Book: Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 4

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The Siamese who had revolted in 1771 were never afterwards subdued by the
Burmans; but the latter retained their dominion over the sea-coast as far
as Mergui. In the year 1785 they attacked the island of Junkseylon with a
fleet of boats and an army, but were ultimately driven back with loss; and
a second attempt by the Burman monarch, who in 1786 invaded Siam with an
army of 30,000 men, was attended with no better success. In 1793 peace was
concluded between these two powers, the Siamese yielding to the Burmans the
entire possession of the coast of Tenasserim on the Indian Ocean, and the
two important seaports of Mergui and Tavoy.

In 1795 the Burmese were involved in a dispute with the British in India,
in consequence of their troops, to the amount of 5000 men, entering the
district of Chittagong in pursuit of three robbers who had fled from
justice across the frontier. Explanations being made and terms of
accommodation offered by General Erskine, the commanding officer, the
Burmese commander retired from the British territories, when the fugitives
were restored, and all differences for the time amicably arranged.

But it was evident that the gradual extension of the British and Burmese
territories would in time bring the two powers into close contact along a
more extended line of frontier, and in all probability lead to a war
between them. It happened, accordingly, that the Burmese, carrying their
arms into Assam and Manipur, penetrated to the British border near Sylhet,
on the north-east frontier of Bengal, beyond which were the possessions of
the chiefs of Cachar, under the protection of the British government. The
Burmese leaders, arrested in their career of conquest, were impatient to
measure their strength with their new neighbours. It appears from the
evidence of Europeans who resided in Ava, that they were entirely
unacquainted with the discipline and resources of the Europeans. They
imagined that, like other nations, they would fall before their superior
tactics and valour; and their cupidity was inflamed by the prospect of
marching to Calcutta and plundering the country. At length their chiefs
ventured on the open violation of the British territories. They attacked a
party of sepoys within the frontier, and seized and carried off British
subjects, while at all points their troops, moving in large bodies, assumed
the most menacing positions. In the south encroachments were made upon the
British frontier of Chittagong. The island of Shahpura, at the mouth of the
Naaf river, had been occupied by a small guard of British troops. These
were attacked on the 23rd of September 1823 by the Burmese, and driven from
their post with the loss of several lives; and to the repeated demands of
the British for redress no answer was returned. Other outrages ensued; and
at length, on March 5th, 1824, war was declared by the British government.
The military operations, which will be found described under BURMESE WARS,
ended in the treaty of Yandaboo on the 24th of February 1826, which
conceded the British terms and enabled their army to be withdrawn.

For some years the relations of peace continued undisturbed. Probably the
feeling of amity on the part of the Burmese government was not very strong;
but so long as the prince by whom the treaty was concluded continued in
power, no attempt was [v.04 p.0845] made to depart from its main
stipulations. That monarch, Ba-ggi-daw, however, was obliged in 1837 to
yield the throne to a usurper who appeared in the person of his brother,
Tharrawaddi (Tharawadi). The latter, at an early period, manifested not
only that hatred of British connexion which was almost universal at the
Burmese court, but also the extremest contempt. For several years it had
become apparent that the period was approaching when war between the
British and the Burmese governments would again become inevitable. The
British resident, Major Burney, who had been appointed in 1830, finding his
presence at Ava agreeable neither to the king nor to himself, removed in
1837 to Rangoon, and shortly afterwards retired from the country.
Ultimately it became necessary to forego even the pretence of maintaining
relations of friendship, and the British functionary at that time, Captain
Macleod, was withdrawn in 1840 altogether from a country where his
continuance would have been but a mockery. The state of sullen dislike
which followed was after a while succeeded by more active evidences of
hostility. Acts of violence were committed on British ships and British
seamen. Remonstrance was consequently made by the British government, and
its envoys were supported by a small naval force. The officers on whom
devolved the duty of representing the wrongs of their fellow-countrymen and
demanding redress, proceeded to Rangoon, the governor of which place had
been a chief actor in the outrages complained of; but so far were they from
meeting with any signs of regret, that they were treated with indignity and
contempt, and compelled to retire without accomplishing anything beyond
blockading the ports. A series of negotiations followed; nothing was
demanded of the Burmese beyond a very moderate compensation for the
injuries inflicted on the masters of two British vessels, an apology for
the insults offered by the governor of Rangoon to the representatives of
the British government, and the re-establishment of at least the appearance
of friendly relations by the reception of a British agent by the Burmese
government. But the obduracy of King Pagan, who had succeeded his father in
1846, led to the refusal alike of atonement for past wrongs, of any
expression of regret for the display of gratuitous insolence, and of any
indication of a desire to maintain friendship for the future. Another
Burmese war was the result, the first shot being fired in January 1852. As
in the former, though success was varying, the British finally triumphed,
and the chief towns in the lower part of the Burmese kingdom fell to them
in succession. The city of Pegu, the capital of that portion which, after
having been captured, had again passed into the hands of the enemy, was
recaptured and retained, and the whole province of Pegu was, by
proclamation of the governor-general, Lord Dalhousie, declared to be
annexed to the British dominions on the 20th of December 1852. No treaty
was obtained or insisted upon,--the British government being content with
the tacit acquiescence of the king of Burma without such documents; but its
resolution was declared, that any active demonstration of hostility by him
would be followed by retribution.

