Burmese–Siamese War (1759–1760)

The Burmese–Siamese War (1759–1760) (; ) or Alaungpaya's War () was the military conflict between the Konbaung dynasty of Burma (Myanmar) and the Ban Phlu Luang Dynasty of the Ayutthaya Kingdom of Siam, in which the Burmese forces under King Alaungpaya of the Konbaung dynasty invaded Siam. After about a century of relative hiatus of Burmese–Siamese conflicts, this war reignited the new round of military conflicts between Burma and Siam that would last for about a century to come.

After the fall of Burmese Toungoo dynasty at the hands of the Mons of Hanthawaddy in 1752, the Burmese resurged powerful under King Alaungpaya who founded the new Konbaung dynasty in 1752. In the course of Burmese reunification, Burmese forces under charismatic leadership of Alaungpaya had gained military experiences, including expulsion of the British and the French from Lower Burma. Burma reconstituted into a militarized polity, whereas Siam, centered on Ayutthaya, had not faced any serious external threats or military conflicts since late seventeenth century and Siamese defense system had been largely in disuse. Siam, through the eighteenth century, had been plagued with internal rebellions, succession disputes and decline of manpower control. Chronic manpower shortage undermined Siamese defense system.

Immediate causes of the war were dispute over the Tenasserim Coast and perceived Siamese support to the Mons of Lower Burma in their insurgency against Burmese rule. King Alaungpaya was provoked by the incident in which Burmese royal ship was seized by the Siamese in September 1759. Siamese authorities at Mergui refused to repatriate a Mon rebel ship, branded as a royal Burmese ship, to Burma. This Burmese military expedition was also driven by the Indic ''Chakravarti'' or ''Cakkavatti'' ideology, in which Alaungpaya viewed himself as Universal Ruler with boundless military conquests with the goal to bring forth the new epoch of ''Bodhisattava'' or Future Buddha.

Alaungpaya and his Burmese forces of 40,000 men left Rangoon to invade Siam in late December 1759, with his second son Prince Thiri Damayaza of Myedu (later King Hsinbyushin) and his childhood friend Minkhaung Nawrahta as vanguard commanders. Going through Martaban, the Burmese vanguard conquered Tavoy in December. After taking the whole Tenasserim Coast, Alaungpaya and his Burmese forces entered Siam crossing the Tenasserim Hills through the Singkhon Pass in early March 1760. The news of Burmese invasion came as a surprise for Ayutthaya, who was unprepared, panicked and disorganized. King Ekkathat sent his inexperienced Siamese forces to face the Burmese at Singkhon Pass, resulting in the Burmese prevail, humiliating Siamese retreat and the desperate heroic stand of Khun Rong Palat Chu well-narrated in Thai nationalistic history.

Ayutthaya adopted the traditional strategy of passive stand inside of Ayutthaya citadel against the invaders, relying on formidable wall of Ayutthaya and arrival of rainy wet season to ward off the invaders. The Burmese swept through Western Siamese towns of Kuiburi, Phetchaburi, Ratchaburi and Suphanburi. The more-capable temple king Uthumphon, who had previously abdicated in 1758 to become a monk, returned to power to assume military commands. In the Battle of Talan or Noi River in late March 1760, impulsivity of Prince Myedu nearly resulted in Burmese defeat as the Siamese fired onto the river-crossing Burmese but timely arrival of Alaungpaya's main forces saved the situation. Siamese commander and Minister of Military, Chaophraya Kalahom Khlongklaeb, was killed in battle.

The Burmese eventually reached the outskirts of Ayutthaya in late March 1760. Alaungpaya took position at Ban Kum or Bangban to the northwest of Ayutthaya, while his vanguard under Minkhaung Nawrahta approached the northern walls of Ayutthaya to attack. The Siamese adhered to the passive defense strategy, convinced that the Burmese were obliged to leave at the advent of rainy season. The Burmese attacked Ayutthaya in April 1760, resulting in gruesome massacre of Ayutthayan people and foreign merchants on the southern moat. Minkhaung Nawrahta fires cannons into the Ayutthaya citadel, damaging structures including Ekkathat's royal residence.

Alaungpaya the Burmese king fell ill in mid-April 1760. His son Prince Myedu and his friend Minkhaung Nawrahta convinced Alaungpaya to retreat. Alaungpaya and his Burmese forces retreated in April 1760, leaving Minkhaung Nawrahta at Ban Kum as rearguard against any possible Siamese pursuits, utterly destroying Siamese pursuing forces. Ayutthaya was thus saved from Burmese conquest as the passive defense strategy worked for one last time, postponing the fall of Ayutthaya for seven years. After a long journey, going back to Burma through the Maesot Pass, the ailing King Alaungpaya died in May 1760 at a place near Martaban, ending the life of an impactful man who, in the course of his eight-year-reign, reunified Burma under his new powerful militaristic regime, sparking a chain of events that would profoundly affect the history of Continental Southeast Asia.

This war laid foundation for the next Burmese invasion of Siam in 1765–1767. The Burmese, particularly Prince Myedu, learned about Siamese strategy and tactics. The death of Alaungpaya was followed by a new round of internal unrests in Burma, including the rebellion of Minkhaung Nawrahta himself in 1760. The new Burmese king Naungdawgyi pacified the unrest by 1762 but died prematurely next year in late 1763. Prince Myedu, son of Alaungpaya and younger brother of Naungdawgyi, eventually ascended the Burmese throne as King Hsinbyushin in 1763. Hsinbyushin viewed the conquest of Ayutthaya as due accomplishment unattained by his father Alaungpaya so he was determined to finish the mission. Hsinbyushin innovated and conveyed his new strategy to his commanders sent into Siam in 1765, effectively circumventing and undoing traditional Siamese defense strategy, leading to the eventual destructive fall of Ayutthaya in 1767.

