Tabinshwehti was king of Burma from 1530 to 1550, and the founder of the First Toungoo Empire.
35 Facts About Tabinshwehti
2.
Tabinshwehti actively courted the support of ethnic Mons of Lower Burma, many of whom were appointed to the highest positions in his government and armed forces.
3.
Tabinshwehti is one of the most celebrated kings in Burmese history.
4.
The Tabinshwehti nat is one of the 37 nats worshiped in Myanmar.
5.
From his father side, Tabinshwehti was a great-great-great-grandson of King Minkhaung I of Ava, and great-great-grandson of Crown Prince Minye Kyawswa.
6.
Tabinshwehti's mother Khin Oo was a commoner, daughter of the village chief of Le Way.
7.
Tabinshwehti grew up playing with children of his servants, including one Ye Htut, the eldest son of Mingyi Swe and his wet nurse Myo Myat.
8.
Local legends mention that even though Tabinshwehti was born during the nighttime, the swords in the armory shone brightly.
9.
Tabinshwehti installed his young friends, including Ye Htut, as confidants.
10.
Tabinshwehti deliberated at length with his ministers, and finally came to the conclusion that Ye Htut should be given his sister in marriage, and a princely title of Kyawhtin Nawrahta.
11.
In late 1534, in a complete break from his father's longstanding policy, Tabinshwehti decided to break out of his increasingly narrow realm by attacking the Hanthawaddy Kingdom to the south.
12.
Tabinshwehti now bestowed Kyawhtin Nawrahta the title of Bayinnaung.
13.
Tabinshwehti next tried to complete his control of Lower Burma.
14.
Tabinshwehti ordered a whole scale execution of the viceroy, his family, and all the "gallant" defenders for they had refused his prior offer of amnesty.
15.
Tabinshwehti appointed Saw Lagun Ein, brother-in-law of Takayutpi, as viceroy of Martaban.
16.
Tabinshwehti was so pleased with Bayinnaung's victory over the Arakanese army that he appointed his deputy and childhood friend heir-apparent.
17.
At Pegu, Tabinshwehti was again crowned in the tradition of the great kings of Hanthawaddy in 1545.
18.
Tabinshwehti raised Khay Ma Naw, an ethnic Mon, to be his chief queen, and wore his hair in the Mon style.
19.
Tabinshwehti appointed many ethnic Mons to the highest offices at the court and in the armed forces.
20.
Meanwhile, Tabinshwehti received news that Siamese forces had occupied the Tavoy frontier up to Ye.
21.
Back from Arakan, Tabinshwehti looked east to Siam, which had occupied what he considered his territory.
22.
Tabinshwehti was not satisfied, and planned an invasion of Siam itself.
23.
The end of Tabinshwehti came soon after his return from the Siamese campaign.
24.
Tabinshwehti became an alcoholic in such a short time that the king, who had been on constant military campaigns in every year since 1534, decided not only to forgo any new campaigns but to hand over day-to-day governing duties to Bayinnaung.
25.
Tabinshwehti asked Bayinnaung to suppress the rebellion while he went on a hunting trip to the Irrawaddy delta.
26.
Tabinshwehti came to power at a time when the prevailing administrative model in mainland Southeast Asia was that of small solar polities, which consisted of a high king surrounded by semi-independent tributaries and autonomous viceroys.
27.
Tabinshwehti appointed his inner circle to key locations in Upper Burma.
28.
Tabinshwehti made no attempt to administer the Mon-speaking Lower Burma with Burman governors.
29.
Tabinshwehti needed and prized loyal local lords for governing since he spent much of his reign on military campaigns.
30.
Tabinshwehti quickly built on the success by combining his kingdom's "more martial tradition" with the maritime wealth and manpower of Lower Burma, which enabled him to acquire foreign mercenaries and firearms.
31.
Tabinshwehti went to great lengths to ensure that the rise of his regime did not come at the expense of Lower Burma's ethnic Mon culture and language.
32.
Tabinshwehti is still remembered as a brave king and empire builder in popular culture, albeit generally in a secondary role in the stories of his much more celebrated successor Bayinnaung.
33.
The Tabinshwehti nat is one of the 37 nats worshiped in Myanmar.
34.
Tabinshwehti is portrayed sitting cross-legged on a throne in full regalia, with two swords in his left hand and right hands above his knee.
35.
Tabinshwehti is one of the more well known kings in Myanmar.