Up to 1752, Shwebo was a village, called
Moksobo ( ; ) of about 300 houses. It lies near the site of the ancient
Pyu city-state of
Hanlin. On 29 February 1752, the chief of the village Aung Zeya founded the
Konbaung Dynasty to resist the upcoming invasion of
Lower Burma-based
Hanthawaddy forces. Aung Zeya, who also assumed the royal title of
Alaungpaya, gained the allegiance of 46 surrounding villages, and organized defenses building a stockade and digging a moat around Moksobo. He renamed his village, Shwebo (). Over the next eight years, Alaungpaya led the reunification of Burma with Shwebo as his
capital. Shwebo lost its status as capital after Alaungpaya's death in 1760. The successor
Naungdawgyi moved the capital to
Sagaing closer to the
Irrawaddy river. Nonetheless, Shwebo continued to be an important region throughout the Konbaung era (1752–1885), providing a disproportionate share of soldiers that served in Konbaung's armies. The region was usually held as an
appanage by the most senior princes, usually the
crown prince. It was to Shwebo that Prince of
Mindon went in 1853 to raise the standard of rebellion in his successful bid to overthrow his half brother
Pagan. ==Names of Shwebo==