About the same time a revolution broke out which resulted in King Pagan's
dethronement. His tyrannical and barbarous conduct had made him obnoxious
at home as well as abroad, and indeed many of his actions recall the worst
passages of the history of the later Roman emperors. The Mindon prince, who
had become apprehensive for his own safety, made him prisoner in February
1853, and was himself crowned king of Burma towards the end of the year.
The new monarch, known as King Mindon, showed himself sufficiently arrogant
in his dealings with the European powers, but was wise enough to keep free
from any approach towards hostility. The loss of Pegu was long a matter of
bitter regret, and he absolutely refused to acknowledge it by a formal
treaty. In the beginning of 1855 he sent a mission of compliment to Lord
Dalhousie, the governor-general; and in the summer of the same year Major
(afterwards Sir Arthur) Phayre, _de facto_ governor of the new province of
Pegu, was appointed envoy to the Burmese court. He was accompanied by
Captain (afterwards Sir Henry) Yule as secretary, and Mr Oldham as
geologist, and his mission added largely to our knowledge of the state of
the country; but in its main object of obtaining a treaty it was
unsuccessful. It was not till 1862 that the king at length yielded, and his
relations with Britain were placed on a definite diplomatic basis.

In that year the province of British Burma, the present Lower Burma, was
formed, with Sir Arthur Phayre as chief commissioner. In 1867 a treaty was
concluded at Mandalay providing for the free intercourse of trade and the
establishment of regular diplomatic relations. King Mindon died in 1878,
and was succeeded by his son King Thibaw. Early in 1879 he excited much
horror by executing a number of the members of the Burmese royal family,
and relations became much strained. The British resident was withdrawn in
October 1879. The government of the country rapidly became bad. Control
over many of the outlying districts was lost, and the elements of disorder
on the British frontier were a standing menace to the peace of the country.
The Burmese court, in contravention of the express terms of the treaty of
1869, created monopolies to the detriment of the trade of both England and
Burma; and while the Indian government was unrepresented at Mandalay,
representatives of Italy and France were welcomed, and two separate
embassies were sent to Europe for the purpose of contracting new and, if
possible, close alliances with sundry European powers. Matters were brought
to a crisis towards the close of 1885, when the Burmese government imposed
a fine of L230,000 on the Bombay-Burma Trading Corporation, and refused to
comply with a suggestion of the Indian government that the cause of
complaint should be investigated by an impartial arbitrator. An ultimatum
was therefore despatched on the 22nd of October 1885. On the 9th of
November a reply was received in Rangoon amounting to an unconditional
refusal. The king on the 7th of November issued a proclamation calling upon
his subjects to drive the British into the sea. On the 14th of November
1885 the British field force crossed the frontier, and advanced to Mandalay
without incurring any serious resistance (see BURMESE WARS). It reached Ava
on the 26th of November, and an envoy from the king signified his
submission. On the 28th of November the British occupied Mandalay, and next
day King Thibaw was sent down the river to Rangoon, whence he was
afterwards transferred to Ratnagiri on the Bombay coast. Upper Burma was
formally annexed on the 1st of January 1886, and the work of restoring the
country to order and introducing settled government commenced. This was a
more serious task than the overthrow of the Burmese government, and
occupied four years. This was in part due to the character of the country,
which was characterized as one vast military obstacle, and in part to the
disorganization which had been steadily growing during the six years of
King Thibaw's reign. By the close of 1889 all the larger bands of marauders
were broken up, and since 1890 the country has enjoyed greater freedom from
violent crime than the province formerly known as British Burma. By the
Upper Burma Village Regulations and the Lower Burma Village Act, the
villagers themselves were made responsible for maintaining order in every
village, and the system has worked with the greatest success. During the
decade 1891-1901 the population increased by 19-8% and cultivation by 53%.
With good harvests and good markets the standard of living in Burma has
much improved. Large areas of cultivable waste have been brought under
cultivation, and the general result has been a contented people. The
boundary with Siam was demarcated in 1893, and that with China was
completed in 1900.

