Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Pyu Arriving from the Tibeto-Burman plateau and/or from India around the 1st
century BC, the Pyu established the first major kingdom of sorts, with city-states in
central Myanmar including Beikthano, Hanlin and Sri Ksetra (Thayekhittaya). In the
10th century Yunnanese invaders from China had enslaved or scared off most Pyu.
Rakh
akhiine Also known as Arakanese, these people claim their kingdom was well un-
der way by the 6th century BC. Certainly it was in full force by the 15th century,
when their Buddhist kingdom was based in Mrauk U and their navy controlled
much of the Bay of Bengal.
Bamar Also known as Burmans, these people arrived from somewhere in the east-
ern Himalaya in the 8th or 9th century, supplanting the vanquished Pyu and estab-
lishing the cultural heartland of Myanmar as it's still known. Centuries of conflict
with the Mon erupted after their arrival. Although the Bamar came out on top, the
result was really a merger of the two cultures.
MMon This race, who may have originated from eastern India or mainland Southeast
Asia, settled fertile lowlands on the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) River delta across
Thailand to Cambodia. They developed the area as Suvannabhumi (Golden Land),
with their Burmese kingdom, centred around present-day Thaton, coming into ex-
istence around the 9th century.
The First Burmese Empire
Bagan was nearly 200 years old when its 'golden period' kicked off - signalled by an en-
ergetic, can-do King Anawrahta taking the throne in 1044. His conquest of the Mon
kingdom and the adoption of Buddhism inspired a creative energy in Bagan. It quickly
became a city of glorious temples and the capital of the First Burmese Empire.
Anawrahta's successors (Kyanzittha, Alaungsithu and Htilominlo) lacked his vision,
and the kingdom's power slowly declined. In 1273 King Narathihapate made the diplo-
matic mistake of offending the growing power of Kublai Khan by executing his envoys.
When the Mongols invaded in 1287, Narathihapate fled south to Pyay (Prome) where he
committed suicide.
In the ensuing chaos, Shan tribes (closely related to the Siamese) from the hills to the
east grabbed a piece of the low country, while the Mon in the south broke free of Bamar
control and re-established their own kingdom.
