The Making of Modern Burma

A much-needed history of nineteenth-century Burma which lays down the foundations of the modern state.

Thant Myint-U (Author)

9780521799140, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 26 March 2001

296 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.7 cm, 0.44 kg

'… this is a fascinating account with many new angles of the nineteenth-century kingdom and the impact on it of the British Empire.' The Times Literary Supplement

Burma has often been portrayed as a timeless place, a country of egalitarian Buddhist villages, ruled successively by autocratic kings, British colonialists and, most recently, a military dictatorship. The Making of Modern Burma argues instead that many aspects of Burmese society today, from the borders of the state to the social structure of the countryside to the very notion of a Burmese identity, are largely the creations of the nineteenth century - a period of great change - away from the Ava-based polity of early modern times, and towards the 'British Burma' of the 1900s. The book provides a sophisticated and much-needed account of the period, and as such will be an important resource for policy makers and students as a basis for understanding contemporary politics and the challenges of the modern state. It will also be read by historians interested in the British colonial expansion of the nineteenth century.

Introduction: the fall of Mandalay
1. Kings and distant wars
2. The Irrawaddy Valley in the early nineteenth century
3. The court of Ava
4. Empire and identity
5. The grand reforms of King Mindon
6. Revolt and the coming of British rule
7. Reformists and royalists at the court of King Thibaw
8. War and occupation
9. A colonial society
Conclusions: the making of modern Burma.

Subject Areas: 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000 [HBLW], Modern history to 20th century: c 1700 to c 1900 [HBLL], Asian history [HBJF]