AUTHORITIES.--_Official_: Col. Horace Spearman, _British Burma Gazetteer_
(2 vols., Rangoon, 1879); Sir J. George Scott, _Upper Burma Gazetteer_ (5
vols., Rangoon, 1900-1901). _Non-official_: Right Rev. Bishop Bigandet,
_Life or Legend of Gautama_ (3rd ed., London, 1881); G.W. Bird, _Wanderings
in Burma_ (London, 1897); E.D. Cuming, _In the Shadow of the Pagoda_
(London, 1893), _With the Jungle Folk_ (Condon, 1897); Max and Bertha
Ferrars, _Burma_ (London, 1900); H. Fielding, _The Soul of a People
(Buddhism in Burma)_ (London, 1898), _Thibaw's Queen_ (London, 1899), _A
People at School_ (1906); Capt. C.J. Forbes, F.S., _Burma_ (London, 1878),
_Comparative Grammar of the Languages of Farther India_ (London, 1881),
_Legendary History of Burma and Arakan_ (Rangoon, 1882); J. Gordon, _Burma
and its Inhabitants_ (London, 1876); Mrs E. Hart, [v.04 p.0846]
_Picturesque Burma_ (London, 1897); Gen. R. Macmahon, _Far Cathay and
Farther India_ (London, 1892); Rev. F. Mason, D.D., _Burma_ (Rangoon,
1860); E.H. Parker, _Burma_ (Rangoon, 1892); Sir Arthur Phayre, _History of
Burma_ (London, 1883); G.C. Rigby, _History of the Operations in Northern
Arakan and the Yawdwin Chin Hills_ (Rangoon, 1897), Sir J. George Scott,
_Burma, As it is, As it was, and As it will be_ (London, 1886); Shway Yoe,
_The Burman, His Life and Notions_ (2nd ed., London, 1896); D.M. Smeaton,
_The Karens of Burma_ (London, 1887); Sir Henry Yule, _A Mission to Ava_
(London, 1858); J. Nisbet, _Burma under British Rule and Before_ (London,
1901); V.D. Scott O'Connor, _The Silken East_ (London, 1904); Talbot Kelly,
_Burma_ (London, 1905); an exhaustive account of the administration is
contained in Dr Alleyne Ireland's _The Province of Burma_, Report prepared
on behalf of the university of Chicago (Boston, U.S.A., 2 vols., 1907).

(J. G. SC.)

[1] See also, for geology, W. Theobald, "On the Geology of Pegu," _Mem.
Geol. Surv. India_, vol. x. pt. ii. (1874); F. Noetling, "The Development
and Subdivision of the Tertiary System in Burma," _Rec. Geol. Sun. India_,
vol. xxviii. (1895), pp. 59-86, pl. ii.; F. Noetling, "The Occurrence of
Petroleum in Burma, and its Technical Exploitation," _Mem. Geol. Surv.
India_, vol. xxvii. pt. ii. (1898).

BURMANN, PIETER (1668-1741), Dutch classical scholar, known as "the Elder,"
to distinguish him from his nephew, was born at Utrecht. At the age of
thirteen he entered the university where he studied under Graevius and
Gronovius. He devoted himself particularly to the study of the classical
languages, and became unusually proficient in Latin composition. As he was
intended for the legal profession, he spent some years in attendance on the
law classes. For about a year he studied at Leiden, paying special
attention to philosophy and Greek. On his return to Utrecht he took the
degree of doctor of laws (March 1688), and after travelling through
Switzerland and part of Germany, settled down to the practice of law,
without, however, abandoning his classical studies. In December 1691 he was
appointed receiver of the tithes which were originally paid to the bishop
of Utrecht, and five years later was nominated to the professorship of
eloquence and history. To this chair was soon added that of Greek and
politics. In 1714 he paid a short visit to Paris and ransacked the
libraries. In the following year he was appointed successor to the
celebrated Perizonius, who had held the chair of history, Greek language
and eloquence at Leiden. He was subsequently appointed professor of history
for the United Provinces and chief librarian. His numerous editorial and
critical works spread his fame as a scholar throughout Europe, and engaged
him in many of the stormy disputes which were then so common among men of
letters. Burmann was rather a compiler than a critic; his commentaries show
immense learning and accuracy, but are wanting in taste and judgment. He
died on the 31st of March 1741.

