Mandalay ( or ; ) is a city in Myanmar. There is only one city in Myanmar that has more people than Mandalay. It is north of Yangon. Mandalay is on the east side of the Irrawaddy River. In 2014, there were 1,225,553 people living there.
Name
The name "Mandalay" comes from the nearby hill called Mandalay Hill. "Mandalay" may come from the Pali language. Some people think that the name "Mandalay" comes from the Pali word mandala. Other people think that the name comes from Mount Mindara. Mindara is a mountain in Hindu mythology.
The original name of the city was Yadanabon (, ). This name came from the Pali word Ratanapūra (). "Ratanapūra" means "City of Gems." The city also had another name: Lay Kyun Aung Myei (, ). This means "Victorious Land over the Four Islands."
History
Early history
Mandalay was started by King Mindon. He started the city on 13 February 1857. He built Mandalay as the new capital city of the Kingdom of Burma.
Mindon's city was in size. There were rivers on each side. It had 144 square blocks in a grid. In the middle was a palace that was 16 square blocks in size.
The palace had four walls that were each long. Around the walls was a moat that was wide and deep. Each wall had turrets (towers) for watchmen. These turrets were placed every . Each turret had a spire made of gold. Each side had three gates and five bridges across the moat.
The king also built some other buildings in the city. These buildings were the Kuthodaw Pagoda, the Pahtan-haw Shwe Thein upasampada hall, the Thudamma "Good Dharma" zayats (), and a library for the Pāli Canon. A zayat is a building where Buddhism is taught.
In June 1857, the king moved the royal palace to Mandalay. The palace had been in Amarapura. The building was taken apart. Each piece was moved by elephants to Mandalay. The palace was put back together and finished on 23 May 1859. The palace is now at the bottom of Mandalay Hill.
Mandalay was the capital for 26 years. It was the last royal capital of the Konbaung Dynasty. (The Konbaung Dynasty were the last rulers of the Kingdom of Burma before it was taken over by the British Empire.) On 28 November 1885, the British conquered Burma. This ended the Third Anglo-Burmese War. King Thibaw Min and Queen Supayalat were sent into exile.
Mandalay in British Burma (1885-1948)
Mandalay was still an important city in British Burma. The city of Rangoon became the capital of Burma.
The British wanted to make Mandalay an important commercial city. They did not want it to be important for politics, education, or other reasons. Mandalay was connected to Yangon by railroad in 1889. The first college in Mandalay wasn't built until 1925.
The royal palace was looted by the British. All of the treasures were stolen. Some treasures can be seen in the Victoria and Albert Museum. The British changed the name of the palace to Fort Dufferin. British soldiers used the palace as a barracks (a place to camp.)
Mandalay was the most important city for Burmese culture during the time the British were in charge. It was also the most important place for Buddhist learning. The Burmese people saw Mandalay as a symbol. Between World War I and World War II, there were many protests in Mandalay against the British.
During the time the British were in charge, many people moved to Mandalay from India. (India was also a British colony.) From 1904 to 1905, a plague happened. About one third of the people of Mandalay left to get away from the disease.
During World War II, Mandalay was bombed by the Japanese. The British moved all of their airplanes to India. Mandalay had no defenses against the Japanese air raids. On 3 April 1942, the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service bombed the city. Three-fifths (3/5) of the houses were destroyed. More than 2,000 civilians (people who are not military) were killed.
The Japanese soon invaded Burma. The Imperial Japanese Army took over the city of Mandalay. They were in charge from May 1942 until March 1945. The palace citadel was made into a supply depot. (A supply depot is a building that stores supplies like food and machines.)
The Allied forces bombed the city after the Japanese took it over. Much of the palace was destroyed. Only the royal mint and watch tower were not destroyed. The palace was rebuild in the 1990s.
Mandalay today (1948 - now)
In 1948, the British left Burma. Mandalay was still the most important city for culture, education, and commerce in Upper Burma.