Burma achieved independence from British rule on 4 January 1948. Even the Pegu Club, I’m told. Efforts were also undertaken to increase the representation of Burmese in the civil service. The region was sometimes called the Indian Empire, though … The new colony of Upper Burma was attached to the Burma Province on 26 February 1886. When the British began their imperial take over of Burma, the colony was immediately thrown into a world of exportation in which they had not ever been exposed to before colonisation by the British. Ever since the 1820s, the British had regarded Burma as a lucrative sideline to India, strategically vital and, more important, a place to get rich. [11] There were further strikes and anti-tax protests in the later 1920s led by the Wunthanu athins. This humiliation paved the way for the extreme nationalist militarism that followed. Rance calmed the situation by meeting with Aung San and convincing him to join the Governor's Executive Council along with other members of the AFPFL. At the same time, thousands of Indian labourers migrated to Burma and, because of their willingness to work for less money, quickly displaced the Burmese farmers, who instead began to take part in crime, giving themselves a bad reputation. More ice please’”) gave him his first glimpse of the wars colonialism waged beyond its walls. [11] Between 1900 and 1911 the "Irish Buddhist" U Dhammaloka publicly challenged Christianity and imperial power, leading to two trials for sedition. Membership was open to “all gentlemen interested in general society”, the club’s rules stated, but in practice that meant whites only. [Source: Wikipedia], Burma Becomes a Colony After the Third Anglo-Burmese War, Britain made Burma a province of India in 1886 with the capital at Rangoon and ushered in a new period of economic growth. +, Burma was grafted onto India despite the incompatibility of India and the Burmese heartland, which lacked a "Burma lobby" to explain it in Britain. 1948 - Burma becomes independent. (See George Orwell's novel Burmese Days for a fictional account of the British in Burma.) Save up to 80% by choosing the eTextbook option for ISBN: 9781472589750, 1472589750. Way this country’s going, you know. The British "imperial tongue" stumbled over Myanmar and adopted Burma, reportedly similar to the name Birmania given to the country by Portuguese traders. Although Burma was the wealthiest country in Southeast Asia under British rule, as a colony it was seen very much as a backwater. Resistance to British rule continued in the northern territories up until 1890, when the British finally destroyed entire villages in order to halt guerrilla activity – a tactic still favoured by today’s military junta. Though the final Anglo-Burma war officially ended after only a couple of weeks in 1985, resistance continued in northern Myanmar until 1890, with the British finally resorting to a systematic destruction of villages and appointment of new officials to finally halt the guerilla activity. This constitutes 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. 18 February 2010. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. The ambivalent feelings of the protagonist in "Shooting an Elephant" … The hill stations began as sanatoriums and convalescent centers, but it wasn’t long before they became places where healthy upper class people went to escape the heat of the lowland plains. The main character is the narrator who experiences external and internal conflicts. Burma was de­clared a province of India in No­vem­ber 1885 on the or­ders of the Sec­re­tary of State for India, Lord Ran­dolph Churchill, with its cap­i­tal at Ran­goon, a move that ush­ered in a new pe­riod of eco­nomic growth. [11], May 1930 saw the founding of the Dobama Asiayone (We Burmans Association) whose members called themselves Thakin (an ironic name as thakin means "master" in the Burmese language – rather like the Indian 'sahib' – proclaiming that they were the true masters of the country entitled to the term usurped by the colonial masters). Their actions, and the crime that began when the villagers were displaced by Indian workers, led to the British impression of their Burmese colony as a restless and violent place.[5]. The Empire of Japan invaded Burma in 1942; this continued through 1943, when the State of Burma was proclaimed in Rangoon. The annexed territories were designated the minor province (a Chief Commissionership), British Burma, of British India in 1862.[1]. By the turn of the century, a nationalist movement began to take shape in the form of Young Men's Buddhist Associations (YMBA), modelled after the YMCA, as religious associations were allowed by the colonial authorities. The eventual trial of Saya San, who was executed, allowed several future national leaders, including Dr Ba Maw and U Saw, who participated in his defence, to rise to prominence. Simla, the largest hill station, was the capital of British India for most of the year and headquarters for the imperial army. Though war of­fi­cially ended after only a cou­ple of weeks, re­sis­tance con­tin­ued in north­ern Burma until 1890, with the British fi­nally re­sort­ing to a sys­tem­atic de­struc­tion of vil­â€¦ [5], To prepare land for cultivation, farmers had to borrow capital from Indian moneylenders at high interest rates as the British banks wouldn't grant mortgages. This page was last modified on 27 December 2015, at 08:38. Rice, which was in high demand in Europe, especially after the building of the Suez Canal in 1869, was the main crop grown in and exported out of Myanmar. Traditional Burmese society was drastically altered by the demise of the monarchy and the separation of religion and state. +. When the British conquered Pegu (now Bago) in 1852, they did so, according to one rather biased report, “in what may be called dashing style, while exposed to the fierce rays of a burning sun”. After the opening of the Suez Canal, the demand for Burmese rice grew and vast tracts of land were opened up for cultivation. Though the country prospered, the Burmese people failed to reap the rewards. 