Smim Htaw ( my, သမိန်ထော, ; died 27 March 1553) was a

pretender A pretender is someone who claims to be the rightful ruler of a country although not recognized as such by the current government. The term is often used to suggest that a claim is not legitimate.Curley Jr., Walter J. P. ''Monarchs-in-Waiting'' ...

to the Hanthawaddy throne, and the last king in the line of the Hanthawaddy dynasty. He ruled a small region around

Pegu Bago (formerly spelt Pegu; , ), formerly known as Hanthawaddy, is a city and the capital of the Bago Region in Myanmar. It is located north-east of Yangon. Etymology The Burmese name Bago (ပဲခူး) is likely derived from the Mon langua ...

as king from 1550 to 1552. An ex- Buddhist monk, and a son of King

Binnya Ran II Binnya Ran II ( my, ဒုတိယ ဗညားရံ, ; Mon: ဗညားရာံ; 1469–1526) the 17th king of the Kingdom of Hanthawaddy in Burma from 1492 to 1526. He was revered for his gentleness although his first act as king was to enf ...

by a minor queen, Htaw first raised a rebellion in 1549 during the reign of King

Tabinshwehti Tabinshwehti ( my, တပင်‌ရွှေထီး, ; 16 April 1516 – 30 April 1550) was king of Burma (Myanmar) from 1530 to 1550, and the founder of the First Toungoo Empire. His military campaigns (1534–1549) created the largest kin ...

Toungoo Taungoo (, ''Tauñngu myoú''; ; also spelled Toungoo) is a district-level city in the Bago Region of Myanmar, 220 km from Yangon, towards the north-eastern end of the division, with mountain ranges to the east and west. The main industry ...

, who had conquered the Mon-speaking kingdom ten years earlier. Htaw was on the run in the delta chased after by Gen.

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 Toung ...

of Toungoo when Tabinshwehti was assassinated by one of his close advisers, Smim Sawhtut, on 30 April 1550. Sawhtut proclaimed himself king. Htaw raised an army and defeated Sawhtut near

(Bago) in August 1550. Though proclaimed himself king at once, Htaw controlled just the region around Pegu.Phayre 1967: 102–106 His rule at Pegu lasted about a year and a half as Bayinnaung, who was heir apparent under Tabinshwehti, came to attack Pegu in March 1552. North of the city, Toungoo and Peguan forces met. In desperation, Htaw challenged and fought Bayinnaung in single combat, both on their war elephants. Bayinnaung was victorious, charging his foe and driving him off after breaking the tusk of Htaw's elephant.Harvey 1925: 163 Bayinnaung reportedly "paid Htaw no more heed than a lion does to jackals."Myint-U 2006: 69–70 Pegu was taken. Htaw was on the run for the next 12 months until he was captured in March 1553. He was brought to Pegu and executed on 27 March (13th waxing of Tagu 935 ME).Hmannan Vol. 2 2003: 278

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Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Htaw, Smim Hanthawaddy dynasty 1553 deaths Year of birth unknown 16th-century Burmese monarchs