Burmann edited the following classical authors:--Phaedrus (1698); Horace
(1699); Valerius Flaccus (1702); Petronius Arbiter (1709); Velleius
Paterculus (1719); Quintilian (1720); Justin (1722); Ovid (1727); _Poetae
Latini minores_ (1731); Suetonius (1736); Lucan (1740). He also published
an edition of Buchanan's works, continued Graevius's great work, _Thesaurus
Antiquitatum et Historiarum Italiae_, and wrote a treatise _De Vectigalibus
populi Romani_ (1694) and a short manual of Roman antiquities,
_Antiquitatum Romanarum Brevis Descriptio_ (1711). His _Sylloge epistolarum
a viris illustribus scriptarum_ (1725) is of importance for the history of
learned men. The list of his works occupies five pages in Saxe's
_Onomasticon_. His poems and orations were published after his death. There
is an account of his life in the _Gentleman's Magazine_ for April (1742) by
Dr Samuel Johnson.

BURMANN, PIETER (1714-1778), called by himself "the Younger" (Secundus),
Dutch philologist, nephew of the above, was born at Amsterdam on the 13th
of October 1714. He was brought up by his uncle in Leiden, and afterwards
studied law and philology under C.A. Duker and Arnold von Drakenborch at
Utrecht. In 1735 he was appointed professor of eloquence and history at
Franeker, with which the chair of poetry was combined in 1741. In the
following year he left Franeker for Amsterdam to become professor of
history and philology at the Athenaeum. He was subsequently professor of
poetry (1744), general librarian (1752), and inspector of the gymnasium
(1753). In 1777 he retired, and died on the 24th of June 1778 at Sandhorst,
near Amsterdam. He resembled his more famous uncle in the manner and
direction of his studies, and in his violent disposition, which involved
him in quarrels with contemporaries, notably Saxe and Klotz. He was a man
of extensive learning, and had a great talent for Latin poetry. His most
valuable works are: _Anthologia Veterum Latinorum Epigrammatum et Poematum_
(1759-1773); _Aristophanis Comoediae Novem_ (1760); _Rhetorica ad
Herennium_ (1761). He completed the editions of Virgil (1746) and Claudian
(1760), which had been left unfinished by his uncle, and commenced an
edition of Propertius, one of his best works, which was only half printed
at the time of his death. It was completed by L. van Santen and published
in 1780.

BURMESE WARS. Three wars were fought between Burma and the British during
the 19th century (see BURMA: _History_), which resulted in the gradual
extinction of Burmese independence.

_First Burmese War, 1823-26._--On the 23rd of September 1823 an armed party
of Burmese attacked a British guard on Shapura, an island close to the
Chittagong side, killing and wounding six of the guard. Two Burmese armies,
one from Manipur and another from Assam, also entered Cachar, which was
under British protection, in January 1824. War with Burma was formally
declared on the 5th of March 1824. On the 17th of May a Burmese force
invaded Chittagong and drove a mixed sepoy and police detachment from its
position at Ramu, but did not follow up its success. The British rulers in
India, however, had resolved to carry the war into the enemy's country; an
armament, under Commodore Charles Grant and Sir Archibald Campbell, entered
the Rangoon river, and anchored off the town on the 10th of May 1824. After
a feeble resistance the place, then little more than a large stockaded
village, was surrendered, and the troops were landed. The place was
entirely deserted by its inhabitants, the provisions were carried off or
destroyed, and the invading force took possession of a complete solitude.
On the 28th of May Sir A. Campbell ordered an attack on some of the nearest
posts, which were all carried after a steadily weakening defence. Another
attack was made on the 10th of June on the stockades at the village of
Kemmendine. Some of these were battered by artillery from the war vessels
in the river, and the shot and shells had such effect on the Burmese that
they evacuated them, after a very unequal resistance. It soon, however,
became apparent that the expedition had been undertaken with very imperfect
knowledge of the country, and without adequate provision. The devastation
of the country, which was part of the defensive system of the Burmese, was
carried out with unrelenting rigour, and the invaders were soon reduced to
great difficulties. The health of the men declined, and their ranks were
fearfully thinned. The monarch of Ava sent large reinforcements to his
dispirited and beaten army; and early in June an attack was commenced on
the British line, but proved unsuccessful. On the 8th the British
assaulted. The enemy were beaten at all points; and their strongest
stockaded works, battered to pieces by a powerful artillery, were in
general abandoned. With the exception of an attack by the prince of
Tharrawaddy in the end of August, the enemy allowed the British to remain
unmolested during the months of July and August. This interval was employed
by Sir A. Campbell in subduing the Burmese provinces of Tavoy and Mergui,
and the whole coast of Tenasserim. This was an important conquest, as the
country was salubrious and afforded convalescent stations to the sick, who
were now so numerous in the British army that there were scarcely 3000
soldiers fit for duty. An expedition was about this time sent against the
old Portuguese fort and factory of Syriam, at the mouth of the Pegu river,
which was taken; and in October the province of Martaban was reduced under
the authority of the British.

