1869.] On the History of the Burma race. 65 



of Arakan who had come with the boats by sea, hearing of the 

 defeat of his uncle, returned home. The king of Proine being thus 

 left entirely to his own resources, and the citizens and soldiers suf- 

 fering from want of food, at length surrendered in the month Na-gun 

 904 (June 1542, A. D.). King Meng Khoung with his queen and 

 concubines were sent to Toung-ii. Tha-do-dham-ma Ra-dza, one of 

 the brothers of Bhureng Noung, was made tributary king of Prome, 

 being invested with the usual regalia. Meng-ta-ra Shwe-hti having 

 made arrangements for the government of the country, placed garri- 

 sons in such places as required protection, and returned to Han-tha- 

 wa-ti. A number of the nobles, officers and soldiers of Prome, were 

 brought away. 



At Ava, the defeat of king Tho-han-bwa had increased his diffi- 

 culties. His Shan followers had always been hated by the Burmese, 

 whom they cruelly oppressed. In the palace there were both Shan 

 and Burmese guards. The Shan officers had long wished to clear 

 the palace of all Burmese. The latter depended upon Meng-gyi 

 Ran-noung, who supported their interests. The wicked character of 

 Tho-han-bwa caused him to be hated, and facilitated a conspiracy 

 against his life. While he was living at a summer palace, the Burmese 

 nobles and guards were suddenly set upon and killed, and the king 

 himself was seen no more. This occurred the month before Prome 

 was surrendered. This king's character is thus drawn in the Ma-ha 

 Ra-dza- weng : " He was of a cruel and savage disposition. He 

 "spared not men's lives. He respected not the three treasures. 

 " Pagodas, he used to say, are not the Phra, but merely fictitious 

 " vaults in which the Burmese deposit gold, silver, and jewels ; so he 

 " dug into and rifled those shrines of their treasures. The Phun- 

 " gyis too, he used to say, having no wives and children, under 

 " pretence of gathering disciples, collect guards round them, ready 

 " to rise in rebellion. So he built a number of sheds on the plain of 

 " Toung-ba-lu, and pretending to do honour to the Phun-gyis, invited 

 tf all those round Ava, Tsagaing, and Pan-ya to a feast. Then sur- 

 " rounding them with an army, he had them all slaughtered. He then 

 " seized all the books in their monasteries, and had them burnt. But 

 " some of the Shans had pity on the Phun-gyis, and many thus 

 " escaped to Prome and Toung-u. More than three hundred and 

 " sixty were killed, but more than a thousand escaped." 



