The Kabaw Valley also known as Kubo valley is a highland valley in Myanmar's western Sagaing Division, close to the border with India's Manipur. The valley is located between Heerok or Yoma ranges of mountains, which constitute the present day border of Manipur, and the Chindwin River (also called the Ningthi River). The valley is home to a number of ethnic groups including the some Meitei (Kathe and Paona), or Meilhei by the Thadou people and With the majority being Thadou people, with the rest Kuki people/Zo people and minorities like the Kadu and the Kanan.
During the First Anglo-Burmese War, the Manipuri prince Gambhir Singh conquered the Kabaw valley from Burma. It remained under Manipur control for several years. But the Burmese were able to prove to the British Resident, Major Burney, that the valley had been ceded to Burma by the former Manipur King Marjit Singh in 1813. The British were persuaded to hand the valley back to Burma in 1834. The British compensated Manipur for the loss of territory by annual subsidy.
Geography
The Kale–Kabaw Valley is to the west of the Chindwin River valley, separated by a range called Ango Ching (or Ang-go Ching). It is bounded on the west by the Yoma (or Yomadong) range of mountains, the bounding range of Manipur and Chin Hills. The northern section, called the Kabaw valley, is watered by the Yu River, which flows south until Khampat and then breaks through the Ango Ching range to join Chindwin. The southern section, called the Kale valley, is watered by the Myittha River flowing north, which breaks through Ango Ching near Kale.
The 1913 Burma Gazetteer describes the valley as being "unhealthy but exceedingly fertile", which is "imperfectly cultivated". It also mentions that the paddy grown in the valley could not be easily taken to the market (in the Chindwin valley or beyond) due to the difficulty of transport through the Ango Ching range.
The valley used to have three principalities based at Thaungdut
(known as "Samsok" or "Samjok" in Manipur), Khampat, and Kale. Thaungdut/Samsok and Khampat were jointly invaded by King Kiyamba of Manipur and the king of Pong in 1467 CE, and divided among themselves. Kale appears to have remained independent, at least for a time.
Thus the name "Kabaw Valley" applies to the valley north of Khampat, while the southern valley retains the name "Kale". The two are jointly referred to as "Kale-Kabaw Valley".
After a 1758 invasion by emperor Alaungpaya of Burma, a market and village at Tamu appear to have developed, overshadowing Khampat. By the end of the 19th century, when the British took over Burma, the "Tamu Township" was considered synonymous with the Kabaw Valley.
History
The Chronicles of Manipur, called Cheitharol Kumbaba state that, in 1470 CE, King Kiyamba of Manipur and King Choupha Khekkhompa of Pong (identified with the state of Mogaung) conquered together the principalities of Thaungdut and Khampat:
"Kyangs" refers to "Chins", the Burmese name for the tribes inhabiting the Northern Arakan Yomas, who were called "Kukis" on the Indian side of the border. After their victory, the two kings divided the conquered land among themselves, with Khampat and some part of Thaungdut (possibly the northern part of the Kabaw Valley) going to Manipur, and Thaungdut in the Chindwin River valley going to Pong. Thaungdut, a Shan principality, appears to have remained for a considerable period, possibly as a subsidiary of Pong, but nothing more is heard of Khampat after this conquest.
Around 1555, the King Bayinnaung of the Toungoo dynasty unified all of present day Burma (Myanmar), conquering or receiving tribute from all the Shan kingdoms in the north. His prestige was so great that the Manipur kingdom is said to have become a tributary. Some time after Bayinnaung, Manipur declared independence, but the relations with Burma continued as late 1704, when Manipur offered a princess in marriage to the Toungoo emperor. Border raids in both the directions occurred during the intervening period. In 1647 and 1692, Manipur is said to have raided Thaungdut and the empire sent levies to defend it. Manipuris also acquired horsemanship from the Burmese during this period, and refined their skills by playing Polo as a regular pastime. During the reign of Garib Niwaz (), when the Toungoo empire became considerably weak, the Manipuris raided all the way to Sagaing, opposite the capital Ava, burnt villages and monasteries and carried off captives.