[No. 1, 
IS Sir Arthur P. Phayre —On the History of JPeyu. 
against Taungu. The king of that state, who was the son of him who had 
taken Hanthawati twelve years before, at first behaved with courage, and 
came outside the city to fight the invader. But losing heart, he entered 
into negociations, agreed to become tributary, and gave up some of his 
family as hostages. Maha Dhamma Radza then returned to Ava, carrying 
with him, the Burmese history states, the holy tooth relic which his grand¬ 
father had received from Ceylon, and which the king of Taungu had taken 
from Pegu when he plundered that city in A. D. 1599. The king did not 
relax in his efforts to strengthen his army, and gathered round him men of 
influence from Prome and Taungu. 
Philip de Nicote and Binya Dala, king of Martaban, knew that the king 
of Ava only bided his time to attack them. They appear to have entered 
into secret communication with the king of Taungu, and after making a 
league with him, then treacherously attacked him. They marched there, 
plundered the city and burnt the palace. The king they carried off as a 
prisoner. Nothing certain is known as to the causes of this attack, but it 
brought the king of Ava without delay against Syriam ; and the Portuguese 
governor, though recklessly aggressive, appears to have been utterly 
unprepared to resist attack. In the month of October 1612, the Burmese 
army proceeded down the Erawati in an immense fleet of boats, and, during 
December, Syriam was invested on all sides. By the following April, Nicote 
who was short both of provisions and powder, was forced to surrender. The 
city was given up to plunder, and the unfortunate Nicote was made prisoner. 
The Burmese history relates that, after five days, the king called for him and 
reproached him with his attack on Taungu. He excused himself by saying 
that he had been called by the king of that city. As Nicote belonged to 
that hateful description of heretics who destroy pagodas and holy images, 
he was impaled on a high stake before his own house, so that all might see 
him, and so died miserably. The king of Taungu was also put to death. 
All the foreigners of the same race as Nicote, between four and live hundred 
in number, were sent to the upper country. A few days after the city had 
been taken, five foreign ships, manned by Muhammadan sailors, arrived. 
Four of these were captured and one escaped. They were full of firearms 
which had been sent for the use of the garrison. Afterwards a ship belong¬ 
ing to Nicote’s wife arrived from Achin, and was also captured. Binya 
Dala of Muttama now made his submission, and was allowed to remain 
there as tributary king, with the title of Binya Dhamma Radza. The 
king of Siam had advanced to Ye, in order to watch events. The king 
determined to drive him out, and sent his brother with an army. He 
attacked the Siamese, but was defeated and made prisoner. 
As the capture of Syriam marks the downfall of the Portuguese power 
in Pegu, it will be convenient to quote here the account given by the 
