Origins For much of the first half of the second millennium, Prome was a vassal state of
Upper Burma-based kingdoms–
Pagan,
Pinya and
Ava. During the Ava period (14th–15th centuries), Prome was the southernmost region abutting the rival
Hanthawaddy kingdom. The region was a frequent battlefield during the
Forty Years' War (1385–1424) between Ava and Hanthawaddy. Avan kings considered the region the most strategic, and appointed only the most senior princes as viceroys of
Prome (Pyay). For example, Crown Prince
Minye Kyawswa, King
Thihathu of Ava and King
Narapati of Ava were once governor of Prome. The Forty Years' War, which ended in a stalemate, left Ava exhausted, and its vassals restless. From the 1420s to the 1480s, each new king of Ava had to put down rebellions. In 1469, Prome's long-time governor,
Mingyi Swa (r. 1446–1482) rebelled against his brother, when the latter ascended to the Ava throne as
Thihathura. But the new king laid siege on Prome, and Mingyi Swa submitted to his brother. Mingyi Swa was forgiven, and reappointed to his former position.
Independence from Ava (1482) Thihathura died in 1480, and Mingyi Swa died in 1482. The new king
Minkhaung II faced a multitude of rebellions–the most serious one by his younger brother, Gov.
Minye Kyawswa of Yamethin. Unlike the usual unrest in remote regions, the Yamethin rebellion was so close to Ava itself, and was a grave threat to the new king. Taking advantage of the power struggle between his two nephews, the governor of
Tharrawaddy,
Thado Minsaw, seized Prome and declared himself king. Thado Minsaw raised his brother Mingyi Swa's chief queen as his chief queen. Minkhaung managed to send an army to reclaim Prome. But the Avan army could not take Prome, and retreated. Ava could not send another force again as the much more serious Yamethin rebellion (and rebellions by the Shan States of
Mohnyin and
Kale) consumed its resources for the next two decades. Prome became an independent kingdom with territories up to Tharrawaddy and Myede. Thado Minsaw largely stayed out of the fighting in Upper Burma. He forged a peaceful relationship with Hanthawaddy, the most powerful kingdom in the region.
Meddling into Upper Burma (1520s) Thado Minsaw changed his policy in the 1520s when Ava was on its last legs suffering from the sustained assaults by
Confederation of Shan States. He entered into a league with
Sawlon, the confederation's leader. In March 1525, the combined armies of Confederation and Prome sacked the city of
Ava. The king of Ava,
Shwenankyawshin, who was Thado Minsaw's grandnephew, escaped. Prome and Confederation forces looted the city. The Prome armies brought back the famed poet monk
Shin Maha Rattathara. Prome remained in a league with the Confederation, which continued its attacks on Ava. Thado Minsaw died in 1526, and was succeeded by his son
Bayin Htwe.
The end (1526–1542) On 25 March 1527, the Confederation forces captured Ava, and placed Sawlon's eldest son
Thohanbwa on the Ava throne. Sawlon was unsatisfied with the level of support he received from Prome, and held a grudge. In 1532, the Confederation forces came down and attacked Prome. Bayin Htwe was taken prisoner back to Upper Burma. The captive king escaped after Sawlon was assassinated by his own ministers. But Bayin Htwe's son
Narapati shut the gates against his father. Bayin Htwe died soon after in the adjoining forests. Narapati remained a nominal vassal to Confederation controlled Ava. Although his authority did not extend beyond the immediate region around Prome, he became ensnarled in the Toungoo–Hanthawaddy War (1534–41). Narapati was an ally of King Takayutpi of Hanthawaddy, and was married to Takayutpi's sister. Narapati provided shelter to the fleeing Hanthawaddy troops in 1539. When Toungoo troops attacked a heavily fortified Prome, Narapati asked for help from the Confederation in Ava. The Confederation troops broke the siege, and refused to follow up on the retreating Toungoo armies. Narapati formed an alliance with the Mrauk U kingdom of Arakan by sending his sister and his queen (Takayutpi's sister) to King Min Bin of Mrauk U. (Takayutpi had died soon after the battle.) Narapati too died soon after and was succeeded by
Minkhaung. In late 1541, Toungoo again laid siege to Prome. Prome's allies the Confederation and Mrauk U sent in help to break the siege. But Toungoo forces under the command of Gen. Bayinnaung defeated both armies. Mrauk U also sent in a naval flotilla that landed in Bassein (Pathein). Upon hearing of the Mrauk U army's defeat, the flotilla turned back. After a five months' siege, starvation set in. The besieged deserted the city in great numbers. On 19 May 1542 (5th waxing of Nayon 904
ME), Minkhaung surrendered. Minkhaung and his queen
Thiri Hponhtut were taken to
Toungoo (Taungoo). ==Aftermath==