Aleimma of Martaban

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Aleimma
အလိမ္မာ
Governor of Martaban
In office
c. 1259 –c. 11 January 1285
Monarch Narathihapate
Preceded by Nga Shwe
Succeeded by Wareru
Personal details
Born Pagan (Bagan)?
Pagan Empire
Diedc. 11 January 1285
Thursday, 6th waxing of Tabodwe 646 ME
Donwun
Pagan Empire

Aleimma (Burmese : အလိမ္မာ, [ʔəleìmmà] ) was governor of Martaban (Mottama), then a Lower Burma province of the Pagan Empire, from c. 1259 to 1285. Appointed to the office by King Narathihapate, Aleimma proved a loyal governor of the southern province until the 1280s. But when Pagan was fighting a losing war against Mongol invaders in the country's north, he like other vassal rulers in the south began planning to break away. However, the governor himself was assassinated by a local chief named Ma Gadu, who went on to declare independence from Pagan two years later.

Burmese language language spoken in Myanmar

The Burmese language is the Sino-Tibetan language spoken in Myanmar where it is an official language and the language of the Bamar people, the country's principal ethnic group. Although the Constitution of Myanmar officially recognizes the English name of the language as the Myanmar language, most English speakers continue to refer to the language as Burmese, after Burma, the older name for Myanmar. In 2007, it was spoken as a first language by 33 million, primarily the Bamar (Burman) people and related ethnic groups, and as a second language by 10 million, particularly ethnic minorities in Myanmar and neighboring countries.

Pagan Kingdom Kingdom in present-day Burma

The Kingdom of Pagan was the first kingdom to unify the regions that would later constitute modern-day Burma (Myanmar). Pagan's 250-year rule over the Irrawaddy valley and its periphery laid the foundation for the ascent of Burmese language and culture, the spread of Burman ethnicity in Upper Burma, and the growth of Theravada Buddhism in Burma and in mainland Southeast Asia.

Narathihapate was the last king of the Pagan Empire who reigned from 1256 to 1287. The king is known in Burmese history as the "Taruk-Pyay Min" for his flight from Pagan (Bagan) to Lower Burma in 1285 during the first Mongol invasion (1277–87) of the kingdom. He eventually submitted to Kublai Khan, founder of the Yuan dynasty in January 1287 in exchange for a Mongol withdrawal from northern Burma. But when the king was assassinated six months later by his son Thihathu, the Viceroy of Prome, the 250-year-old Pagan Empire broke apart into multiple petty states. The political fragmentation of the Irrawaddy valley and its periphery would last for another 250 years until the mid-16th century.

Contents

Brief

In the late 1250s, Aleimma was an official at the court of King Narathihapate (r. 1256–1287) in Pagan (Bagan). He hailed from a line of court ministers that included the 12th century Minister Aleimma, who served at the court of King Sithu I. [1] In early 1259, [note 1] Narathihapate appointed Aleimma the younger governor of the restive province of Martaban (present-day Mon State and southern Kayin State in Myanmar). The appointment came after the Pagan army led by Minister-General Yazathingyan had put down a rebellion by the previous governor Nga Shwe. [1]

Bagan Place in Mandalay Region, Myanmar

Bagan is an ancient city located in the Mandalay Region of Myanmar. From the 9th to 13th centuries, the city was the capital of the Pagan Kingdom, the first kingdom that unified the regions that would later constitute modern Myanmar. During the kingdom's height between the 11th and 13th centuries, over 10,000 Buddhist temples, pagodas and monasteries were constructed in the Bagan plains alone, of which the remains of over 2,200 temples and pagodas still survive to the present day.

Alaungsithu King of Pagan Dynasty of Burma (Myanmar) from 1112/1113 to 1168

Alaungsithu or Sithu I was king of Pagan Dynasty of Burma (Myanmar) from 1112/13 to 1167. Sithu's reign was a prosperous one in which Pagan was an integral part of in-land and maritime trading networks. Sithu engaged in a massive building campaign throughout the kingdom, which included colonies, forts and outposts at strategic locations to strengthen the frontiers, ordination halls and pagodas for the support of religion, as well as reservoirs, dams and other land improvements to assist the farmers. He also introduced standardized weights and measures throughout the country to assist administration as well as trade. He presided over the beginning of a transition away from the Mon culture toward the expression of a distinctive Burman style.

Mon State State in South, Myanmar

Mon State is an administrative division of Myanmar. It lies between Kayin State to the east, the Andaman Sea to the west, Bago Region to the north and Tanintharyi Region to the south, also having a short border with Thailand's Kanchanaburi Province at its south-eastern tip. The land area is 12,155 km2. The Dawna Range, running along the eastern side of the state in a NNW–SSE direction, forms a natural border with Kayin State. Mon State includes some small islands, such as Kalegauk, Wa Kyun and Kyungyi Island, along its 566 km of coastline. The state's capital is Mawlamyine.