Background

Summary of Burmese–Mon–Siamese conflicts

Burmese King Tabinshweti of Toungoo dynasty conquered the Mon Kingdom of Hanthawaddy in Lower Burma in 1539. However, the Mons soon rebelled and had to be reconquered by King Bayinnaung in 1551. Burmese kings of Toungoo dynasty established their royal capital at Pegu or Hanthawaddy, which had been the Mon royal seat, respecting Mon culture. In 1555, Bayinnaung conquered the Shan-occupied Ava and Upper Burma, uniting Burma under a single rule for the first time since the Pagan kingdom. Bayinnaung went on to conquer Lanna Chiang Mai (1558), Manipur (1560) and Tavoy (1562). In 1563, King Bayinnaung led his Burmese armies to invade neighboring Siamese Kingdom of Ayutthaya. King Thammaracha of Phitsanulok, a Siamese vassal king, allied with the Burmese king. Bayinnaung then went on to lay siege on Ayutthaya, resulting in the surrender of Ayutthaya in 1564. However, conflicts between Ayutthaya and Burmese-backed Phitsanulok prompted Bayinnaung to send another invasion force to attack Ayutthaya. Ayutthaya fell to Burmese invaders in 1569. Bayinnaung appointed Thammaracha as King of Ayutthaya and his vassal. During his reign, Burmese king Bayinnaung expanded his kingdom to unprecedented territorial size and influence. Bayinnaung appointed his own son, Nawrahta Minsaw, to be King of Chiang Mai and ruler over Lanna.

Bayinnaung died in 1581, leaving the throne to his son Nanda Bayin. Burma then entered a period of decline. Naresuan broke his Siam kingdom free from Burmese domination in 1584. In 1586, Nanda Bayin himself marched Burmese forces to attack and lay siege on Ayutthaya in retaliation but failed to reconquer Ayutthaya. After 1587, Burmese forces would not reach Ayutthayan outskirts again for the next two hundred years (until 1760). In 1592, Nanda Bayin sent his son the crown prince Mingyi Swa to invade Siam. Naresuan intercepted the Burmese at Western frontiers near Suphanburi, leading to the Battle of Nong Sarai in 1593, in which Naresuan prevailed over Burmese invaders and the Burmese crown prince was killed in battle. After the victory, Siam went on offensives, reclaiming Tavoy and Tenasserim in 1593 and taking control of Martaban in 1594. Burma disintegrated into competing princely regimes of Ava, Prome and Toungoo. Even King Nawrahta Minsaw of Chiang Mai submitted to Naresuan, bringing Lanna under Ayutthayan domination. The Burmese Prince of Toungoo, in collaboration with Arakan Kingdom, successfully seized Pegu the Burmese capital in 1599. Naresuan embarked on his grand campaign to invade Lower Burma in 1600. Prince of Toungoo brought Burmese king Nanda Bayin to his hometown at Toungoo, leaving the Arakanese to freely plunder and burn down Pegu. Naresuan followed to Toungoo, laying siege on the city but did not succeed and turned back. Nanda Bayin the Burmese king himself was assassinated in 1600 by Nat Shin Naung, son of the Toungoo prince.

After the death of Nanda Bayin, Burma descended into civil war with regional regimes sprang up at Ava, Prome, Toungoo and Syriam. In 1603, Prince Nyaungyan of Ava attacked Shan States, which were allies of Siam. Naresuan led Siamese armies to support the Shans but died on his way in 1605. Nyaungyan also died in 1605 during his Shan campaign, succeeded by his son Anaukpetlun. From Ava, Anaukpetlun conquered all of his rival regional regimes, uniting Burma again under his rule. In 1613, Anaukpetlun reestablished Pegu as Burmese royal capital. The new Burmese king also reconquered Martaban, Tavoy (1614) and Chiang Mai (1615) from Siam. After this, Burmese–Siamese conflicts cooled down and reached stalemate, with Burma being in control of Lanna, Martaban and Tavoy and Siam controlling Tenasserim. King Thalun moved Burmese capital from Pegu in Lower Burma to Ava in Upper Burma in 1636, The Mons of Lower Burma were then neglected by the Burmese court, allowing them to be more autonomous. In 1660, Qing China invaded Burma in search for Southern Ming Yongli Emperor who had taken refuge in Burma. The panicked Lanna King of Chiang Mai requested aid from King Narai of Ayutthaya. Burma conscripted Mon people to fight Chinese invaders, leading to Mon rebellion at Martaban in 1661. King Narai led Siamese forces north to Lanna but the Chiang Mai king annulled this alliance as the war turned to Burmese favor. Burmese king Pindale sent Burmese armies to subjugate the Mon rebellion, proceeding to invade Western Siam through the Three Pagodas Pass. The Siamese repelled Burmese invaders in 1661 at Saiyok near Kanchanaburi. King Narai conquered Chiang Mai in late 1661. Siam retaliated by attacking Tavoy up to Martaban on Tenasserim Coast in 1662. However, Siam did not seek to permanently occupy Lanna and the Mon lands so these Siamese conquests reverted back to Burmese rule.

Decline and Fall of Toungoo dynasty

In 1704, King Charairongba of Meitei Kangleipak Kingdom married off his sister Chakpa Makhao Ngambi to Burmese king Sanay. However, Sanay reportedly mistreated Chakpa Makhao Ngambi, not making her his chief queen as promised. Charairongba then died with a broken heart in 1709, instructing his son and successor Pamheiba to avenge Burma. Pamheiba, the new king of Kangleipak, under influence of Indian ''guru'' Shantidas Goswami, converted his kingdom to Hindu Vaishnavism, renamed his kingdom Manipur and renamed himself with a Persianate name Gharib Niwaz. In 1716, the new Burmese king Taninganway sent his envoys asking for a Manipuri princess to marry. Gharib Niwaz, remembering the grudges of his father, was offended by this request. Gharib Niwaz sent his forces to ambush the Burmese envoys, leading to Burmese–Manipuri Wars. Gharib Niwaz led his Manipuri armies to invade and plunder Northwestern Burmese towns along the Chindwin and Mu rivers including Myedu, Tabayin and Mingin. Repeated Manipuri invasions weakened Burma. In 1727, Lanna Chiang Mai broke free from Burmese rule and the Shan State of Mogaung did the same in 1734 with the help of Manipur. Indian Brahmins also told Gharib Niwaz that he should bath in the sacred water of Irrawaddy River, where the Burmese royal capital of Ava situated. The most devastating invasion came in 1739 when Gharib Niwaz seized and burnt down Sagaing, which was just opposite of Ava on the Irrawaddy. Gharib Niwaz, however, did not proceed to attack Ava but instead performed sacred bathing ritual in the Irrawaddy river. Maha Damayaza Dipati, the last Burmese king of Toungoo dynasty, reached a truce with Gharib Niwaz in 1740 with the Manipuri king withdrawing.

