Founding
shan state and Tusi chiefdom (abolished 1604)
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Möng Mao or Möng Mao Lông (lit. 'Great Möng Mao'), also known as Luchuan (Chinese: 麓川), was a Tai state that flourished from the 14th to 15th centuries, and consolidated dominance over the frontier regions of modern-day Myanmar, China, and India. The core territory was centered on the Nam Mao (Ruili) river basin.
Möng Mao was originally a Tai principality located on the Nam Mao (Ruili) and Longchuan regions, where it had historically managed tributary relations and political conflicts with larger states. Towards the end of the Yuan dynasty, Si Kefa became ruler of Möng Mao. During his reign, he conquered vast territories extending from Assam in Northeast India, the majority of Tai states in upper Burma, to the Red river in central Yunnan, and even marched south to destroy the kingdoms of Sagaing and Pinya.
When the Ming dynasty conquered Yunnan, Möng Mao’s ruler Si Lunfa chose to submit to Ming authority and accepted imperial investiture. But shortly after, he attacked Jingdong and Moshale, which were states under Möng Mao that had defected to the Ming, leading to several wars between the two countries. At that time, the Ming government still lacked the capacity to control Yunnan’s western frontier deeply and eventually accepted Möng Mao’s surrender.
After Si Lunfa’s death, the Ming took the opportunity to dismantle Möng Mao, dividing its territory into numerous smaller native chieftaincies. His later successor, Si Renfa, attempted to restore Möng Mao’s former domains, waging campaigns to annex neighboring tusi states. This ultimately prompted the Luchuan-Pingmian campaigns, in which the Si family was defeated and retreated to Möng Yang.
Following the weakening of Möng Mao, no single ethnic power dominated China’s southwestern frontier. The various tusi regimes remained in a state of rivalry and balance, creating favorable conditions for the rise of the Toungoo Empire in Myanmar.
The Tai name is Möng Mao (Tai Nüa: ᥛᥫᥒᥰ ᥛᥣᥝᥰ; Shan: မိူင်းမၢဝ်း). In Tai history, the polity is often called Möng Mao Lông, which means "Great Möng Mao" or "Great Mao kingdom", or sometimes Mok Khao Mao Luang, meaning "White Flower Great Mao". The Möng means country or place. The Mao (ᥛᥣᥝᥰ), derived from "dizzy" (ᥛᥝᥰ), is because the mother of legendary king Chao U Ting felt dizzy when she was brought to the sky by a bird. The name Möng Mao is still used currently, as the official Tai Nuea name of Ruili City (ᥝᥥᥒᥰ ᥛᥫᥒᥰ ᥛᥣᥝᥰ). Alternatively, Mao derives from the Shan name of the Nam Mao (Ruili River).
Möng Mao also adopted Kawsampi (ကောသမ္ဗိ) as its Buddhist classical name, named after Kosambi, an ancient Indian kingdom. The name was approximated into Burmese as "Koshanpyi" (ကိုးရှမ်းပြည်, lit. 'nine Shan States'). Kosambi is also called Guozhanbi (Tai Nüa: ᥐᥨᥝᥰ ᥓᥛᥱ ᥙᥤᥱ, Chinese: 果占璧) in Ruili, modern Dai people give a new explanation of Guozhanbi, which is "place that produces fragrant soft rice".
In Chinese literature, Möng Mao was called Luchuan (Chinese: 麓川), first recorded in Yuanshi as the name of the administrative division "Luchuan Circuit" (Chinese: 麓川路). Some of literature also called Mong Mao as Baiyi (Chinese: 百夷), but most of the time this is a collective name of all the ethnic groups in south west of Yunnan, or specifically refers to Dai people. The Tai name of Luchuan first appears in the Baiyi Guan laiwen 百夷館來文 (“Incoming correspondence of the Baiyi College”), included in the Huayi yiyu 華夷譯語 of the fifteenth century, as Mäng Maaw which gives Luchuan 麓川 as the Chinese equivalent.
In English literature, the earliest mention of Möng Mao appears in Robert Boileau Pemberton's account, who discovered and translated an ancient Shan manuscript. In it, he describes a kingdom whose capital the Shans refer to as Mongmaorong.
In Burmese literature, Möng Mao was called Maw or Maw Shan. In the Manipur literature, such as Cheitharol Kumbaba use the name Pong refer to Mong Mao.
