Prehistory The Mon people, who descended from
Proto-Austroasiatic people, are believed to have migrated from the
Yangtze Kiang valley in Southern China to Southeast Asia between 3,000 and 2,000 BCE, along the
Mekong,
Salween,
Sittaung,
Irrawaddy,
Ping and
Chao Phaya rivers. They eventually settled in locations including as far south as
Malaya.
Early history File:Mon political entities.png|Political entities of the ancient Mon people around the 6th–7th centuries. File:DvaravatiMapThailand.png|Spread of
Dvaravati Culture and
Mon Dvaravati sites. File:Map-of-southeast-asia 900 CE.png|Map of Southeast Asia c. 900 CE, showing the
Hariphunchai in light green. Museum in
Vientiane, Laos The ancient Mon are believed to have been one of the earliest peoples of
Mainland Southeast Asia. They established some of the earliest civilizations in the region, including
Dvaravati in Central Thailand, which spread its culture into Northeastern Thailand, Sri Gotapura in Central Laos (modern Sikhottabong, Vientiane Prefecture), the
Hariphunchai Kingdom in Northern Thailand, and the
Thaton Kingdom in Lower Myanmar. They adopted the
Pallava script, and the oldest form of the
Mon script was discovered in a cave in modern-day
Saraburi, dating back to around 550 CE. Although no remains have been found from the Thaton Kingdom, it is widely mentioned in Bamar and Lanna chronicles. Monument in
Lamphun, Thailand According to the Northern Thai Chronicles, the city of
Lavo (modern Lopburi) was founded by Phaya Kalavarnadishraj in 648 CE. He reportedly came from Takkasila, which is assumed to be the city of
Tak or
Nakhon Chai Si. Another historical figure, Phaya Kakabatr, is believed to have also come from Takkasila and established the
Chula Sakarat era in 638 CE, which was used by the Siamese and Burmese until the 19th century. Phaya Kalavarnadishraj, the son of Phaya Kakabatr, founded Lavo a decade later. By the late 7th century, Lavo had expanded to the north. The legendary Queen
Camadevi, who was said to be a daughter of a Lavo king, according to the Northern Thai Chronicle
Cāmadevivaṃsa, came to rule as the first queen of
Hariphunchai (modern Lamphun) around 750–800 CE. A few years later, her son Prince Anantayot founded Khelang Nakhon (modern
Lampang), playing a significant role in the history of the Hariphunchai Kingdom. After the year 1000 CE, the Dvaravati Mon people faced constant pressure from
Tai migrations from the north and
Khmer invasions from the east. Many Dvaravati Mons fled to join other Mon civilizations in the present-day Lower Myanmar, while their descendants, the
Nyah Kur people, still reside in Northeastern Thailand. Despite the pressure from the
Northern Thai people, the Hariphunchai kingdom managed to survive as a Mon outpost in Northern Thailand. In 1057 CE, King
Anawrahta of the
Pagan Kingdom conquered the
Thaton Kingdom of the Mon people in Lower Burma. in Old Mon language in
Bagan. One of the oldest surviving stone inscriptions in Myanmar.|alt= On one hand, the Hariphunchai Kingdom of the Mon prospered during the reign of King Aditayaraj in the early twelfth century. He is said to have fought wars with
Suryavarman II of
Angkor between 1113 and 1150 CE and constructed the
Hariphunchai stupa In 1289,
Mangrai also known as
Mengrai was visited by merchants from the Mon kingdom of
Haripunchai. Hearing of the wealth of that kingdom, he determined to conquer it, against the advice of his counselors. As it was thought impossible to take the city by force, Mangrai sent a merchant named Ai Fa as a
mole to gain the confidence of its Phaya Yi Ba. In time, Ai Fa became the Chief Minister and managed to undermine the King's authority. In 1292, taking advantage of discontent among the people, Mangrai defeated the Mon kingdom of Haripunchai and added it to his
kingdom.
13th to 15th centuries In 1287, the collapse of the
Pagan Kingdom created a power vacuum.