After the transfer of Burmese capital from Pegu to Ava in 1635, Burmese court had been sending ''Myowun'' or governors to govern Pegu, also called Hanthawaddy, over the Mons in Lower Burma. The Mons, however, had been largely neglected by the Burmese court and they strove for independence. In 1737, a Burmese official Maung Tha Aung became the ''Myowun'' of Pegu. Maung Tha Aung imposed heavy taxation on the Mons and became unpopular. In 1740, when the Burmese court of Ava was dealing with devastating Manipuri invasion, Maung Tha Aung took this opportunity to rebel and declared himself a ''Minlaung'' or pretender. Maung Tha Aung, however, received no support from local Mon populace. King Damayaza of Burma sent his uncle to successfully subjugate and execute Maung Tha Aung the unpopular governor. Burmese court appointed another governor to Pegu but the Mons had enough with Burmese rule. Recent Burmese failures encouraged the Mons to arise. The Mons found cooperation with the Gwe Shans (Shans or Karens who had migrated from Karen Hills to Burma) in their uprising against Burma in 1740. The uprising was led by a Buddhist monk and ''Minlaung'' millenarian pretender Smim Htaw (Ethnic origin of Smim Htaw is uncertain. Mon chronicles state that Smim Htaw was of the Gwe Shans but Burmese sources point out that Smim Htaw was a son of a fugitive Burmese prince). Thorasengmu, a Peguan official, murdered the new Pegu governor and declared Smim Htaw the King of Pegu, thus restoring the long-defunct Hanthawaddy Kingdom of the Mons in Lower Burma. Smim Htaw made Thorasengmu his prime minister with the title Binnya Dala and married his daughter.

Smim Htaw proceeded to attack Prome to the north. Burmese governors of Martaban and Tavoy, in their panic of Mon insurgency, fled to seek shelter at Ayutthaya in 1742 under protection of King Borommakot. Burmese king sent envoys to Ayutthaya in 1744, requesting repatriation of the two Burmese governors. Borommakot reciprocated by dispatching Siamese envoys in 1745 to bring these two governors back to Burma. Siamese ambassadors declared open support to Burma against the Mons. Smim Htaw, fearing Siamese attacks in his rear, retreated from Prome. According to Thai chronicles, Burmese–Siamese relations by this time went amicably but, in Burmese perspective, the Burmese court was suspicious about Siam's true allegiance.

Smim Htaw the King of Pegu had a queen who was a daughter of his prime minister Binnya Dala. In 1744, in response to Siamese support to Burma, Smim Htaw sought alliance with Lanna by marrying a daughter of King Ong Kham of Chiang Mai as his second queen. This marriage, however, upset the first queen as Smim Htaw favored his Lanna queen over his first one. The first queen relayed her grievances to her father Binnya Dala, who then conspired against Smim Htaw. In 1746, while Smim Htaw was venturing out to catch some elephants, Binnya Dala seized power in Pegu, declaring himself new king (Burmese sources suggested that Binnya Dala might originally be a Shan, perhaps Northern Thai, elephant mahout from Chiang Mai). Binnya Dala was a better expansionist than Smim Htaw as he sent his brother Upayaza to successfully took Prome and Toungoo in 1746. In 1747, Smim Htaw rallied his Karen forces in attempt to reclaim his throne but was defeated and took refuge in Ayutthaya, Siam. In 1748, King Gharib Niwaz abdicated the throne of Manipur in favor of his son Chitsai. Next year, in 1749, Gharib Niwaz marched his army to Ava in order to marry off his niece to the Burmese king. In 1750, the new Manipur king Chitsai expelled his father the abdicated king out of Imphal. Gharib Niwaz ended up seeking shelter at Ava with the Burmese king with whom he had reconciled.

In 1751, Hanthawaddy court signed a treaty with French representative Sieur de Bruno, allowing the French to establish a military post at Syriam, while the Mons obtaining French firearms. The Mons then had the advantage of updated European weaponry over the Burmese. Finally in 1751, Binnya Dala sent the Mon forces of 27,000 men under the command of his younger brother Upayaza with his another sibling Talaban as vanguard along the Irrawaddy north to attack the Burmese royal seat of Ava. The Mon forces reached Ava in early 1752. After many defeats, manpower and supplies dwindling, Ava eventually capitulated in March 1752. Damayaza the last king of Toungoo dynasty surrendered without resistance. Upayaza took the Burmese king and his family down south to Pegu, leaving Talaban to be in charge of Ava, which was burnt to the grounds. Centuries-old Toungoo dynasty was overthrown by the Mons, who conquered their former overlord – Burma. Gharib Niwaz the abdicated Manipur king, who had been staying in Ava, left Ava to return to Manipur but was assassinated midway by the agents of his own son Chitsai. Upayaza the Mon prince, convinced that Upper Burma had been thoroughly pacified, was more concerned about prospective Siamese retaliation from Tenasserim than potential Burmese resurgence in Upper Burma.

Reign of Borommakot

Phetracha ascended the Siamese throne in aftermath of the Siamese Revolution of 1688, establishing the Ban Phlu Luang dynasty, facing regional rebellions at Nakhon Ratchasima in 1689, 1699–1700 and at Nakhon Si Thammarat in 1700 and 1704–1705, which took great efforts to quell. At the death of Phetracha in 1703, his son Phra Chao Suea succeeded the throne and executed his half-brother and rival claimant Prince Phra Khwan. After Phra Chao Suea, his son King Thaisa ascended the throne in 1709. Thaisa made his younger brother Prince Phon the ''Wangna'' Prince of the Front Palace and heir presumptive. As internal instability had plagued Siam, Siamese court sought to reduce the powers of nobility and regional governors in order to stabilize politics but the opposite actually came true – royal princes and nobles gained more power and Ayutthaya lost control of its periphery. Government structure of Late Ayutthaya served to prevent internal rebellions rather than to defend against Burmese invasions, which had become a distant past memory. Meanwhile, Siamese trade with Qing China flourished. As Southern China suffered from rice shortages, Siam capitalized this situation by daring the ''Haijin'' or Chinese ban on overseas trade by sending rice in tributary junks to trade at Canton in 1722. Emperor Kangxi allowed the import of cheaper Siamese rice into ports of Canton, Amoy and Ningbo, under the guise of tributary submissions, to relieve famines. This might partially lead to Emperor Yongzheng lifting the ''Haijin'' ban in 1727. This Sino–Siamese commercial-tributary relations generated revenue for Siamese royal court and private merchants alike. In 1730, Prince Phon of the Front Palace discovered an anti-Buddhist Christian catechism composed by French missionary Louis Laneau, resulting in King Thaisa banning Christian proselytizing through Siamese alphabets and conversion of native Siamese people to Christianity. Siamese court erected stone steles at Catholic seminaries at Ayutthaya and Mergui to enforce this edict.