Little is known about the history of Möng Mao before the 13th century. Although Tai chronicles date its founding to as early is the 6th century, the differing details and dates in various local chronicles, the inclusion of mythological features, and a lack of corroborating evidence from external sources mean that these accounts are often regarded as legendary history. Many of these chronicles begin with the story of Hkun Lu (Hkun Lung) and Hkun Lai, who descended from heaven and established Möng Mao (or Kawsampi) in 568 (or 835 in some chronicles) and sent their children to rule over Tai chieftainships in the Nam Mao valley. Some chronicles instead begin with Chao U Ting. Jiang Yingliang believes that the Tai developed a stratified society in the Dehong area around the 10th century, consisting of four states, Möng Mao, Möng Yang, Möng Hsen Se, and Hsenwi, and that the center of power frequently shifted between these states and they were sometimes unified into a single state named Kawsambi.
Modern scholars and historians disagree on the early history, some believe that Möng Mao may have begun to emerge in the 6th century based on the legends of Hkun Lu and Hkun Lai, while others believe that there were no significant Tai polities in Yunnan and northern Myanmar before the Mongol invasions of Burma. According to the research of Jiang Yingliang, the lineage of the rulers of Möng Mao commenced in 1256, and this may have been when the polity emerged after the fall of Dali to the Mongol Empire.
The records of the Buranji in Tai-Ahom language tells the story of a Mao prince, Chaolung Sukaphaa who left Möng Mao Lung with his 9000 Tai Mao followers in 1215 AD, and established the Ahom kingdom in 1228 AD in modern day Assam. They were identified as the Mao section of Tai and were later called the Tai-Ahom. However, modern scholars disagree with the date of this history, and believes the founding of the Ahom kingdom should happen in the 14th century.
During this time, a patchwork of quarrelsome Tai polities existed in the land between Yongchang and Tagaung. They pledged allegiance to the Yuan dynasty as early as 1260. Multiple administrative divisions were set up in the region in 1276, and Möng Mao was designated as Luchuan Route.
From 1277–1303, the region was plagued with intense conflict and competition between the Pagan kingdom and Yuan dynasty. The Mongol-Yuan wanted to secure access to the Bay of Bengal, and waged two bloody wars in the region, the First Mongol invasion of Burma which toppled the Pagan kingdom, and the Second Mongol invasion of Burma which drove the Mongols out. The expulsion of Burmese power in 1286 and the shrinkage of Mongol-Yuan influence after the withdrawal of troops in 1303 afforded Tai leaders with the opportunity to reorganise and expand their power, and were now able to build new polities with less outside interference. Mongol authority diminished even further in 1330 when a succession crisis erupted in the Yuan court. The conflict spread to Yunnan, and rebel princes sought the military power of local leaders in exchange for titles and rewards. The rogue nobles were eventually suppressed, but Yunnan had now increasingly come under the control of local leaders, the Prince of Liang in Kunming and the Duan family in Dali increasingly overshadowed the central government.
Hsö Hkan Hpa (Chinese: Si Kefa) began the expansion of Möng Mao's territory in the 1330s–1340s, taking advantage of the good economic conditions and power vacuum in the region. Although chronicles disagree on the exact date of his accession to the throne, the most plausible date given is 1335. In Tai chronicles, Hsö Hkan Hpa gained the submission of neighbouring Tai states, including Hsenwi and Möng Mit, then gathered a large army to march against the governor of Yunnan. The Yuan court ordered local Yunnan authorities to subdue him and four military expeditions were sent in 1342, 1346, 1347 and 1348, but they ended in failure. Fearing further attacks, Hsö Hkan Hpa sent his son, the heir apparent (mansan 滿三), to the Yuan court to nominally recognize their authority. With the outbreak of the Red Turban Rebellions, there was little else the Yuan could do to subdue him, so he was appointed as the "Pingmian Pacification Commissioner", a title which recognized his control over new territories and further bolstered his prestige and legitimacy.
After the war with China, Hsö Hkan Hpa turned his attention west. He sent his brother Hkun Sam Lông west to conquer Assam, which surrendered without resistance and began paying tribute. However, believing his brother was conspiring against him, he poisoned and killed him on his return. The Sagaing kingdom sent an expedition against Möng Mao in 1356, possibly as a response to Möng Mao's expansion into Kale. Hsö Hkan Hpa then ordered expeditions against the Burmese kingdoms of Sagaing and Pinya. Shan raids were reported in 1359 and 1362, and finally the two kingdoms fell in 1364 and were completely devastated, leading to the rise of the Ava kingdom.
