rom Ava but ultimately
they claimed to be descendants of the last king of Pagan and, in this
character, Bureng or Bayin Naung (1551-1581), the second great ruler
of Burma, conquered Prome, Pegu and Ava. His kingdom began to break up
immediately after his death but his dynasty ruled in Ava until the
middle of the eighteenth century.

During this period Europeans first made their appearance and quarrels
with Portuguese adventurers were added to native dissensions. The
Shans and Talaings became turbulent and after a tumultuous interval
the third great national hero, Alaung-paya or Alompra, came to the
front. In the short space of eight years (1752-1760), he gained
possession of Ava, made the Burmese masters of both the northern and
southern provinces, founded Rangoon and invaded both Manipur and Siam.
While on the latter expedition he died. Some of his successors held
their court at Ava but Bodawpaya built a new capital at Amarapura
(1783) and Mindon Min another at Mandalay (1857). The dynasty came to
an end in 1886 when King Thibaw was deposed by the Government of India
and his dominions annexed.

2

The early history of Buddhism in Burma is obscure, as in most other
countries, and different writers have maintained that it was
introduced from northern India, the east coast of India, Ceylon, China
or Camboja.[129] All these views may be in a measure true, for there
is reason to believe that it was not introduced at one epoch or from
one source or in one form.

It is not remarkable that Indian influence should be strong among the
Burmese. The wonder rather is that they have preserved such strong
individuality in art, institutions and everyday life, that no one can
pass from India into Burma without feeling that he has entered a new
country. This is because the mountains which separate it from Eastern
Bengal and run right down to the sea form a barrier still sufficient
to prevent communication by rail. But from the earliest times
Indian immigrants and Indian ideas have been able to find their way
both by land and sea. According to the Burmese chronicles Tagaung was
founded by the Hindu prince Abhiraja in the ninth century B.C. and the
kingdom of Arakan claims as its first ruler an ancient prince of
Benares. The legends have not much more historical value than the
Kshattriya genealogies which Brahmans have invented for the kings of
Manipur, but they show that the Burmese knew of India and wished to
connect themselves