Aleimma ruled the province on the upper Tenasserim coast without incident for the next 25 years. However, in 1284, [2] when Pagan was faring badly against Mongol invaders, many of the vassal rulers throughout the country, including the king's own sons, began thinking about breaking away. Aleimma was no exception: he began asking his local chiefs to pledge their allegiance to him. [3]

First Mongol invasion of Burma Historical conquest

The first Mongol invasions of Burma were a series of military conflicts between Kublai Khan's Yuan dynasty, division of the Mongol Empire, and the Pagan Empire that took place between 1277 and 1287. The invasions toppled the 250-year-old Pagan Empire, and the Mongol army seized Pagan territories in present-day Dehong, Yunnan and northern Burma to Tagaung. The invasions ushered in 250 years of political fragmentation in Burma and the rise of ethnic Tai-Shan states throughout mainland Southeast Asia.

However, he had underestimated the ambitions of local chiefs. He apparently was not suspicious when one of the local chiefs Ma Gadu not only offered his allegiance and men but also proposed a marriage between the governor and his younger sister Hnin U Yaing, with the wedding to be held at Gadu's hometown Donwun. The chronicle Razadarit Ayedawbon suggests that Aleimma was completely smitten with U Yaing after seeing her bathe in the river near Donwun. [3] But it was a setup—part of Gadu's plan to lure Aleimma out of Martaban, and assassinate him. [3] Gadu, who was a former captain of the guards of King Ram Khamhaeng of Sukhothai, had decided to seize the governorship himself, and had ordered U Yaing to bathe in the river where Aleimma would see her. [3]

Wareru was the founder of the Martaban Kingdom, located in present-day Myanmar (Burma). By using both diplomatic and military skills, he successfully carved out a Mon-speaking polity in Lower Burma, during the collapse of the Pagan Empire in the 1280s. The king was assassinated in 1307 but his line ruled the kingdom until its fall in the mid-16th century.

Hnin U Yaing was a princess of Martaban and the mother of two kings, Saw O and Saw Zein.

Donwun Place in Mon State, Burma

Donwun, located 16km north of Thaton, is a former capital of Hanthawaddy. It was the capital for over five years between 1364 and 1369.

While the bathing story may not be historical, Aleimma nonetheless accepted Gadu's proposal. [3] [4] In January 1285, the old governor with a small contingent of troops went up to Donwun, about 100km north of the city of Martaban, to consummate the alliance. On the night of the wedding, c. 11 January 1285, [note 2] while Aleimma's guards were drunk, Gadu's men killed them, and assassinated the governor. [5]

Aftermath

After Aleimma's death, Gadu quickly went on to seize Martaban, and consolidate his control of the Martaban province. [6] Two years later, he had secured the support of the Siamese kingdom of Sukhothai, and declared himself king of Martaban, with the title of Wareru. [7]

Sukhothai Kingdom early kingdom in the area around the city Sukhothai, in north central Thailand

The Kingdom of Sukhothai was an early kingdom in the area around the city Sukhothai, in north central Thailand. The Kingdom existed from 1238 until 1438. The old capital, now 12 km outside Sukhothai in Tambon Mueang Kao, is in ruins and has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Historical Park.

Notes

  1. ↑ The Maha Yazawin chronicle (Maha Yazawin Vol. 1 2006: 238) says the king, having reigned for two years, sent two armies to Missagiri and Martaban on Thursday, 6th waxing of Pyatho 604 ME (Sunday, 28 December 1242). The Hmannan Yazawin chronicle corrects the accession year to 617 ME (29 March 1255 – 27 March 1256). But inscriptional evidence per (Yazawin Thit Vol. 1 2012: 139, footnote 5) shows that the king actually came to power in 618 ME, on 6 May 1256 to be exact. Therefore, the starting date of the expeditions should be in December 1258, two years after the king's accession. Furthermore, chronicles (Maha Yazawin Vol. 1 2006: 238)and (Hmannan Vol. 1 2003: 341) continued that the Pagan army took Martaban after an 8-day siege of the city.
  2. ↑ The Mon Yazawin chronicle (Mon Yazawin 1922: 39) states that the marriage took place on Thursday, 6th waxing of Tabodwe 1064 ME (Wednesday, 6 January 1703), which is a typographical error. It should be 646 ME: Thursday, 6th waxing of Tabodwe 646 ME = 11 January 1285.

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References

  1. 1 2 Hmannan Vol. 1 2003: 341
  2. ↑ Aung-Thwin 2017: 238
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Pan Hla 2005: 20–21
  4. ↑ Harvey 1925: 110
  5. ↑ Pan Hla 2005: 21–22
  6. ↑ Pan Hla 2005: 26–27
  7. ↑ Pan Hla 2005: 24

Bibliography

Aleimma of Martaban
 Died:c. 11 January 1285
Royal titles
Preceded by
Nga Shwe		 Governor of Martaban
c. 1259 – c. 11 January 1285 		Succeeded by
Wareru
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