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27-539: Prince Myingun is portrayed as a villain by Burmese historians because his assassination of his father-in-law Crown Prince Kanaung, the kingdom's leading reformist, crippled attempts to modernize Burma's army and other institutions. Myingun prince was born in 1844, before King Mindon ascended the throne, to Mindon prince and the Royal Queen of the Southern Gilded Chamber. His given name was Maung Myo Aye. He had

54-685: A French colony at the time. From there, he led anti-British movements among Burmese people and saophas in Shan State . He returned to Myanmar twice in secret to supervise the fight against the British. His efforts were largely stymied when Britain and France signed an agreement in 1904 that brought the colonial powers closer together, the Entente Cordiale . He continued his fight against the British until his last days in Saigon. He died on September 20, 1921, at

81-527: A great administrator and modernizer. During Mindon's reign, scholars were sent to France, Italy, the United States, and Great Britain, in order to learn about the tremendous progress achieved by the Industrial Revolution . During Mindon's reign, the following reforms were undertaken: centralization of the kingdom's internal administration, introduction of a salary system for the bureaucracy (to dampen

108-464: A missionary school. Mindon also fulfilled his responsibility as a pious Buddhist. He reasserted the king's role of being the protector of Buddha Sasana , convened the Fifth Buddhist council in 1871, and supported the work of scholar-monks and their returning to Lower Burma to teach. In 1866 two of Mindon's sons, Prince Myingun and Prince Myingundaing attempted a palace coup. Myingun claimed that

135-511: A series of robberies by the Myowun of Amarapura, Mindon, Kanaung, and their immediate family and retainers fled to Shwebo , the seat of their ancestor, King Alaungpaya . The war with the British had thus become a two-front war, and the court of Pagan quickly collapsed, with the Myozas of Kyaukmaw and Yenangyaung allowing Mindon and Kanaung to walk into the capital, Ava , unopposed. Mindon thus ascended

162-443: A tightening of the food supply, the loss of trade through ports, an erosion of Burma as an imperial power, and the incorporation of Burma into the world market as a result. There was an atmosphere of reform due to translated works and better knowledge about the outside world. At the same time, migrations of people from the national core to Lower Burma , controlled by the British, were sapping Burma of its labor and taxes. Mindon took

189-465: A younger brother Myinkhondaing Prince . He first conferred the title of Thilawa and later Thu Mahar Thiri Dhammaraja, and received the appanage of Myingun  [ my ] . In 1858, he married his first cousin, Meen Cho Bo, Princess of Taungnyo, daughter of Crown Prince Kanaung, by his wife, Myauk-saung Shin Key. He also married to saungya kolouptaw Shin O and Khinle Pya, the widow of his younger brother,

216-723: The Konbaung dynasty of Burma . Born Maung Biddhu Khyit, he was granted the title of Prince of Pagan by his father Tharrawaddy in August 1842. Pagan Min became king when Tharrawaddy died on 17 November 1846, with the formal title of His Majesty "Sri Pawara Vijaya Nanda Jatha Maha Dharma Rajadhiraja Pagan Min Taya-gyi". Pagan Min won the power struggle to succeed his father by having his rival brothers killed. His chief ministers Maung Baing Zat and Maung Bhein enriched themselves by executing rich subjects. The Second Anglo-Burmese War broke out during

243-471: The Kuthodaw Pagoda at the foot of Mandalay Hill . In 1871 Mindon also donated a new hti ('umbrella' or crown gilded and encrusted with precious diamonds and other gems) to the 105-metre-tall (344 ft) Shwedagon Pagoda , which is located in then British held Yangon , although he was not allowed to visit this most famous and venerated pagoda in the country. On 15 August 1873, Mindon also enacted

270-534: The British had ended, Mindon still faced considerable military difficulties, namely a revolt at Kanpyin and an attack from the neighboring Kingdom of Siam . In late 1853, Mindon won a pyrrhic victory against the Siamese, but when they returned again, he sent 3,000 cavalry supported by artillery, which finally stopped the Siamese encroachment upon Burmese land. King Mindon founded the last royal capital of Burma, Mandalay , in 1857. His younger brother Kanaung proved to be

297-751: The Burmese as an avid modernizer, who would go to the factories early on cold winter mornings with a blanket wrapped around him, just to talk to the mechanics about how the machines ran. He was in charge of the Royal Army, as was customarily required of Burmese crown princes, and he imported and manufactured guns, cannons and shells. Mindon was known for his Buddhist devotion and religious tolerance. He helped build monasteries and missionary schools for Buddhism. The first non- Sangha -run schools in Burma were run by Christians, and Mindon himself sent his son, Thibaw Min , to study in

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324-490: The Crown Prince Kanaung was oppressive, and Kanaung was murdered during the revolt. Mindon escaped alive and the coup was crushed when Myingun fled in a steamer to British Burma. Rumours of British involvement are unsubstantiated, and no evidence exists showing their support for the revolt. While Mindon was escaping the palace, he ran into a would-be assassin, Maung Paik Gyi, who lost his nerve and grovelled in front of

351-650: The Maha Zawtika monastic college in Amarapura until the age of 23, and he held deep respect for religion and religious scholarship throughout his entire life. Mindon grew up in the shadow of British control – by 1853, the year of his coronation, Burma had gone through radical changes. The British annexations of Arakan , the Himalayan kingdoms of the north of India, and the Irrawaddy Delta and their blockade of Burma caused