The rainy season terminated about the end of October; and the court of Ava,
alarmed by the discomfiture of its armies, recalled the veteran legions
which were employed in Arakan, under their renowned leader Maha Bandula.
Bandula hastened by forced marches to the defence of his country; and by
the end of November an army of 60,000 men had surrounded the British
position at Rangoon and Kemmendine, for the defence of which Sir Archibald
Campbell had only 5000 efficient troops. The enemy in great force made
repeated attacks on Kemmendine without success, and on the 7th of December
Bandula was defeated in a counter attack made by Sir A. Campbell. The
fugitives retired to a strong position on the river, which they again
entrenched; and here they were attacked by the British on the 15th, and
driven in complete confusion from the field.

Sir Archibald Campbell now resolved to advance on Prome, [v.04 p.0847]
about 100 m. higher up the Irrawaddy river. He moved with his force on the
13th of February 1825 in two divisions, one proceeding by land, and the
other, under General Willoughby Cotton, destined for the reduction of
Danubyu, being embarked on the flotilla. Taking the command of the land
force, he continued his advance till the 11th of March, when intelligence
reached him of the failure of the attack upon Danubyu. He instantly
commenced a retrograde march; on the 27th he effected a junction with
General Cotton's force, and on the 2nd of April entered the entrenchments
at Danubyu without resistance, Bandula having been killed by the explosion
of a bomb. The English general entered Prome on the 25th, and remained
there during the rainy season. On the 17th of September an armistice was
concluded for one month. In the course of the summer General Joseph
Morrison had conquered the province of Arakan; in the north the Burmese
were expelled from Assam; and the British had made some progress in Cachar,
though their advance was finally impeded by the thick forests and jungle.

The armistice having expired on the 3rd of November, the army of Ava,
amounting to 60,000 men, advanced in three divisions against the British
position at Prome, which was defended by 3000 Europeans and 2000 native
troops. But the British still triumphed, and after several actions, in
which the Burmese were the assailants and were partially successful, Sir A.
Campbell, on the 1st of December, attacked the different divisions of their
army, and successively drove them from all their positions, and dispersed
them in every direction. The Burmese retired on Malun, along the course of
the Irrawaddy, where they occupied, with 10,000 or 12,000 men, a series of
strongly fortified heights and a formidable stockade. On the 26th they sent
a flag of truce to the British camp; and negotiations having commenced,
peace was proposed to them on the following conditions:--(1) The cession of
Arakan, together with the provinces of Mergui, Tavoy and Ye; (2) the
renunciation by the Burmese sovereign of all claims upon Assam and the
contiguous petty states; (3) the Company to be paid a crore of rupees as an
indemnification for the expenses of the war; (4) residents from each court
to be allowed, with an escort of fifty men; while it was also stipulated
that British ships should no longer be obliged to unship their rudders and
land their guns as formerly in the Burmese ports. This treaty was agreed to
and signed, but the ratification of the king was still wanting; and it was
soon apparent that the Burmese had no intention to sign it, but were
preparing to renew the contest. On the 19th of January, accordingly, Sir A.
Campbell attacked and carried the enemy's position at Malun. Another offer
of peace was here made by the Burmese, but it was found to be insincere;
and the fugitive army made at the ancient city of Pagan a final stand in
defence of the capital. They were attacked and overthrown on the 9th of
February 1826; and the invading force being now within four days' march of
Ava, Dr Price, an American missionary, who with other Europeans had been
thrown into prison when the war commenced, was sent to the British camp
with the treaty (known as the treaty of Yandaboo) ratified, the prisoners
of war released, and an instalment of 25 lakhs of rupees. The war was thus
brought to a successful termination, and the British army evacuated the
country.

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