1873.] 
Sir Arthur P. Phayre —The History of Pegu. 
127 
u cious stones, pearls, and especially rubies which he weareth, surmounting 
“ in value any great city. Not long after, news were brought that the king 
“ of Ava was coming with a mighty force, whom the king with an innumer- 
“ able army went to resist.” This army probably was the force which Bin- 
ya Ran led up the Erawati to Prome, and then on to Pugan. This expedi¬ 
tion may have been made to resist an anticipated attack, but in the Tailing 
history, it is represented, with some dubiousness, as a pilgrimage to the pago¬ 
das at those cities. When Vertomannus says, “ here are not many ele¬ 
phants,” he must mean in the city, for the great strength of Pegu consist¬ 
ed in elephants ; or they may all have been gathered at a distance to accom¬ 
pany the army. 
Early in the sixteenth century, we have notices of Pegu by Portuguese 
voyagers, who under Vasco de Gama had doubled the Cape of Good Hope. 
Their actions in Pegu are recorded in the history of “ The Portuguese in 
India, by Manuel de Faria y Sousa, translated by Stevens into English, and 
printed at London in 1695.” The Portuguese were established at Malacca 
under Albuquerque in 1510. In 1517, John de Sylvera went to Bengal 
with four sail. He was invited by the king of Arakan to his country, and 
he appears to have gone to Chatigam, then a port of that king’s dominions. 
In 1519, it is recorded that Antony Correa, “ concluded a treaty with the 
“ king of Pegu at Martavan, when peace was sworn to by both parties with 
“ solemn ceremonies. The metropolis of the kingdom is Bagao, corruptly 
“ called Pegu.” 
We have seen in the Tailing history that the last king of Pegu was 
Ta-ka-rwut-bi, who succeeded to the throne in 1526, and was conquered by 
the king of Taungu, styled Ta-beng Shwe-hti, the capital having surrendered 
in 1538. How a Portuguese force happened to be present on this occasion 
but which is not noticed in the native histories, is thus stated hy Sousa. 
“ Ferdinand de Morales was sent by the Viceroy with a great galeon to 
“ trade at Pegu. Pegu was then invaded by the king of Brama. Brama had 
“ been tributary to Pegu, but had revolted. The cause of this was that 30,000 
“ Bramas laboured in the king of Pegu’s works. The king used to visit 
“ them, attended only by his women. They suddenly rose and murdered 
“ the king, and fled to their own country. Then Para Mandara, king of the 
“ Bramas, rose, recovered his own kingdom of Ava, and overrun the Laos 
“ and other countries tributary to Pegu. The king of Brama now invaded 
“ Pegu with such a power, that the two armies consisted of two millions of 
“ men with 10,000 elephants. Morales went into a galliot, and commanding 
“ the fleet of Pegu, made a great havock among the enemy’s ships. Brama 
“ came on by land like a torrent, carrying all before him, and his fleet 
“ covering the river, though as great as the Ganges. With this power he 
“ easily gained the city, and the kingdom of Pegu. At the point Ginamarre- 