On his deathbed in 1733, King Thaisa gave the throne to his two sons instead of his younger brother Prince Phon, who had been the ''Wangna'' and technically heir presumptive, resulting in a civil war in Ayutthaya between the uncle and his nephews. Prince Phon initially suffered setbacks to the verge of defeat but his subordinate Khun Chamnan volunteered to rally against the enemies in last resort. Khun Chamnan valiantly marched against the two princes and miraculously prevailed. Two sons of Thaisa, claimants to the throne, were captured and executed. Prince Phon ascended the Siamese throne as King Borommakot in 1733. Borommakot rewarded his meritorious subject Khun Chamnan with title Chaophraya Chamnan Borirak and position of ''Phrakhlang'' or trade minister as ''de facto'' Prime Minister of Siam with immense powers. Borommakot attempted to solve the chronic problem of princely conflicts by creation of ''Krom'' or manpower regiment assigned to each prince as the method to control manpower allocation among the princes. Conscripted commoner males preferred to become ''Phrai Som'' (princely servants) in the ''Krom''s instead of ''Phrai Luang'' (direct royal servants), who were subjected to more labor tasks. Moreover, Sino–Siamese rice trade continued to expand, leading to growth of export-oriented private rice plantations. These proto-middle class Siamese people, who had enriched themselves from trades, avoided royal conscriptions to partake in more profitable activities. ''Phrai Luang –'' effective available manpower – was reduced in numbers. Long hiatus from external threats and manpower shortage crippled Siamese defense system. In 1742, Siamese court issued a campaign to round up ten thousands of conscription evaders.

The reign of King Borommakot coincided with last years of Burmese Toungoo dynasty. In 1742, Burmese governors of Martaban and Tavoy fled the Mon insurrection to seek shelter in Ayutthaya. These Burmese governors told Borommakot, in derogatory words, that Smim Htaw the King of Hanthawaddy was of 'lowborn' Gwe Shan origin. Burmese king Damayaza sent envoys to Ayutthaya in 1744, asking for the return of the two Burmese governors. Borommakot responded by sending a diplomatic mission to Ava in 1745 to repatriate the Burmese governors. Siamese envoys declared open support to Burma in this Burmese''–''Mon conflict. Siam considered the rising Mon kingdom in nearer Lower Burma to be a greater threat than crumbling Ava Kingdom in farther Upper Burma. Smim Htaw attempted to normalize relations with Siam by sending a request for one of any daughters of Borommakot to marry in 1745. Borommakot, however, was greatly offended by this request as he considered Smim Htaw to be a 'forest-dweller' aspiring to become royalty.

In 1746, Smim Htaw was dethroned by his chancellor Binnya Dala and ended up taking refuge in Ayutthaya in 1747. The Siamese king imprisoned Smim Htaw for his previous offense of asking for Siamese princess for marriage. Binnya Ran, a Mon military man loyal to Smim Htaw, also sought shelter in Siam with 400 Mon people. Borommakot granted Phosamton rice fields north of Ayutthaya (modern Bang Pahan district) for the Mon refugees to settle. Binnya Dala sent emissaries to Ayutthaya in 1748, coming for Smim Htaw and urging Borommakot not to shelter his nemesis. Borommakot, not wanting to send Smim Htaw to his doom, instead sent Smim Htaw off to China on a Chinese junk. Smim Htaw, however, managed to disembark somewhere in Vietnam and made his journey to Chiang Mai in 1749, joining his wife there. In 1750, Smim Htaw asked his father-in-law King of Chiang Mai for Lanna forces to reclaim his Hanthawaddy kingdom but was refused. Perhaps hearing about this, Binnya Ran stole Siamese firearms and gathered some Mon men, taking off to the west in 1750 to support Smim Htaw but was intercepted and captured by Siamese authorities. Borommakot then considered Binnya Ran a rebel and had him executed along with his Mon followers.

Rise of Konbaung dynasty

Aung Zeiya was born in 1716 at Moksobo village to the northwest of Burmese capital of Ava ''–'' the area that had been subjected to frequent Manipuri raids. He grew up to become the ''Myothugyi'' or village headman of Moksobo. When the Mons besieged Ava in early 1752, Aung Zeiya had been the governor and tax collector of forty villages under his jurisdiction. Upayaza the Mon commander demanded submission from local Burmese leaders in Upper Burma. Aung Zeiya and his retinue were one of many communities in Upper Burma that stayed defiant to the Mon conquerors. In February 1752, about one month before the eventual fall of Ava, Aung Zeiya declared himself Alaungpaya or Future Buddha ''Bodhisattava'', becoming a ''Minlaung'' or royal claimant and founding the Konbaung dynasty. Ava fell to the Mons in March 1752. Upayaza was more concerned of possible Siamese attacks from Tenasserim so, after the conquest of Ava, Upayaza ordered all of the Mon forces to return to Pegu in Lower Burma, leaving some forces under Talaban to occupy Ava. This redeployment of Hanthawaddy troops proved a critical turning point in Burmese history as it gave nascent Upper Burmese resistance groups much needed breathing room. The Hanthawaddy command left less than 10,000 men to pacify all of Upper Burma.Phayre, pp. 150–151 Historians call the redeployment premature, pointing out that the Siamese threat was never as grave as any counterforce that could rise from Upper Burma, the traditional home of political power in Burma.

Alaungpaya resisted and killed Mon officials sent to subjugate him in May 1752. In June, Talaban himself led a Mon army to put down this undaunting Burmese resistance but was too defeated. Pegu's inattention to Upper Burma allowed Alaungpaya time to subjugate petty regimes and unify Upper Burma under his rule. Alaungpaya renamed his village Shwebo with the official gilded name of Yadana Theingka (Rattana Singha), digging moats and erecting walls, transforming his village into a royal capital and citadel in June 1753. In late 1753, Alaungpaya assigned his seventeen-year-old son Prince Thado Minsaw (later King Hsinbyushin) to lay siege on Ava. Thado Minsaw finally took Ava in January 1754. Upayaza and Talaban arrived from Hanthawaddy in attempts to reconquer Ava but was repelled. Alaungpaya expelled Talaban from Prome in 1755. Merely three years after the Mon conquest of Ava in 1752, the Mons lost their grounds in Burma to this vehement Burmese resurgence.