378-693: The Prince of Myingundaing. On 2 August 1866, Crown Prince Kanaung was beheaded by the princes of Myingun and Myinkhondaing in a failed coup against his father, King Mindon at a cabinet meeting in the palace. King Mindon, however, managed to escape the assassination. A minister and some officials were killed along with Kanaung. After the unsuccessful coup, the two brothers and their mother ran away to Myingyan and later to Yangon. The British Colonial government sent them to Port Blair of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and then to Kolkata , Chunar and Varanasi . Burma fell under colonial rule in 1886 and they left for Saigon,

405-520: The Seventeen Articles, one of Southeast Asia's first indigenous press freedom laws. In 1875, during a royal consecration ceremony, Mindon took on the title Siripavaravijayanantayasa Paṇḍita Tribhavanadityadhipati Mahadhammarajadhiraja . With the opening of the Suez Canal , Mindon assembled a flotilla of steamers to facilitate trade with the British. His brother Kanaung is still remembered by

432-620: The age of 77 in Saigon, Vietnam. Mindon Min Mindon Min ( Burmese : မင်းတုန်းမင်း , pronounced [mɪ́ɰ̃dóʊɰ̃ mɪ́ɰ̃] ; 1808 – 1878), born Maung Lwin , was the penultimate king of Burma (Myanmar) from 1853 to 1878. He was one of the most popular and revered kings of Burma because of his role in Fifth Buddhist Council . Under his half brother King Pagan , the Second Anglo-Burmese War in 1852 ended with

459-467: The annexation of Lower Burma by the British Empire . Mindon and his younger brother Kanaung overthrew their half brother King Pagan. He spent most of his reign trying to defend the upper part of his country from British encroachments, and to modernize his kingdom. Mindon was born Maung Lwin in 1808, a son of Tharrawaddy Min and Chandra Mata Mahay, Queen of the south Royal Chamber. He studied at

486-519: The authority and income of bureaucrats), fixed judicial fees, comprehensive penal laws, reorganization of the financial system, removal of trade barriers including custom duties, reform of the thathameda taxes (to increase direct taxation), and modernization of the kingdom's army and introduction of new police forces. A Burmese manuscript (Or 13681) held by the British Library depicts "seven scenes of King Mindon's donations at various places during

513-477: The bombardment. On 13 February, Dalhousie sent an ultimatum to the king, demanding an equivalent of £100,000 as compensation for "having had to prepare for war", to be paid by 1 April. The ultimatum expired with no reply from Pagan, and a few days later, British troops entered Burmese territory and quickly routed Pagan's forces. Britain annexed the province of Pegu in December. Pagan Min's half brother Mindon opposed

540-573: The dying king wanted to bid them farewell. Thibaw, Mindon's son from a lesser queen, succeeded him after his death in 1878. King Thibaw was defeated by the British in the Third Anglo-Burmese War in November 1885 resulting in total annexation of Burma. Pagan Min Pagan Min ( Burmese : ပုဂံမင်း , pronounced [bəɡàɰ̃ mɪ́ɰ̃] ; 21 June 1811 – 14 March 1880), was the ninth king of

567-577: The first four years of his reign (1853–57)", including a monastery, rest houses, and gifts for monks. Mindon introduced the first machine-struck coins to Burma, and in 1871 also held the Fifth Buddhist council in Mandalay. He had already created the world's largest book in 1868, the Tipitaka , 729 pages of the Buddhist Pali Canon inscribed in marble and each stone slab housed in a small stupa at

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594-458: The king requesting a compensation of £920 and the dismissal of Maung Ok. Pagan complied by replacing Maung Ok. But on 6 January 1852, when the new governor declined to meet with a British delegation because Lambert had seized a Burmese royal ship, all British subjects were evacuated and the coast of Rangoon was placed under a blockade . Within days, Lambert's warships were bombarding Rangoon . On 7 February, Pagan wrote to Dalhousie to protest against

621-542: The king. Mindon commanded him to carry him from the palace, which he promptly did. The rebellion caused Mindon great reluctance in naming a successor to Kanaung for fear of civil war. One of his queens, Hsinbyumashin , dominated the last days of King Mindon. It was an edict by Hsinbyumashin that ordered almost all possible heirs to the throne be killed, so that her daughter Supayalat and son-in-law Thibaw would become queen and king. Close royals of all ages and both genders were mercilessly executed, after being tricked that

648-518: The myozas of Magwe, Thalun, Myedaung, and Pahkangyi, the latter being Mindon's former tutor who was given the position as Mindon ascended to the throne. This new government was given oaths of allegiance by the Shan princes, as well as gifts from the Chinese. Immediately following his taking of the throne, Mindon went into a ceasefire with the British, coming into effect on 30 June 1853. Although hostilities with

675-410: The reign of Pagan Min. In 1851 the governor of Pegu , Maung Ok, charged the captains of two British merchant ships with murder, embezzlement, and evasion of custom duties. He fined them 500 rupees, and required their debts be paid before being authorized to return to Kolkata . After receiving their complaints, Lord Dalhousie , the governor-general of British India , sent Commodore George Lambert to

702-487: The throne following a bloody conflict of succession with his half-brother, Pagan Min . Under Pagan, Mindon was the president of the Council of State, and was presiding as the Second Anglo-Burmese War began. He was against the continuation of the war and favored an unpopular program of appeasement. Mindon's most loyal ally at this time was his brother Kanaung Mintha . In a November 1852 plot to implicate Mindon and Kanaung in

729-410: The throne with the regnal name of Thiri Thudhamma Tilawka Pawara Maha Dhamma Razadiraza on 18 February 1853. The early reign of Mindon was characterized by joint rule with Kanaung, who was allowed a large court and was designated Mindon's heir, as well as given control over matters of technology, modernization, and the arts. Behind Mindon's throne too was his chief queen and his four chief advisors –

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