Wareru, who was born to a Mon mother and a
Tai father in
Donwun Village in the Thaton District, went to
Sukhothai for trade and later eloped with the daughter of the king. He established himself as king of the Mon in
Martaban (present-day
Mottama), and later moved the capital to
Pegu. His
Hanthawaddy kingdom, which existed from 1287 to 1539, was a period of prosperity and power for the Mon. ruled
Hanthawaddy from 1384 to 1421 and successfully unified his Mon-speaking kingdom. He also successfully defended it against
Ava Kingdom's attacks during the
Forty Years' War. In the mid-14th century, King
Binnya U ruled over the Mon kingdom and successfully defended against an invasion by Lan Na. Despite losing control over the
Tenasserim region, he was able to re-establish his capital at Pegu. After his death in 1384, King
Razadarit, Binnya U's son, took over and formed an alliance with the kingdom of
Arakan. King Razadarit was known for his administration skills and successfully repelling invasions from the
Ava Kingdom during his reign. He made significant contributions to the
Shwedagon Pagoda and is considered one of the most celebrated Mon kings in history, with his reign lasting from 1384 to 1421. After King Razadarit's death, there were brief disputes over the succession in Pegu. Eventually, King Razadarit was succeeded by his daughter, Queen
Shin Sawbu, in 1453. Queen Shin Sawbu, was a skilled politician and maintained harmony between rival kingdoms. She is remembered for her good nature, renovation of the Shwedagon Pagoda, and construction of important monasteries, such as the
Kyaikmaraw near
Moulmein. King
Dhammazedi, who succeeded Queen Shin Sawbu in 1470, was a just and wise ruler. He is remembered for his generosity, having donated a significant amount of gold to the Shwedagon Pagoda, as well as for building important temples in the vicinity of Pegu, including the Shwegugyi Pagoda.
16th to 17th centuries In the early sixteenth century, the Bamar regained their momentum at
Taungoo, leading to the fall of Hanthawaddy to King
Tabinshwehti in 1539. This was after a devastating attack on Lower Burma, in which the northern army overran the Irrawaddy Delta and captured Pegu. The siege of Pegu lasted four years and involved
Portuguese mercenaries fighting on both sides. The History of Kings attributes Tabinshwehti's success, in part, to the decadence of the Mon king, Dhammazedi's heir. As a result of the fall of Pegu, large numbers of Mon refugees fled to
Ayutthaya, where the Mon aristocracy joined the court and exercised considerable influence. Meanwhile, back in Burma, the fall of Martaban in 1541 was accompanied by massacre and pillage on a large scale, as was the capture of the old Pyu capital of Prome the following year. This marked the first time, since before the Mongol invasions, that most of Lower and Central Burma was under the control of a Bamar monarch. King Tabinshwehti, founder of the new Toungoo dynasty, celebrated by decorating the Shwedagon and other pagodas with huge amounts of plundered gold. Although Tabinshwehti's made efforts to win over the Mon people, the Bamar monarch consistently emphasized his claim to Bamar nationality and sovereignty. Nevertheless, Tabinshwehti was relatively more tolerant than later Toungoo kings who outlawed the Mon language and persecuted the Mon people. Following Tabinshwehti's coronation in 1546, Ayutthaya launched several raids on Lower Burma, including the successful capture of
Tavoy in 1548. With the Toungoo dynasty in disarray after Tabinshwehti's death in 1550, the Mon launched another bid for independence under the leadership of the legendary Mon rebel, the
Smim Htaw. The Smim Htaw managed to capture the ancient settlement of
Dagon and drive the Burmese from Pegu, but a series of intra-Mon disputes allowed Tabinshwehti's general,
Bayinnaung, to recapture the city. Despite Bayinnaung allowing the Mon people to rule over townships and villages and accept them into the military, he did not grant them the right of national
self-determination, and therefore the Mon became subservient to the Bamar. Significant Mon uprisings took place during Bayinnaung's reign, including in 1551 and 1564 when the royal palace at Pegu was destroyed. Following the death of King Bayinnaung, his successor King
Nanda instituted oppressive policies against the Mon people, leading to the Mon chiefs Phaya Kiat and Phaya Ram attempting to assassinate
Naresuan of
Phitsanulok in 1584. However, they learned that Naresuan was not responsible for the policies and instead joined his campaigns against the Toungoo court. In the 17th century, the Bamar king
Anaukpetlun launched a counter-attack against the Mon rebels and captured their stronghold at Syriam. Eventually, the Mon lands were retaken, and the capital was moved to Pegu. An unsuccessful Mon uprising occurred in Martaban in 1661, which led to the pursuit of fleeing Mon refugees into Ayutthaya via the
Three Pagodas Pass.
18th to 19th centuries In the early eighteenth century, the power of the Bamar declined rapidly. The Mon rebels joined forces with the Gwe
Shan to restore their former Hanthawaddy Kingdom, and in 1740, a monk with Taungoo royal lineage was made king of Pegu.