Hsö Hkan Hpa died in 1369. He was succeeded by his eldest son Si Bingfa (called Hsö Pem Hpa in Tai). In 1371, the subordinate states of Möng Yang and Kale went to war with each other. Si Bingfa ruled for 8 years and was succeeded by his son Tai Bian (Hkun Tai Pem Hpa). Tai Bian was a tyrant, and was killed by his uncle Zhao Xiaofa (Hkun Ngok Chyo Hpa) who established himself as ruler. A year later, Zhao Xiaofa was killed by bandits, and the people established his younger brother Si Wafa (Hsö Wan Hpa) as ruler.
In 1374, the newly founded Ming dynasty sent a diplomatic mission to Burma, hoping to win over the states in the region. However, due to the roads being blocked in Annam, the envoys were recalled. When the Ming dynasty entered Yunnan in 1380, it quickly defeated the Mongol prince Basalawarmi and the Duan family in Dali, reaching the border of Möng Mao in 1382.
Initially, Möng Mao did not submit to the Ming dynasty and the Ming court did not recognize Möng Mao's control over neighbouring areas. Si Wafa attacked the Ming garrison at Jinchi (Baoshan) in 1382, but he was soon assassinated by one of his subordinates and Si Lunfa (Hsö Hom Hpa) became ruler of Möng Mao in his place. In 1382, Si Lunfa decided to submit to Ming authority, and was granted the tusi title of Pacification Commissioner of Pingmian. In August 1384 Si Lunfa sent a tribute mission to the Ming court surrendering the Yuan seal of commission. As a result he was promoted to Luchuan-Pingmian Pacification Commission with authority over military and civilian affairs.
The Tai ruler in Jingdong, E Tao, who was previously subordinate to Möng Mao, separately surrendered to the Ming court and was appointed as the "Native Prefect" of the region in 1384. Si Lunfa attacked Jingdong the following year to chastise him for his unfaithfulness, and E Tao fled for his life. A Ming expedition was sent against Si Lunfa in 1387, but they were defeated by Tai forces. The Ming believed that the Tai could not be trusted, and prepared military defenses all across the border regions, and diplomatically isolated Möng Mao. In 1388, Tai forces attacked the stockade at Moshale, but were defeated. Further Tai attacks were made on the Dingbian stockade, but these were also defeated. These attacks on Ming frontier outposts led to a large-scale Ming punitive expedition against Si Lunfa, resulting in another Ming victory. Si Lunfa surrendered in 1388, and was made to pay war reparations to the Ming forces.
In 1393 Si Lunfa invaded Ava. Despite the fact that he was ultimately defeated, Ava sent an envoy to the Ming seeking their help in deterring Mong Mao aggression. Acknowledging their position, the Hongwu Emperor sent a letter to Si Lunfa in 1396 warning him of retaliation if further acts of aggression were committed. Si Lunfa acquiesced to Ming demands. After Mong Mao stopped their military expansion, Si Lunfa began to welcome foreigners such as Buddhists and former Chinese soldiers into his people's traditional territory. Si Lunfa converted to Buddhism and gave gifts to the Chinese for bringing with them the technology of gunpowder and cannons. This greatly angered the traditional elements in his court and in 1397 Si Lunfa was deposed by the leader of an anti-foreigner faction, Dao Ganmeng, and fled to the Ming government for protection. After reaching the Ming capital, Si Lunfa enlisted the Hongwu Emperor's aid in returning him to power. The emperor, desiring peace in the southwest, agreed to his petition and allocated 100 taels of gold, 150 taels of silver, and 500 ding of paper money to his cause. The Marquis of Xiping, Mu Chun, was assigned to provide Si Lunfa military support and retake Möng Mao.
They returned to Yunnan and stayed in Baoshan while Mu Chun sent the commanders He Fu and Qu Neng with 5,000 troops to oust Dao Ganmeng. The expedition was met with initial success in battle, killing a Mong Mao chieftain, and routing his army, but arrived at an impasse when they failed to take a mountain stockade due to unfavorable terrain. He Fu relayed his situation to Mu Chun, who came to his aid with 500 cavalrymen, and in the midst of night advanced on the enemy position taking them by surprise. While they successfully took the stockade, Mu Chun died soon after from an illness and was replaced by He Fu, who captured Dao Ganmeng and installed Si Lunfa as ruler of Möng Mao once again in 1398.
Si Lunfa died in 1399, and was succeeded by his son Si Hangfa. The strength of Möng Mao waned, and principalities previously under its rule became independent. The Ming court took advantage of this situation by establishing 13 new states under its own rule, including Möng Yang (Mengyang), Hsenwi (Mubang), and Möng Ting (Mengding).
Text from the Wikipedia article “Möng Mao”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.