Tho Kyaung Bwa

Tho Kyaung Bwa သိုကြောင်ဘွား Sao Kem Hpa
Sawbwa of Onbaung
Reign	by 1404 – 1420s?
Predecessor	?
Successor	Le Than Bwa (Hsan Hpa)
Monarch	Minkhaung I
Born	? Onbaung?
Died	1420s? Onbaung
Spouses	Sanda of Ava
Religion	Theravada Buddhism

Tho Kyaung Bwa (Burmese: သိုကြောင်ဘွား, Burmese pronunciation: [ðò dʑàʊɴ bwá], also known as Sao Kem Hpa[1]) was sawbwa (ruler) of Onbaung from c. 1400s to c. 1420s. He was a vassal and/or ally of King Minkhaung I of Ava.

Standard chronicle narrative

According to the standard royal chronicles, he became a vassal of Ava in 1404/05. In a marriage of state, he married a niece of King Minkhaung I of Ava.[2] In 1412/13, he reported to the Ava court that his Shan-speaking state had come under attack from the neighboring Shan state of Hsenwi (Theinni), backed by Ming China.[3] Minkhaung sent his son Crown Prince Minye Kyawswa to drive out the Hsenwi and Chinese forces.[4][5]

The next ruler of Onbaung mentioned in the standard royal chronicles is Le Than Bwa (Hsan Hpa) in 1425.[6][7] The main chronicles do not say when exactly Tho Kyaung Bwa ceased to be the sawbwa or if and how Le Than Bwa was related to him.

Hsipaw chronicle narrative

The Shan language chronicle Hsipaw Yazawin (Onbaung Hsipaw Chronicle) however says that he was an ally of King Minkhaung. According to the chronicle, it was Minkhaung that submitted to the sawbwa in February 1415 after the sawbwa had marched and encamped in Sagaing across from the capital Ava (Inwa). The king of Ava gave his niece Sanda in marriage.[1][note 1]

The chronicle also says he was the father of Hsan Hpa (Le Than Bwa), the next sawbwa of Onbaung–Hsipaw.[8]

Notes

1. (Fernquest 2006) presents inconsistent information. (Fernquest 2006: 54) states that the marriage alliance came in February 1415, citing the Onbaung chronicle via (Sai Aung Tun 2004: 153–154). But (Fernquest 2006: 58) says that the marriage between Sao Kem Hpa and Sanda was in 1393, without providing an explicit citation. It is unclear if the source chronicle provides two different dates, or if one of his dates is a typographical error. The chronicle also claims that his son Hsan Hpa married Sanda after his death.

References

1. Fernquest 2006: 54
2. Hmannan Vol. 1 2003: 446
3. Hmannan Vol. 2 2003: 8
4. Hmannan Vol. 2 2003: 8–10
5. Harvey 1925: 87
6. Yazawin Thit Vol. 1 2012: 269
7. Hmannan Vol. 2 2003: 57
8. Fernquest 2006: 58

Bibliography

• Fernquest, Jon (Autumn 2006). "Crucible of War: Burma and the Ming in the Tai Frontier Zone (1382–1454)" (PDF). SOAS Bulletin of Burma Research. 4 (2).
• Harvey, G. E. (1925). History of Burma: From the Earliest Times to 10 March 1824. London: Frank Cass & Co. Ltd.
• Kala, U (2006) [1724]. Maha Yazawin (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3 (4th printing ed.). Yangon: Ya-Pyei Publishing.
• Maha Sithu (2012) [1798]. Myint Swe; Kyaw Win; Thein Hlaing (eds.). Yazawin Thit (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3 (2nd printing ed.). Yangon: Ya-Pyei Publishing.
• Royal Historical Commission of Burma (2003) [1832]. Hmannan Yazawin (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3. Yangon: Ministry of Information, Myanmar.

Tho Kyaung Bwa Ava Kingdom  Died: 1420s?
Royal titles
Preceded by ?	Sawbwa of Onbaung by 1404 – 1420s?	Succeeded by Le Than Bwa?