After taking control of all Upper Burma down to Prome, Alaungpaya made rapid concentrated offensives on Lower Burma. Alaungpaya, however, soon realized that he had one disadvantage. The Mons had signed a treaty with French representative Sieur de Bruno in 1751, allowing the French to establish themselves in Syriam and exchange for supplying Hanthawaddy with European firearms. In order to beat Pegu, Alaungpaya also had to acquire European weapons. Upon attacking Dagon in 1755, Alaungpaya request supply of firearms from the British at Negrais (modern Hainggyi at the mouth of Pathein River). British response to Alaungpaya's request took long time and Alaungpaya conquered Dagon first in mid-1755, renaming the city 'Rangoon' ("End of Strife"). Alaungpaya proceeded to attack Syriam, which was a difficult one because both the British and the French had been residing in the city and providing the defenses. As the British learnt that the French had strong supports to Pegu, just before the Seven Years' War, they decided to declare support for Alaungpaya to counter the French. Alaungpaya, however, was suspicious and angry at the British when he learned that a British warship ''Arcot'' fought for the Mons at Syriam. In late 1755, contemplating northern attacks from either Manipur or the Shans in his rear, Alaungpaya left his besieging forces at Syriam with himself personally went north to Ava and sent Burmese forces to attack Manipur. The Burmese attacked and plundered Manipur in 1755, leaving so much damages that the event was called 'First Devastation' (Koolthakahalba) in Manipuri history.

Alaungpaya personally returned to Syriam front in early 1756. The siege of Syriam took eleven months. Sieur de Bruno asked for additional French forces from Pondicherry to Syriam. Arrival of French reinforcements would strengthen Syriam defenders. In July 1756, Alaungpaya created the Golden Company of Syriam, consisting of 93 Burmese fighters who would sacrifice their lives to French gunshots as vanguard in order to pave way for Alaungpaya to take Syriam. Alaungpaya finally conquered Syriam on 25 July 1756. Two French reinforcement ships arrived only three days late. Alaungpaya tortured Sieur de Bruno and forced the French headman to write a letter to lure the arriving French ships to enter Syriam. Unaware that Syriam had fallen, the two French ships arrived, only to be seized by the Burmese. The Burmese seized a great number of French firearms from the ships, including cannons, field guns and muskets – a great haul to Alaungpaya's armory. Sieur de Bruno was executed by fire roasting. Alaungpaya's conquest of Syriam virtually ended French support to Pegu and left the Mons isolated.

Alaungpaya attacked the Mon capital of Pegu in October 1756. Cornered and desperate, the Hanthawaddy court only sued for peace. Binnya Dala the King of Pegu agreed to send his daughter, whom Talaban had romantic interest on, to become a consort of Alaungpaya. Binnya Dala's younger brother Upayaza led the Hanthawaddy princess to visit Alaungpaya at his camps, where Alaungpaya held Upayaza hostage. The Mons were initially satisfied with this arrangement except for Talaban, who did not acknowledge this decision. Talaban rode off to fight the Burmese, breaking through the Burmese siege and going to Sittaung, eventually to Chiang Mai. With the Peguans lured into believing that the truce was genuine, Alaungpaya again resumed attacks on Pegu. The Peguans, then deprived of most of their commanders who had surrendered to Alaungpaya, defended their city in last resort. Alaungpaya eventually conquered Pegu city on 6 May 1757, ending the seventeen-year-old Hanthawaddy Kingdom of the Mons. The royal city of Pegu or Hanthawaddy was utterly destroyed on this occasion. Alaungpaya took Binnya Dala the last King of Pegu, his brother Upayaza, captured Mon people to Rangoon, which became new administrative center of Lower Burma replacing Pegu. Alaungpaya 'commanded' the British to visit him. Thomas Lester, a British delegate from Negrais, went to visit the Burmese king at Myanaung in 1757. Lester was made to crawl on his knees to approach Alaungpaya. Anglo''–''Burmese Treaty of 1757 was concluded, granting British permission to settle at Negrais and Bassein in exchange for annual British supply of gunpowder to Alaungpaya. Alaungpaya then took Hanthawaddy royals back to his capital at Shwebo.

Upon Alaungpaya's victory over the Mons of Hanthawaddy in 1757, Lanna-Mon petty rulers of Chiang Saen, Kengtung, Phrae, Nan and Martaban sent congratulatory tributes to Alaungpaya at Pegu. However, Chiang Mai and Tavoy remained defiant, not sending tributes, as these cities had to be taken by force not though peaceful submission. Alaungpaya still had to declare his intention to conquer Chiang Mai and Tavoy in September 1759 because Chiang Mai and Tavoy were not yet under his control.

Internal Conflicts of Ayutthaya

Reign of King Borommakot was remembered as a 'golden age' of Ayutthaya. His demise foreshadowed the end of Ayutthaya kingdom itself. When Alaungpaya was consolidating his power in Upper Burma, Borommakot sent a religious mission to restore Theravada Buddhism in Sri Lankan Kingdom of Kandy in 1752–1753. Borommakot had three sons born to his principal queens – Thammathibet, Ekkathat and Uthumphon, they held the superior rank of ''Kromma Khun''. Borommakot made Thammathibet ''Wangna'' or Front Palace Prince and heir presumptive in 1741. Chaophraya Chamnan Borirak died in 1753, leaving political vacuum in which competing princes rushed to fill in. Prince Thammathibet initially emerged powerful as he was the royal heir. However, Thammathibet faced opposition from ''Chao Sam Krom'' or the Three Princes, who were sons of Borommakot born to secondary consorts. They were Prince Chitsunthorn, Prince Sunthornthep and Prince Sepphakdi. These three princes were ranked inferiorly as ''Kromma Muen''. In 1755, Borommakot appointed new ministers Chaophraya Aphairacha as ''Samuha Nayok'' or Prime Minister and Chaophraya Kalahom Khlongklaeb as Minister of Military.

