Thihathu

The country fell into anarchy. The Mongols at Tagaung decided not to get involved, leaving the power vacuum unfilled. In Central Burma, the brothers officially took over the leadership of the army, and consolidated their hold of the Kyaukese region, the main granary of the Pagan Kingdom.[7] One of Narathihapate's sons Kyawswa eventually emerged king at Pagan on 30 May 1289 but Kyawswa did not control much beyond the capital. The real power in Central Burma now belonged to the brothers. On 19 February 1293, Kyawswa tried to buy their loyalty by appointing them viceroys of Kyuakse: Athinkhaya as viceroy of Myinsaing, Yazathingyan as viceroy of Mekkhaya and Thihathu as viceroy of Pinle.[7][8] The territories they were given to govern were small but the king himself ruled a small region around the capital.[9] The brothers took the title of viceroy but did not think much of the "king". Their commemorative inscription of their appointment as viceroy actually states that they were equal to the king, and reminds that it was them who defeated the Mongols in 1287.[7] When Martaban (Mottama) in Lower Burma, which had officially declared independence from Pagan since 1287, became a vassal of Sukhothai in 1293, it was the brothers who marched to retake the former Pagan territory in 1295–1296 (also reported as 1293–1294).[note 5] Although they were driven back, it left no doubt as to who held the real power in Central Burma.[10]

In the following years, the brothers continued to consolidate power in Central Burma. Thihathu was the most ambitious and least diplomatic, proclaiming himself hsinbyushin (ဆင်ဖြူရှင်, "Lord of the White Elephant") in 1295 and mingyi (မင်းကြီး, "Great Lord") in 1296.[11][note 6] Though Athinkhaya and Yazathingyan may have tolerated their brother's declarations, Kyawswa felt threatened by them. In January 1297, Kyawswa asked for the protection of the Mongols, and was recognized by the Mongol emperor Temür Khan as King of Pagan on 20 March 1297. The emperor also gave Chinese titles to the brothers as subordinates of Kyawswa.[12] The brothers ultimately decided to overthrow Kyawswa and face the Mongols. On 17 December 1297, with the help of the dowager queen Pwa Saw, they overthrew Kyawswa, and installed one of Kyawswa's sons, Saw Hnit as their puppet king. The brothers now ruled Central Burma as co-regents from their respective capitals of Myinsaing, Mekkhaya and Pinle.[12][13]

After the overthrow, the brothers braced for a reprisal by the Mongols. But the expected reprisal never came. They became bolder, and allowed Saw Hnit to give his first audience on 8 May 1299. Two days later, they executed Kyawswa and his eldest son Theingapati. Another son of Kyawswa, Kumara Kassapa, escaped to Yunnan in September 1299 to seek the help of the Mongols. In January 1300, the brothers forced the issue by attacking and occupying southernmost Mongol garrisons at Singu and Male.[11] The Mongol government at Yunnan could not respond until a year later, sending a 12,000-strong army. The brothers chose to face the Mongols in Central Burma at their heavily fortified city of Myinsaing. The Mongol army began the siege of Myinsaing on 25 January 1301, and launched a major attack on the fort on 28 February 1301. The attack failed. On 12 March 1301, Athinkhaya, with his brothers' support, made an offer to the Mongol command, to give them a bribe in exchange for their withdrawal.[14] The Mongol command agreed. On 6 April 1301, upon receiving a bribe of 800 taels (30 kg) of gold and 2200 taels (83 kg) of silver, the Mongol army began their withdrawal.[14][15] The Yunnan government did not agree with the withdrawal; the two senior Mongol commanders were executed for abandoning the original mission. Nonetheless, the Mongols did not send another expedition, and withdrew altogether from northern Burma two years later.[14][16]

The Mongols left northern Burma to their nominal vassals, the Shan states.[17] The brothers were able to extend their influence as far north as Tagaung but no further. The brothers' joint-rule survived despite Thihathu's ambitions. The youngest brother assumed a royal title of Ananda Thiha Thura Zeya Dewa in 1306, and proclaimed himself king on 20 October 1309.[11] It is not known what the two elder brothers made of the proclamations. At any rate, Athinkhaya died on 13 April 1310 and the two younger brothers were still alive.[18] Yazathingyan passed to the background and died in 1312/13.[note 7] Thihathu proclaimed himself as the successor of the Pagan dynasty, as he founded Pinya Kingdom on 7 February 1313.[19]

In 1313, Thihathu moved his capital from Pinle to Pinya. He had begun scouting for a new location ever since he proclaimed himself king in October 1309. After Athinkhaya's death, he decided on the location of what later would become Ava (Inwa), strategically located at the estuary of the Irrawaddy and Myitnge rivers. But he later decided against the location due to what he considered bad omens at the site. He agreed to an inland location, a few miles east of Ava.[20] (He probably decided against returning to Pagan because he wanted to be closer to the Kyaukse region, the upcountry's primary rice basket. Moreover, the Minbu region, one of the three main agricultural regions, was becoming infertile due to weather changes.[16]) Thihathu officially opened the city, officially named Wizayapura (ဝိဇယပူရ, Pali: Vijayapura), on 7 February 1313.[note 8]

On the same day, Thihathu held a coronation ceremony, proclaiming himself as the rightful successor of Pagan kings. His reign name was Thiri Tri Bawana Ditaya Pawara Thiha Thura Dhamma Yaza. So eager was he to establish his Pagan credentials that he uncharacteristically begged the dowager queen Pwa Saw twice to attend his coronation ceremony. At the coronation ceremony, Queen Pwa Saw presented Thihathu the golden belt and the golden tray which had been handed down in the royal family since the time of King Anawrahta (r. 1044–1077). Thihathu now officially considered himself the heir to Pagan kings. His chief queen was Mi Saw U, a daughter of Narathihapate. More importantly, he appointed his adopted son Uzana, the biological son of the fallen king Kyawswa and Mi Saw U, as the heir apparent. He also appointed Kyawswa, his first son by Mi Saw U, governor of Pinle.[21]

The appointments did not go down well with Saw Yun, his eldest biological son by a commoner queen (Yadanabon). Saw Yun felt the throne was his. He agitated his father for a viceroyship in the north.[22] While Thihathu wavered, on 16 May 1315, Saw Yun took matters in his own hand, and left for Sagaing with a group of followers, a few miles west of Pinya, across the Irrawaddy.[23] Saw Yun found support in a sect of forest dwelling monks and their followers.[24]

At first, Thihathu dismissed the 16-year-old's thinly veiled insurrection, and did not take any action. But Saw Yun continued to consolidate his support in the north, and fortified Sagaing with a brick wall, completed on 26 March 1316.[25] Even then, Thihathu's response was halfhearted. He sent two small expeditions, each led by Uzana and Kyawswa respectively, to retake the city. Both attempts failed. Thihathu, who never liked rivals even with his own brothers, now decided to leave his eldest biological son alone.[26] Saw Yun's position may also have been helped by an open rebellion in Toungoo (Taungoo) in 1317–18, and subsequent instabilities in Taungdwin.[27][28] Thihathu got both Toungoo and Taungdwin under control but essentially ceded control of northern Upper Burma to Saw Yun. For his part, Saw Yun never formally renounced his allegiance to his father. Thihathu had to be satisfied with the arrangement although he must have known that Pinya and Sagaing would become bitter rivals after his death.[24]