Binnya Dala succeeded him in 1747, and with
French support, the Mon established an independent kingdom called the
Restored Hanthawaddy Kingdom. However, the kingdom fell to Bamar King
Alaungpaya in 1757, who invaded and devastated the kingdom, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of Mon civilians, including learned Mon
monks, pregnant women, and children. The victorious Bamar soldiers massacred over 3,000 Mon monks in the capital city alone. During the
Konbaung dynasty of Burma, the Mon people experienced harsh rule and massacres that led to a significant migration to Siam and Lanna. In addition to facing widespread violence and persecution, the Mon rebelled multiple times, including at Dagon during the reign of
Hsinbyushin, resulting in the destruction of the city. In 1814, the Mon rebelled again, but were harshly put down yet again. These uprisings played a major role in the large wave of Mon migration from Burma to Siam. – founder of the reigning
Chakri dynasty of
Siam (now
Thailand) On the one hand in Siam side, after the fall of Ayutthaya in 1767, two descendants of Mon aristocrats who moved to Siam in 1584;
Phraya Pichai and
Phraya Chakri became the left and right-hand man of King
Taksin of Thonburi, and they largely helped Taksin's campaigns in the liberation of Siam from
Burmese occupation and reuniting Siam. King Taksin himself also was a
Sino-Mon descent and his maternal grandmother was a sister to chief of Siam's Mon community. After the collapse of Taksin's
Thonburi Kingdom, Phraya Chakri founded the
Chakri dynasty and ascended the throne in 1782 as Rama I. Rama I was born to Thongdi, a leading Mon nobleman serving the royal court in Ayutthaya in 1737. Rama I's queen consort
Amarindra was born to a wealthy Mon family who migrated to Siam in the earlier times. Rama I founded
Bangkok City and moved the capital from Thonburi to Bangkok. When a huge wave of Mon migrations from Burma (now Myanmar) to Siam (now Thailand) happened in 1814, his grandson, the Prince
Mongkut (later Rama IV) proceeded to welcome the Mon himself at the
Siam-Burma border. The Mon in Thailand settled mainly in certain areas of
Central Thailand, such as
Pak Kret in
Nonthaburi,
Phra Pradaeng in
Samut Prakan and
Ban Pong, among other minor Mon settlements. Mon communities built their own
Buddhist temples. Over time, the Mons were effectively integrated into Siamese society and culture, although maintaining some of their traditions and identity.
19th to 20th centuries Burma was conquered by the
British in a series of wars. After the
Second Anglo-Burmese War in 1852, the Mon territories in Burma were completely under the control of the British. The British aided the Mons to free themselves from the rule of the Bamar monarchy. Under Bamar rule, the Mon people had been massacred after they lost their kingdom and many sought asylum in the Thai Kingdom. The British conquest of Burma allowed the Mon people to survive in Southern Burma. However, the British never gave restore the Mons their old kingdom and would ruthlessly crush Mon resistance with their superior weapons. In 1947,
Mon National Day was established to commemorate the founding of
Hanthawady, the last Mon Kingdom which was centered in Pegu. The holiday is observed on the full moon of the 11th month of the Mon lunar calendar, except in
Phrapadaeng, Thailand where it coincides with the
Songkran festival. The Mon soon became anti-colonialists. Following the grant of independence to Burma in 1948, they sought self-determination.
U Nu, the first
Prime Minister of Burma refused the Mon self-determination. Mon separatist groups have risen in revolt against the central Burmese government on a number of occasions, initially under the Mon People's Front and from 1962 through the
New Mon State Party (NMSP). The
BSSP-led government established a partially autonomous
Mon State in 1974 out of portions of
Tenasserim and
Pegu regions. Resistance continued until 1995 when NMSP and ruling
SLORC agreed a cease-fire and, in 1996, the Mon Unity League was founded.
21st century Nowadays, the Mon are a major
ethnic group in Myanmar and a minor
ethnic group in Thailand. A recent study shows that there is a close genetic relationship between
central Thai and Mon people in Thailand, who migrated from southern Myanmar. Due to the post-independence
internal conflict in Myanmar, many ethnic Mon from conflict zones have migrated to the
First World countries via the refugee camps along the Thai-Myanmar borders and in Malaysia. The Myanmar Mon refugee communities can be found in the
United States (the largest community being in
Fort Wayne, Indiana and the second largest being
Akron, Ohio),
Australia,
Canada,
Norway,
Denmark,
Finland,
Sweden, and the
Netherlands. ==Language==