King Thebaw and The Ecological Rape of Burma

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This pioneering work should be required reading for anyone who is concerned about the destruction of our environment and who is interested in understanding how past human societies, in this case Upper Burma in the late-1800s, have struggled with the problem.

This is also the best biographical study ever made of Burma's colourful King Thebaw (1878-85), and in particular of his domineering and beautiful wife, Queen Supayalat. The book places their lives against the back-ground of the ecological and diplomatic occurrences that convulsed the Burmese kingdom of Mandalay during its last years of independence.

The effects of the race between French and British commercial interests, with the eager cooperation of the Burmese Government to deforest Upper Burma are related in fascinating detail. This process of deforestation set off a number of ecological disturbances which culminated in the partially man-made 'drought' of 1883-5. This in turn disrupted much of Upper Burma's social and political life, thus making the country an ever more inviting area for further French expansion westwards from French Indo-China. Ultimately, this 'French Threat' resulted in the Third Burmese War in 1885, and in the eventual annexation of Upper Burma to Britain's Indian Empire in 1886.

Finally King Thebaw and the Ecological Rape of Burma develops several ecological concepts which might well be applicable to the study of man's interaction with his environment in any period of history, including our own.

Charles Lee Keeton 3rd, earned his B.J. and M.A. degrees in Journalism/History from the University of Missouri School of Journalism, U.S.A., in 1960-1; and Ph.D. (in Modern South and S.E. Asian History) from University of Delhi in 1972.

KING THEBAW AND THE ECOLOGICAL RAPE OF BURMA is the first full study ever made of the reign of Burma's King Thebaw (1878-1885), and in particular of his wife, Queen Supayalat. The book describes the ecological and diplomatic occurrences that convulsed the Burmese kingdom of Mandalay during its last years of independence, and the events that led up to the Third Burmese War in 1885 and the annexation of Upper Burma to the Indian Empire in 1886.

The book has utilized all relevant primary and secondary sources to be found at the National Archives of India, New Delhi; the Commonwealth Office Library and Records, London ; the Maritime Museum, Greenwich ; the National Library of India, Calcutta; and elsewhere. The book also uses all the pertinent newspapers, periodicals, and books of the period. Such accounts were often more sympathetic in their views of the Burmese Government than the later historical studies made by British officials or scholars. The newspapers, periodicals, and books of the period were also often more accurate than the present-day accounts written from the Burmese nationalist point-of-view.

The book describes the relationship between ecological processes and the rise and fall of human societies; in this case the effects of the race between French and British commercial interests -and with the eager cooperation of the Mandalay officials-to deforest Upper Burma. This process of Deforestation set-off a number of other ecological disturbances in Upper Burma, culminating in the partially man-made 'drought' of 1883-1885. This in turn disrupted much of Upper Burma's social and political life, thus making the country an even more inviting area for further French expansion westward from French Indo-China.

The British in India could not allow this extension as India's eastern frontier would be directly under threat from the French ; and the potential new British trade in Yunnan and Southern China would be blocked by the intrusion of France into Upper Burma. Ultimately, this threat resulted in the Third Burmese War in 1885, and in the eventual annexation of Upper Burma in 1886.

This monograph contributes substantially to the understanding of one of the most controversial periods of Anglo-Indian relations with Burma, the reign of King The baw from 1878 to 1885. It is part of a larger research effort going back to 1852, but was sub-mitted in this form as a doctoral dissertation at the University of Delhi.

The author has explored an enormous mass of primary sources currently available in the India Office Library, the British Museum and the Record Office of London, plus the Indian National Archives at Delhi. He has also covered a wealth of published material relevant to the period. Like others who have attempted to gain research access to the private records of the Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation prior to 1885, he was denied such privilege. But the breadth and depth of his study provides a basis for a fairly definitive assessment of the merits of the controversial fine levied on the BBTC by the Burma Government in 1885.

More importantly, the study places the problem of Burma-British relations in the context of the morass of intrigue which characterized the Mandalay Court throughout The baw's rule. It also demonstrates the wide divergence of opinion which prevailed within British-India governmental circles during the same period. The author's very extensive bibliography includes published Parliamentary Papers and Burma Gazetteers, plus the private papers of Dufferin, Lytton, Northbrook, and Ripon found mainly in the India Office Library. Also examined are numerous volumes of Burma and India Proceedings, both Political and Secret, plus Record Office documents relating to French relations, Admiralty Records, and General Prendergast's Field Operations reports from 1885-1886, the latter two drawn from the British Museum.