Sanda Thaditha, (
Arakanese:စန္ဒသတိဿ,whose personal name was Aung Son (အောင်စုံ), was a king of the
Mrauk-U Dynasty of
Arakan
Arakan ( or ) is a historic coastal region in Southeast Asia. Its borders faced the Bay of Bengal to its west, the Indian subcontinent to its north and Burma proper to its east. The Arakan Mountains isolated the region and made it accessi ...
. Unlike the previous kings of Arakan, Sanda Thaditha was a native of
Ramree Island
Ramree Island ( my, ရမ်းဗြဲကျွန်း; also spelled Yanbye Island) is an island off the coast of Rakhine State, Myanmar (Burma). Ramree island is the largest island in the entire Rakhine Coast and in Myanmar. The area of t ...
.
Early life
According to the Arakanese chronicles, in 1774, twelve villages on Ramree Island revolted against the heavy taxes imposed by King
Sanda Thumana. The rebels were initially led by four generals - Sanay Phyu, Lar Phyu, Maung Htwe, and Aung Son (Sanda Thaditha) - but Aung Son eventually eliminated the others and assumed sole command of the army.
On 10 February 1775, Sanda Thumana sent his general Ananta Thirikyawhtin and a large army to subdue the rebels, who had been joined by inhabitants of
Cheduba Island. However, the general was defeated and forced to retreat. On 23 April 1777 the king was overthrown by rebel leaders Poe Shwe and Do We. The next day, Poe Shwe was enthroned as
Sanda Wimala II.
In the same year, Ba htaw, lord of
Thandwe
Thandwe ("Thandway" in Arakanese; ; formerly Sandoway) is a town and major seaport in Rakhine State, the westernmost part of Myanmar. Thandwe is very ancient, and is said to have been at one time the capital of Rakhine State, then called Arakan ...
, asked Aung Son to conquer and rule Arakan. Aung Son agreed and by May 25 his army had arrived near the capital,
Mrauk U
Mrauk U ( ) is a town in northern Rakhine State, Myanmar. It is the capital of Mrauk-U Township, a subregion of the Mrauk-U District.
Mrauk U is of great cultural importance to the local Rakhine (Arakanese) people, and is the location of many ...
, and set up camp. Sanda Wimala II sent his forces against the invaders, but his army was defeated and suffered heavy losses. He fled to
Shite-thaung Temple
The Shaitthaung Temple ( Rakhine and , Rakhine pronunciation: ), also spelled Shitthaung (Okell: ''Hyiʔthaùñ hpăyà'' ) according to Standard Burmese pronunciation, is a famous Buddhist temple in Mrauk U. The name means 'Temple of 80,000 Bu ...
for refuge, later becoming a monk.
Aung Son occupied Mrauk U on 2 June 1777 and took the throne as Sanda Thaditha Raza (စန္ဒသတိဿရာဇာ). His queen was Sein Khine and Thet San Shwe became crown prince.
Reign
His reign lasted five years, during which he faced twenty-five revolts. His campaigns against the rebels were successful but did not eliminate the unrest completely. Even the heir apparent, Thet San Shwe, raised a rebellion on Ramree Island against his father.
The kingdom suffered from widespread lawlessness, and in June–July 1782 there were epidemics of smallpox and cholera. On 2 November 1782, Sanda Thaditha died, leaving many affairs unsettled. He was succeeded by
Maha Thammada, the husband of his niece.
References
Bibliography
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Thaditha
18th century in Burma
18th-century Burmese monarchs
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