The Three Princes appointed some of their servants to the rank of ''Khun'', surpassing the limit of their own princely ranks as they could only promote their servants to the rank of ''Muen''. Prince Thammathibet took this violation of princely ranks seriously and took matters into his own hands by arresting those servants of the Three Princes to be punished. In April 1756, Thammathibet sent his forces to arrest Prince Sunthornthep, one of the Three Princes. Prince Sunthornthep escaped and told their father King Borommakot about the incidents. Borommakot summoned Thammathibet for explanation but Thammathibet visited his father with an army and a sword in his hand. Angered, Borommakot imprisoned his son and heir Thammathibet. Sunthornthep told Borommakot that Thammathibet had been in an adulterous relationship with Princess Sangwan, a princess consort of Borommakot. Thammathibet confessed that he had secretly made keys for the inner palace and royal bedchambers in order to engage in relationships with the king's consorts and even to possibly commit treason. Prince Thammathibet was whipped with rattan cane strokes one hundred and eighty times, succumbed to his wounds and died in April 1756.

After the death of Prince Thammathibet, the office of Front Palace became vacant. In March 1757, Prince Kromma Muen Thepphiphit, another son of Borommakot, in concert with other ministers of ''Chatusadom'' including the Prime Minister Aphairacha, Kalahom the Minister of Military and Phrakhlang the trade minister, proposed to make Uthumphon the new ''Wangna''. Uthumphon initially refused, saying that he had an elder brother, Ekkathat. However, Borommakot intentionally passed over Ekkathat, citing that Ekkathat was incompetent and sure to bring disaster to kingdom. Uthumphon reluctantly accepted the position and was made ''Wangna'' Prince of the Front Palace in 1757. Borommakot also exiled Ekkathat to become a monk at Wat Lamut temple to the northeast of Ayutthaya to keep him from powers.

Borommakot died in April 1758. Uthumphon faced opposition from the Three Princes, who laid their competing claims to kingship. Ekkathat, who had been Buddhist monk at Wat Lamut temple, returned to Ayutthaya to support Uthumphon. The Three Princes sent their forces to break into the royal armory to seize a large number of guns. With civil war looming, five Buddhist prelates beseeched the Three Princes to cease their belligerent actions. The Three Princes complied with the virtuous monks, went to visit and paid obeisance to the new king Uthumphon. However, Ekkathat secretly ordered policemen to arrest the Three Princes to be executed. Uthumphon took the throne in May 1758 but Ekkathat stayed at Suriyat Amarin Palace, not returning to Wat Lamut temple despite being a Buddhist monk to impose pressure on his brother Uthumphon. Uthumphon finally gave in, after merely a month on the throne, by abdicating in favor of his elder brother in June. Uthumphon went to become a monk at Wat Pradu temple, earning him epithet Khun Luang Hawat or the King Who Sought Temple. Ekkathat then ascended the throne as the last king of Ayutthaya in June 1758. Ekkathat brought two ministers Phraya Ratchamontri Pin and Chamuen Si Sorarak Chim, brothers of Ekkathat's favorite consort, to government. Phraya Ratchamontri and Chamuen Si Sorarak wielded immense powers in Siamese royal court, even surpassing those ministers of ''Chatusadom''.

Officials and ministers of royal court were upset and offended by the rule of brothers of Ekkathat's consort. In December 1758, dissatisfying ministers, including Chaophraya Aphairacha the Prime Minister and Phraya Yommaraj the Head of Police Bureau, conspired to overthrow Ekkathat in favor of Uthumphon the temple king, whom they considered more capable of being king. The conspiring ministers approached Prince Thepphiphit, who agreed to take lead. Prince Thepphiphit and the conspirators visited Uthumphon at his temple, informing Uthumphon about the plans. Uthumphon, however, preferred religious life and did not trust the conspirators so Uthumphon went to tell Ekkathat about this seditious plot in exchange for Ekkathat not killing the conspirators. Aphairacha, Yommaraj and other conspirators were arrested, not killed but imprisoned. Prince Thepphiphit fled to the west but was caught. Ekkathat then boarded his half-brother Thepphiphit on a Dutch ship to be deported to Sri Lanka in 1758 for his rebellion attempt. Ekkathat also threatened to execute Phraya Phrakhlang for his unproved implication in the plot. The panicked trade minister gave a large sum of money to the king. Ekkathat then spared Phrakhlang and appointed him Chaophraya Phrakhlang the new ''Samuha Nayok'' or Prime Minister, replacing Aphairacha. By 1759, pro-Uthumphon supporters had been purged and expelled from royal court as Ekkathat's allies rose to power.

Tenasserim to 1757

''Dawei Yazawin'' or Tavoy chronicles describes the legendary foundation of Tavoy. Buddha himself visited the Tavoy area in 'legendary' times and the local ''Nat'' spirit Durakha gave Buddha a durian fruit. Buddha then gave a prophecy about a prosperous city in the area. Later then the deity Indra sent a female ''Nat'' spirit to sire a boy with the hermit Gawinanda. The boy grew up and became King Thamandaraza the first king of Thagara – the ancient town of Tavoy. Thagara, allegedly founded in 754 CE, was to the north of modern Dawei on the west bank of Tavoy River. Mon chronicles state that a certain Burmese King of Pagan Kingdom ventured down south to visit the Tavoy area, where he found abundant durian trees. The Burmese king the founded Tavoy as an entrepot to gather and send durians to the Pagan. Francis Mason, an American missionary who began his works at Tavoy, then under British rule, in 1831, recorded the legendary foundation of Tavoy as follows; In 1204, King Narapatisithu of Pagan traveled south and founded Tavoy. Mason also explained that this was the reason why the Tavoyans spoke a Burmese-related language.

Tavoy then came under the rule of Mon Hanthawaddy Kingdom of Lower Burma. The ruler of Tavoy submitted to King Wareru of the Mons. Tavoy city moved to Weidi in 1390 to the south of modern Dawei on the western bank. Another Tavoyan city called Mokti was founded on the eastern bank. In 1488, King Borommaracha III of Ayutthaya conquered Tavoy for the first time. Tavoy then came under Siamese rule, while Tanintharyi or Tenasserim had been a city under Ayutthaya governance since at least mid-fifteenth century, attested with Tenasserim Inscriptions, in which King Trailoknanat of Ayutthaya appointed governor of Tenasserim in 1462 using Khmer language. Tenasserim appeared in a list of Siamese cities composed in 1455, later then incorporated into the Three Seals Law. In 1531, according to ''Myeik Yazawin'' or Mergui chronicles, the ruler of Tenasserim founded the new port-town of Marit or Mergui to replace the former port covered with silts. Mergui then emerged as an important trading port on the Tenasserim Coast on Andaman Sea under jurisdiction of Tenasserim.

