and martial pride, built on the back of impressive military success of prior 75 years, had come crashing down. An uninvited British Resident in Ava was a daily reminder of humiliation of defeat.[ The burden of indemnity would leave the royal treasury bankrupt for years. The indemnity of one million pounds sterling would have been considered a colossal sum even in Europe of that time, and it became frightening when translated to Burmese kyat equivalent of 10 million. The cost of living of the average villager in Upper Burma in 1826 was one kyat per month.][Htin Aung 1967: 214–215]
Bagyidaw could not come to terms with the loss of the territories, and the British used Tenasserim as bait for the Burmese to pay the installments of indemnity. In 1830, the British agreed to redraw the Manipuri border with Burma, giving back Kabaw Valley to the Burmese. Bagyidaw delivered the balance of the indemnity at great sacrifice in November 1832. But by 1833, it was clear that the British had no intention of returning any of the territories. The king, who used to love theater and boat racing, grew increasingly reclusive, afflicted by bouts of depression. The palace power devolved to his chief queen Me Nu and her brother Maung O. In February 1837, Bagyidaw's crown prince and brother Tharrawaddy rebelled, and two months later in April, Bagyidaw was forced to abdicate. Tharrawaddy executed Me Nu and her brother, and kept his brother under house arrest. Bagyidaw died on 15 October 1846, at age 62. The former king had 23 queens, five sons and five daughters.
Notes
References
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External links
Journal of An Embassy from the Governor-General of India to the Court of Ava in the year 1827 by John Crawfurd, 1829
Journal of An Embassy from the Governor-General of India to the Court of Ava by John Crawfurd, Vol II 1834
* Gerry Abbott, SOAS, Autumn 2005
{{Authority control
Konbaung dynasty
1784 births
1846 deaths
People of the First Anglo-Burmese War
19th-century Burmese monarchs