Bagan Politics

There are a number of important historic accounts in Burma or Myanmar that are sure to captivate the attention of any history lover. Whether you are a history or politics enthusiast you will find the Burma political history very interesting. Some of the early political history of Burma are actually quite fascinating. If you read about the history of the Bamars you are sure to be amazed. Tibeto-Burman speaking Burmans who are popularly know as the Bamar, began migrating to the Ayeyarwady valley from what is at present called Yunnan’s Nanzhao kingdom. The migration began somewhere in 7th century AD. The Bamar filled in the power gap left by the Pyu. Thus the Burmans established a small kingdom that was centered in Bagan in the year 849. But it was not until the reign of King Anawrahta (1044 – 1077) that the influence of Bagans expanded throughout most of the parts of present-day Burma.

In the year 1057 Anawrahta captured the Mon capital of Thaton. After this capture the Burmans adopted Theravada Buddhism from the Mons. The Burmese script was created, based on the Mon script, during the reign of King Kyanzittha. The Bagans became prosperous from trade. The Bagan kings also made some magniicient temples as well as pagodas in different places across the country. one can still see some of these temples even today. These historic monuments still bear the glory of a bygone era of Burmese history.
However, the Bagan’s power became waned in the 13th century. starting in the year 1277, Kublai Khan's Mongol forces invaded northern Burma. In the year 1287 they sacked the Bagan city and thus the two century old Bagan reign came to an end.