Throughout history, both Burma and Siam had claimed the entire Tenasserim coast (present-day Mon State and Tanintharyi Region in Myanmar) and control had changed hands several times. The Burmese Pagan Dynasty controlled the entire coast until 1287. Throughout 14th and 16th centuries, Siamese kingdoms (first Sukhothai, later Ayutthaya) controlled much of the coast, up to just south of present-day Mawlamyaing. In the mid-16th century, the Burmese under Toungoo kings Tabinshwehti and Bayinnaung tried to regain the coast, first failing in 1548, and finally succeeding in 1564 when they conquered all of Siam for the first time. The Siamese revolted in 1584, and under their king Naresuan regained the lower coast by 1593 and the entire coast by 1594. The Burmese retook the upper coast down to Tavoy in 1615, but failed to recover the rest.James, ''SEA encyclopedia'', pp. 1318–1319

During this period, Mergui on the Andaman Sea was the primary port of Siam through which its trade with India and the West was conducted. In 1683, King Narai of Siam, at suggestion of his First Minister Constantine Phaulkon, appointed a former British East India Company employee Richard Burnaby to be the governor of Mergui. Burnaby and his harbormaster Samuel White went out of Siamese control in their attempts to establish their own personal dominance over the trades of the Bay of Bengal by building a large fleet and attacking rival merchant ships in 1685. These actions enraged the English East India Company stationed at Madras, leading to the Anglo-Siamese War. East India Company considered its former employees Richard Burnaby and Samuel White to be the troublemakers. The Company then sent some ships to impose naval blockade on Mergui in 1687 and to arrest the two Englishmen. Siamese armies, under the Siamese governor of Tenasserim, responded by attacking, resuming control of Mergui and massacring most of the English residents and arrivals there, including Burnaby. King Narai then made a French militaryman Chevalier de Beauregard the ''Okphra'' or governor of Mergui. In 1688, King Narai allowed the French to station their troops in Mergui. However, the Siamese Revolution happened shortly after. Siamese armies expelled the French from Mergui. De Beauregard fled on ships and sailed into the Tavoy River to seek refuge at Tavoy, which had been under Burmese rule. Unfortunately, De Beauregard and other French men were attacked and arrested by Tavoyan authorities. De Beauregard was condemned to slavery by Burmese authorities, deported to Pegu and died shortly after in slavery.

The control of Tenasserim coast in the early 18th century was divided between Burma and Siam, with the Burmese controlling down to Tavoy (Dawei) and the Siamese controlling the rest. This arrangement lasted until 1740 (although the Siamese unsuccessfully tried to take the upper coast in 1662–65). According to Thai version of Mon chronicles, in 1740, the Burmese governor of Martaban named Nara Kyawthu, in regard to restoration of Mon Hanthawaddy Kingdom, was fearful that the Mon inhabitants of his city would also rise up so he decided to abandon his city and fled to take refuge at Tavoy. The newly-established Hanthawaddy court then ordered Nara Kyawthu the governor of Martaban to submit. Nara Kyawthu, fearing the Mons, decided to gather his family and sought shelter in Siamese-held Tenasserim along with the governor of Tavoy. Phraya Tanaosi the Siamese governor of Tenasserim sent these two Burmese governors along with their families to Ayutthaya in 1742. King Borommakot also commanded Phraya Tanaosi to march Siamese forces to occupy Tavoy. Tavoy then came under Siamese rule temporarily. King Borommakot sent Siamese emissaries to escort the two Burmese governors of Martaban and Tavoy back to Ava in 1745. Siam probably left Tavoy soon after as the Burmese king appointed a new governor of Tavoy named Minnalhla.

When Ava fell to Mon conquerors in 1752, Minnalhla the governor of Tavoy was left isolated, cut off by the Mon Hanthawaddy Kingdom in Lower Burma. Martaban and Tavoy became independent, not even coming under the rule of Hanthawaddy. In 1754, according to ''Dawei Yazawin'', Minnalhla founded the modern town of Dawei, moved to its present location and sent a letter to the British asking for support. With Alaungpaya's conquest of Pegu in 1757, Alaungpaya acquired Martaban. In the Anglo–Burmese Treaty of 1757, it was stated that the British should not help the "King of Tavoy" against Alaungpaya, meaning that, by 1757 and after, Tavoy was still independent and a formidable rival to Alaungpaya himself.

Mon Rebellion of 1758

After Alaungpaya had taken Rangoon in mid-1755, he proceeded to attack and lay siege on Syriam where both the British and the French had been residing. British ships in Syriam showed allegiance to Alaungpaya by leaving Syriam to join Alaungpaya at Rangoon. Robert Jackson, captain of the British ship ''Arcot'', was reluctant to take Alaungpaya's side along with his fellow British men. Jackson did not personally visit Alaungpaya but rather sent his delegate John Whitehill on a mission to visit Alaungpaya. Alaungpaya commanded the British to hand over their muskets and weapons to him. Captain Jackson of ''Arcot'' ship refused to comply. Then Alaungpaya had to personally leave Rangoon for his northern campaigns in late 1755. The French and the Mons at Syriam took this opportunity to sail their fleet to attack the Burmese at Rangoon. Captain Jackson decided to join the French–Mon side with his ship ''Arcot'' to attack the Burmese. When Alaungpaya returned to Rangoon in early 1756, Alaungpaya was furious at defection of British ship ''Arcot'' and put his grievances on Whitehill, whom he had met in person.

