Möng Kawng (; zh, 孟拱) or Mogaung () was a Shan state in what is present-day

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

. It was an outlying territory, located away from the main

Shan State Shan State (, ; , ) is a administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos (Louang Namtha Province, Louang Namtha and Bokeo Provinces) to the east, and Thailand (Chiang Rai Province, Chia ...

area in present-day

Kachin State Kachin State (; Jingpho language, Kachin: ) is the northernmost administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. It is bordered by China to the north and east (Tibet Autonomous Region, Tibet and Yunnan, respectively), Shan State to the sou ...

. The state existed until 1796. The main town was

Mogaung Mogaung ( ; ) is a town in Kachin State, Myanmar. It is situated on the Mandalay-Myitkyina railway line. History Mogaung or Möng Kawng was the name and capital (royal seat) of a relatively major one of the petty Shan (ethnic Tai) princ ...

(Möng Kawng).

History

According to legend, a predecessor state named Udiri Pale had been established in 58 BC. The area was said to have been inhabited by the Tai Long. According to Tai chronicles, the kingdom was founded in 1215 by a

saopha Saopha (), also spelled Sawbwa, was the title used by hereditary rulers of Shan states in Upper Myanmar. Chaopha and Chao Fa were similar titles used by the hereditary Tai rulers in mainland Southeast Asia and the Ahom kingdom in India. Nam ...

named Sam Long Hpa, who ruled over an area stretching from Hkamti Lông to

Shwebo Shwebo ( ) is a city in Sagaing Region, Burma, 110 km north-west of Mandalay between the Irrawaddy and the Mu rivers. The city was the origin of the Konbaung Dynasty, established by King Alaungpaya in 1752, that was the dominant politic ...

, and extending into the country of the Nagas and Mishmis.Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 18, p. 137. - Myitkyina District, History
/ref> Sam Long Hpa built his capital on the Nam Kawng river (present-day Mogaung river) and established it as a

tributary state A tributary state is a pre-modern state in a particular type of subordinate relationship to a more powerful state which involved the sending of a regular token of submission, or tribute, to the superior power (the suzerain). This token often ...

to Möng Mao. According to Hsenwi state chronicle, the two generals Tao Hsö Yen and Tao Hsö Han Kai, who were sent with Sam Long Hpa to conquer Assam, sent on messengers to Hsö Hkan Hpa with a story that Sam Long Hpa had obtained the easy submission of Wehsali Long (Assam) by conspiring with the king of that place to dethrone Hsö Hkan Hpa. He believed the story and sent poisoned food to Sam Long Hpa, which he ate at Möng Kawng, where he died. Möng Kawng and Möng Yang were occupied by China between 1479 and 1483, after regaining independence they were again briefly occupied by China in 1495. From 1651 to 1742 the state was occupied by the Ava-based Kingdom of Burma and following a period of less than thirty years it was again occupied by Burma from 1771 to 1775. Finally Möng Kawng was annexed by the

Ava Kingdom The Ava Kingdom (, ; INN-wa pyi) also known as Inwa Kingdom or Kingdom of Ava was the dominant kingdom that ruled upper Burma (Myanmar) from 1365 to 1555. Founded in 1365, the kingdom was the successor state to the petty kingdoms of Myinsa ...

in 1796. After becoming part of Burma, Möng Kawng was ruled by administrators named ''wuns''. During

British rule in Burma British colonial rule in Burma lasted from 1824 to 1948, from the successive three Anglo-Burmese wars through the creation of ''Burma'' as a province of British India to the establishment of an independently administered colony, and finally i ...

it became part of the

Myitkyina District Myitkyina District () is a Districts of Burma, district of the Kachin State in northern Burma, Burma (Myanmar). The capital lies at Myitkyina. It is the largest district in the country by land area. Townships The district contains the following ...

of the

Mandalay Division Mandalay Region (, ; formerly Mandalay Division) is an administrative division of Myanmar. It is located in the center of the country, bordering Sagaing Region and Magway Region to the west, Shan State to the east, and Bago Region and Kayin State ...

. In Chinese chronicle ''

Ming Shilu The ''Ming Veritable Records'' or ''Ming Shilu'' (), contains the imperial annals of the emperors of the Ming dynasty (1368–1644). It is the single largest historical source of information on the dynasty. According to modern historians, it "p ...

