The Karenni States were a collection of small states inhabited by Karenni people, ruled by petty princes named
myozas. These included
Kantarawadi, the only state whose ruler was promoted to a
saopha or Sawba () (like that of
Maharaja in India),
Kyebogyi,
Bawlake,
Nammekon and
Naungpale. They were independent until
British rule in Burma, and had feudal ties to the
Burmese kingdom. The states bordered the
Shan States of
Mong Pai,
Hsatung and
Mawkmai to the north,
Thailand to the east, the
Papun district of
Lower Burma to the south, and a stretch of the
Karen Hills inhabited by the
Bre and various other small tribes to the west. During British rule, the Karenni had a garrison of
military police, which was stationed at the village of
Loikaw. The
British government formally recognised and guaranteed the
independence of the Karenni States in an 1875 treaty with Burmese king
Mindon Min, by which both parties recognised the area as belonging neither to Burma nor to
Great Britain. Consequently, the Karenni States were never fully incorporated into
British Burma. The Karenni States were recognised as tributary to British Burma in 1892 when their rulers agreed to accept a stipend from the British government. In the 1930s, the
Mawchi Mine in Bawlake was the most important source of
tungsten in the world. The Constitution of the
Union of Burma in 1947 proclaimed that the three Karenni States be amalgamated into a single constituent state of the union, called Karenni State. It also provided for the possibility of secession from the Union after 10 years. In 1952, the former
Shan state of
Mong Pai was added, and the whole renamed
Kayah State, possibly with the intent of driving a wedge between the Karenni (in Kayah State) and the rest of the
Karen people (in
Karen State), both fighting for independence. == Gallery ==