Mon Uprising in Burma 1838-1840

In Burma there had for some time been faith in the coming of Setkya-min, the messianic prince whose store of righteousness and karma equipped and entitled him to seize state power. Many people believed that the reappearance of Setkya-min would restore the greatness of the Buddhist kingdom. The folk expectations of a return of Setkya-min were subsequently tapped by a series of claimants to his identity and mission. After the defeat of Burma in the First Anglo-Burmese War, the Setkya-min claim became a potent force for galvanizing uprisings.

During 1838 Maung Setkya managed to collect followers for a revolt in Pegu (now Bago), a predominantly Mon area, based on a nominal identification of him as being Setkya-min. The uprising spread southward to Rangoon. The Mon leaders of the rebellion hoped to take advantage of the British presence in Burma in their struggle against their Burman overlords. However, the British did nothing to help the rebels, declining to be drawn into what was considered to be the internal affairs of Burma. The rebellion was ultimately crushed by Burmese armed forces loyal to the reigning monarch, Tharawaddy, by the end of 1840. This phenomenon was repeated several times, despite severe repression in the offending districts by the forces of the Konbaung dynasty.

References

Cambridge History of Southeast Asia (Vol. 2, Pt. 1), 213; Mon Nationalism and Civil War in Burma, 61, 81; True Love and Bartholomew, 20; Military History, 866; Timelines of War, 327.

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