15th ed. It was not practical for supplying water, especially when trees were cut down and ground water levels drops. British rule in Burma lasted from 1824 to 1948, from the Anglo-Burmese wars through the creation of Burma as a Province of British India to the establishment of an independently administered colony, and finally independence. [6] In 1852, the Second Anglo-Burmese War was provoked by the British who sought the teak forests in Lower Burma as well as a port between Calcutta and Singapore. While the Burmese economy grew all the power and wealth was in the hands of several British firms and the Burmese people did not reap the rewards. Most Burmans provided labor for the Burmese export economy. Harvey wrote in his chapter on Burma in the Cambridge History of the British Empire: +, Movement Towards Burmese Independent Under British Colonial Rule. In Rangoon student protesters, after successfully picketing the Secretariat, the seat of the colonial government, were charged by the British mounted police wielding batons and killing a Rangoon University student called Aung Kyaw. The British became the wealthy and elite class. The British also brought in lots of Indians to Burma to perform labor, serve as clerks and run businesses. Prominent among the political activists were Buddhist monks (hpongyi), such as U Ottama and U Seinda in the Arakan who subsequently led an armed rebellion against the British and later the nationalist government after independence, and U Wisara, the first martyr of the movement to die after a protracted hunger strike in prison. [Source: Wikipedia], British in Burma During the Colonial Period. The revolt was crushed. The annexed territories were designated the minor province (a Chief Commissionership), British Burma, of British India in 1862. Both astounded him. The British ruled Burma as a part of India from 1919 until 1937. A rift had also developed in the AFPFL between the Communists and Aung San together with the Socialists over strategy, which led to Than Tun being forced to resign as general secretary in July 1946 and the expulsion of the CPB from the AFPFL the following October. The 1826 Treaty of Yandabo formally ended the First Anglo-Burmese War, the longest and the most expensive war in British India history. There were three wars between the British oppressors and the Burmese. Historians will add that we saw no harm in this, though we always resisted such a fate to the death when it threatened our own land. The print version of this textbook is … Burma is sometimes referred to as the Scottish Colony, due to the heavy role played by Scotsmen in colonising and running the country – one of the most notable being Sir James George Scott, and the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company. Upper Burma fell to the British and the Mandalay-based peacock throne was toppled after the Third Anglo-Burmese War in 1885. Moreover the Burmese, like all the other peoples of India, remain under the rule of the British Empire for purely military considerations. British rule in Burma, 1824-1942. A rising sense of nationalism combined with suffering lead to the Saya San rebellion, a peasant uprising which was brutally suppressed by the British. Bounded by Prome Road (now Pyay), Newlyns Road (now Zagawar) and Budd’s Road (now Padonmar), its location – north of the city’s built-up waterfront downtown, but south of the cantonment (or garrison) line which marked the edge of the developed city just north of Shwedagon Pagoda – afforded easy access to the barracks, parade grounds, prisons, lunatic asylums and burial grounds which marked the British view of Rangoon at the time. Further dividing the country, provinces were ruled by governors who were all appointed by the Hluttaw, and villages were ruled by hereditary headmen who were approved by the king. The second university students strike in 1936 was triggered by the expulsion of Aung San and Ko Nu, leaders of the Rangoon University Students Union (RUSU), for refusing to reveal the name of the author who had written an article in their university magazine, making a scathing attack on one of the senior university officials. Questions or comments, e-mail ajhays98@yahoo.com. When George Orwell arrived in Burma in 1924, the Irrawaddy Delta was leading Burma's exports of over 3 million tons of rice - half the world's supply. To increase the production of rice, many Burmese migrated from the northern heartland to the delta, shifting the population concentration, and changing the basis of wealth and power. He strongly opposes the oppressive British rule of Burma and the rest of India. They had become a conquering race and feared no one on earth.” //\\, “On the British side, there was at first no wish to tackle Burma, a profoundly mysterious country, alleged to have a huge population, certainly able to raise great armies. 1 March 2010. British troops entered Mandalay on 28 November 1885 and Burma was attached to the British Empire on 1 January 1886. This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been authorized by the copyright owner. But set foot they had. The system in which the wealthy patronized the monasteries was broken. [Source: Wikipedia +], By the turn of the century, a nationalist movement began to take shape in the form of Young Men's Buddhist Associations (YMBA), modelled after the YMCA, as religious associations were allowed by the colonial authorities. As elsewhere in Southeast Asia, World War II and the Japanese occupation were politically oppressive times. 2005. It spread to Mandalay leading to the formation of the All Burma Students Union (ABSU). Method for treating and avoiding disease left a lot to be desired. Missionaries that came to India-Burma endured numerous hardships and had little success converting the local population. The British separated Burma Province from British India in 1937[12] and granted the colony a new constitution calling for a fully elected assembly, with many powers given to the Burmese, but this proved to be a divisive issue as some Burmese felt that this was a ploy to exclude them from any further Indian reforms. Historian Thant Myint-U writes: "At the beginning of the 20th century, Indians were arriving in Burma at the rate of no less than a quarter million per year. //\\. Patrick O'Sullivan. The surrender of the Japanese brought a military administration to Burma. One missionary described a huge spider that made a home in his shoe. Though the country prospered, the Burmese people largely failed to reap the rewards. British rule in Burma, also known as British Burma, lasted from 1824 to 1948, from the Anglo-Burmese wars through the creation of Burma as a Province of British India to the establishment of an independently administered colony, and finally independence. The economic nature of society also changed drastically. Different portions of Burmese territories were annexed at different times. Charles' George Orwell Links – Biographies, Essays, Novels, Reviews, Images. The king was the chief executive, with the final say on all matters, but he could not make new laws and could only issue administrative edicts. Welcome to the CIA Web Site Central Intelligence Agency. The British colony of Burma was part of the British run-state in India, the Empire of India, from 1824 to 1937.Burma was separated from the rest of … Far Eastern Survey: American Institute of Pacific Relations 25 February 1953, XXII ed., No. Japan never succeeded in fully conquering all of the colony, however, and insurgent activity was pervasive, though not as much of an issue as it was in other former colonies. He eventually resigned from the Legislative Assembly and was arrested for sedition. There was the first Anglo-Burmese War in 1824, and then the second in 1852. With the arrival of the British, the Burmese economy became tied to global market forces and was forced to become a part of the colonial export economy. 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