Gharib Niwaz the great king of Manipur abdicated in favor of his son Chitsai in 1749 but was exiled by his own son the new king and ended up seeking shelter in Burmese capital of Ava. When Ava fell to the Mons in 1752, Gharib Niwaz attempted to return to Manipur but King Chitsai, who feared that his father Gharib Niwaz might put his son and preferred heir Shyam Shai on the throne, sent his agents to assassinate Gharib Niwaz and Shyam Shai on their way. Death of Gharib Niwaz marked the downturn of Manipur, which would be plunged into dynastic conflicts. In 1752, Chitsai was overthrown by Bharatsai, another son of Gharib Niwaz. Next year, in 1753, Bharatsai was overthrown and Gaurisiam, son of Shyam Shai and grandson of Gharib Niwaz, was made new King of Manipur. After his victorious conquest of Hanthawaddy in 1757, Alaungpaya embarked on another grand campaign to conquer Manipur in late 1758, declaring to avenge for Gharib Niwaz's treacherous death and to convert Manipur to Theravada Buddhism. Alaungpaya himself led the Burmese forces to enter Manipur through the Aimol Pass, defeating Manipuri prince Bhagyachandra, brother of Gaurisiam, at Pallel. King Gaurisiam of Manipur, along with his Manipuri people, fled into the jungles to escape the invading Burmese. When Alaungpaya entered Imphal the Manipuri capital in November 1758, he found the city to be virtually abandoned and deserted.

In late 1758, the Mons in Lower Burma rose in rebellion, seizing control of Rangoon and Pegu. Nemyo Nawrahta, the Burmese governor of Pegu, was defeated and pushed back to Hinthada. Alaungpaya and Burmese conquerors occupied Imphal the Manipuri capital for nine days in November 1758 until when Alaungpaya heard of Mon insurrection in Lower Burma so Alaungpaya decided to abandon his Manipur campaign to return to Burma. Nemyo Nawrahta managed to retake Rangoon and disperse the Mon rebellion in 1759. A group of Mon rebels boarded on a French ship at Syriam and fled to take refuge at the Siamese port of Mergui. When Alaungpaya returned to Shwebo in February 1759, he learnt that the Mon rebellion had been pacified. At the advent of Seven Years' War, George Pigot the British governor of Madras decided to evacuate British forces from Negrais in order to be redeployed to fight the French in India. Most of the British forces left Negrais in April 1759, leaving only a small contingent to guard a British warehouse there.

In July 1759, King Alaungpaya of Burma marched his Burmese–Shan armies of 60,000 men from Shwebo down south in pilgrimage to make merits at Shwedagon Temple at Rangoon in Lower Burma. Meanwhile, John Whitehill arrived at Rangoon on his private trade venture. Unknowing that he had been subjected to the grudges of the Burmese king due to the defection of British ship ''Arcot'' four years ago, Whitehill traveled to Prome to visit Alaungpaya where Whitehill was arrested, physically beaten and chained. Whitehill had to pay a large sum of money to bail himself out of the wrath of Burmese king. Gregory the Armenian man and Lavine, a French man who had formerly been a subordinate of De Bruno, told Alaungpaya that the British at Negrais had supported the Mon rebels with weapons and ammunitions. Alaungpaya was then determined to extinguish the British from Burma. Alaungpaya made a Portuguese man Antonio the governor of Bassein and entrusted Antonio to lead a Burmese force to visit the British at Negrais. Antonio visited Negrais on 6 October 1759 where he was greeted by Southby the British headman in Negrais. Lavine invited Southby and other Europeans for a dinner. Antonio then shut the doors of dining room and commanded the Burmese soldiers to kill Southby and other Europeans. Ten Europeans and a hundred of Indian sepoys were massacred in this incident. The massacre of the British of Negrais at Burmese hands in October 1759 temporarily ended British presence in Burma and Anglo–Burmese relation was put to halt for four decades until the mission of Michael Symes in 1795.

Causes of the War

''Chakravartin'' ideology

Alaungpaya had declared himself Future Buddha or ''Bodhisattava'', the savior who would end sufferings of the world and bring forth a new era of happiness. He was also to be the patron, upholder and restorer of Buddhism. During his prolonging siege of Syriam in 1756, Alaungpaya declared that he was assigned a sacred task from Sakra or Thagyamin (syncretization of the Indic deity Indra and the local Burmese ''Nat'' spirit, Thagyamin is the head of ''Nat'' pantheon) himself to end worldly strives and to create a peaceful world. Alaungpaya declared that the deity Indra had granted him a mighty lance called Arindama ("Tamer of Enemies") to be used against his enemies. In April 1756, Alaungpaya declared "Golden Message from Indra" (Thagya Shwe Pe Hlwa) to the Mons of Hanthawaddy, grandiosely telling that the deity Thagya had sent a message to the Mons that this new Burmese king possessed great merits and was, as prophesized by Buddha himself, destined to rule over China, India, the Shans, the Mons and Siam. The Mons should unconditionally comply to the verdict of the god Indra in order to avoid bloodsheds. This suggested that Alaungpaya embraced the Indic ''Chakravartin'' ("Spinner of the Wheel") ideology of Universal Conqueror – the concept that had also been revered by neighboring Theravadin polities including Siam. ''Chakravartin'' is the worldly alternative to ''Bodhisattava''. Conquest of Ayutthaya might be a part of his long-term plan towards greatness.

Alaungpaya's pilgrimage to Rangoon

After his return to Shwebo from Manipur campaign in February 1759, Alaungpaya took off on his pilgrimage trip, along with his queen, his sons and his family, to Rangoon for dedication of ''Zayat'' or pavilion to the sacred Shwedagon Pagoda and for other merit-making activities. For some reasons, Alaungpaya amassed a huge army to go south with him to Rangoon. Alaungpaya might contemplate dangers from Mon rebels in Lower Burma, who had just been pacified or a grand military campaign, such as the conquest of Ayutthaya. Alaungpaya assigned his eldest son Prince Thiri Thudamayaza of Tabayin, who was also the ''Upayaza'' or Crown Prince, to take care of the royal capital Shwebo during his absence. Alaungpaya then organized Burmese forces to join his pilgrimage venture to Lower Burma;

* Prince Thiri Damayaza of Myedu, second son of Alaungpaya, future King Hsinbyushin, then twenty-three years old, would lead the vanguard force of 10,000 men.
* Alaungpaya himself would command the main portion of royal armies, composing of 24,000 men, with Minkhaung Nawrahta as his lieutenant.
* The rearguard force of 11,000 men included;
** Prince Thado Minhla Kyaw of Amyint, son of Alaungpaya, sixteen years old, would command a rearguard force of 5,500 men
** Prince Thado Minsaw of Badon, son of Alaungpaya, future King Bodawpaya, then fourteen years old, would command another rearguard force of 5,500 men.

With total number of 44,000 men, the Burmese forces assembled at Kyaukmyaung on the Irrawaddy River to the east of Shwebo. Alaungpaya also levied Shan forces from the Shan states of Htilin