'', the state was known as Mengyang and was under

Yunnan Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...

as a pacification superintendency. In the same chronicle, the kingdom is said to extend to the east to

Jinsha River The Jinsha River (, Classical Tibetan, Tibetan: Dri Chu, འབྲི་ཆུ, ) or Lu river, is the Chinese name for the upper stretches of the Yangtze River. It flows through the provinces of the PRC, provinces of Qinghai, Sichuan, and Yu ...

in China, south to Ava-Burma, west to the territory of Da-Gula and to the north till Ganyai, a polity near Daying river. In 1408, the polity was occupied by Da-Gula. It is asserted that it was originally under the territory of Lu-chuan and it is to Mongkawng and Da-Gula where Si Jifa, the ruler of

Mong Mao Mong may refer to: People *A proposed original name for the Hmong people, based on the main group, the Mong community *Bob Mong (), American journalist and academic administrator *Henry Mong (), American surgeon and Presbyterian missionary *Mong M ...

fled after the destruction of Lu-chuan by the Chinese during the

Luchuan–Pingmian campaigns The Luchuan–Pingmian campaigns () (1436–49) were punitive expeditions carried out by the Ming dynasty under the rule of the Emperor Yingzong of Ming, Emperor Yingzong against the Shan people, Shan-led Möng Mao, State of Möng Mao near the f ...

(1436–49). In 1477, the Ava Kingdom marched against Mogaung and captured it. After their submission, the Burmese chronicle records the King of Ava taking the Sawbwa of Mogaung and giving him the town of

Tagaung Tagaung is a town in Thabeikkyin Township, Mandalay Region, Myanmar. It is situated on the east bank of the Ayeyarwady River, 127 miles north of Mandalay. Colloquially, Tagaung is thought to be the origin of the Burmese people, remembered by ...

to rule over.

Rulers

The rulers of the state bore the title ''

Saopha Saopha (), also spelled Sawbwa, was the title used by hereditary rulers of Shan states in Upper Myanmar. Chaopha and Chao Fa were similar titles used by the hereditary Tai rulers in mainland Southeast Asia and the Ahom kingdom in India. Nam ...

''.

Saophas

* 603–633 Hkun Su (Youngest son of Hkun Lu) 1st-Möngkawng * 633–653 Sao Hsen Saw (Son of Hkun Lu) * 653–667 Sao Hkun Kyaw * 667–668 Sao Hkun Kyun * 938–9?? Sao Hkaw Hpa (2nd-Möngkawng) * ---- – ---- Sao Haw Hseng * ---- – ---- Hso Saw Hpa * Sam Lung Hpa 1215–1228 son of Hso Hkwan Hpa 31rd Mong Mao saopha * Hso Hkam Hpa (Nwe San Hpa) 1228–1248 nephew of Sam Lung Hpa * Sao Hkun Law 1248–1308 son of Hso Hkam Hpa * Sao Pu Rieng 1308–1344 son of Sao Hkun Law * Hso Tai Hpa 1344–1346 son of Sao Pu Rieng * Pwa Ngan Maing 1346–1361 son of Hso Tai Hpa * Hkun Tau Hpa 1361–1381 son of Pwa Ngan Maing * Hso Hung Hpa 1381–1411 son of Hkun Tau Hpa * Hso Pin Hpa 1411–1446 son of Chau-Hung-Hpa * Hso Si Hpa (Hso Kwon Hpa) 1446–1496 son of Hso Pin Hpa (He is brother of Hso Ngan Hpa 39rd Mong Mao saopha) * Hso Kaa Hpa (Hso Kyeik Hpa) 1496–1520 son of Hso Si Hpa (Hso Kwon Hpa) * Sam Lung paw-maing (Sao Sui-fin) 1520–1526 son of Hso Kaa Hpa (Hso Kyeik Hpa) Mong Mao line break off * Sao Sui kwei (Sao Peng) 1526–1558 son of Sam Lung paw-maing (Sao Sui-fin) * Hso Hom Hpa 1558–1564 son of Sao-Sui-kwei (Sao Peng) * Hso Kaa Hpa 1564–1583 son of Hso Hom Hpa * Sao Kon Hkam 1583–1591 son of Hso Kaa Hpa * Hso Hung Hpa 1591–1605 son of Sao Kon Hkam (Temporarily independent from Burma) * Hso Tit Hpa (Sao Kaa Maing) 1605–1626 grandson of Hso Hom Hpa 44rd saopha of Mong Mao * Sao Sain Lung 1626–1639 * Lang Chu Paw 1639–1651 * Cheing Lung Ho Hup 1651–1663 adopted of Lang Chu Paw * Sao Sui Yaw 1663–1673 * Sao Sui Kyek 1673–1729 grandson of Hso Hom Hpa 44rd saopha of Mong Mao * Sao Hum (Sao Maung Pu) 1729–1739 born at Ava's palace * Haw Seing 1739–1748 son of Sao Hum (Sao Maung Pu) 1st * Haw Hkam 1748–1765 son of Haw Seing * Haw Seing 1765–1768 son of Sao Hum (Sao Maung Pu) 2nd * Maung Kiaw 1768–1771 burmese his shan name is Haw Hkam * Maung Piu 1771–1775 younger brother of Maung Kiaw * Haw Seing 1775–1777 son of Sao Hum (Sao Maung Pu) 3rd Vacant 1777–1785 * Sao Yaw Pan Kyung 1785-1796

References

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

"Gazetteer of Upper Burma and the Shan states"
Shan States Kachin State {{Kachin-geo-stub ca:Mongkawng