British rule in Burma(英國的殖民統治時期)

British rule in Burma lasted from 1824 to 1948, from the Anglo-Burmese Wars through the creation of Burma as a province of British India to the establishment of an independently administered colony, and finally independence. Various portions of Burmese territories, including Arakan, Tenasserim were annexed by the British after their victory in First Anglo-Burmese War; Lower Burma was annexed in 1852 after the Second Anglo-Burmese War. The annexed territories were designated the minor province (a Chief Commissionership), British Burma, of British India in 1862. After the Third Anglo-Burmese War in 1885, Upper Burma was annexed, and the following year, the province of Burma in British India was created, becoming a major province (a Lieutenant-Governorship) in 1897. This arrangement lasted until 1937, when Burma began to be administered separately by the Burma Office and the Secretary of State for India and Burma. Burma achieved independence from British rule on January 4, 1948.

Burma is sometimes referred to as the Scottish Colony, due to the heavy role played by Scotsmen in colonizing and running the country - the most notable being Sir James George Scott, and the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company.

The chronological events of Burma

Wars with Britain (1824–1826, 1852, 1885)
British Arakan (1824–1852)
British Tenasserim (1824–1852)
British Lower Burma (1852–1886)
British Upper Burma (1885–1886)
British rule in Burma (1824–1942, 1945–1948)
Note: 1942-1945 was Japanese Occupation

The First Anglo-Burmese War arose from friction between Arakan in western Burma and British-held Chittagong to the north. After Burma's defeat of the Kingdom of Arakan in 1784-1785, in 1823, Burmese forces again crossed the frontier and the British responded with a large seaborne expedition that took Rangoon without a fight in 1824. In Danuphyu, south of Ava, the Burmese general Maha Bandula was killed and his armies routed. The 1826 Treaty of Yandabo formally ended the First Anglo-Burmese War.

After 25 years of peace, the British and Burmese fighting started afresh, and lasted until the British occupied all of Lower Burma.

King Mindon tried to readjust to the thrust of imperialism. He enacted administrative reforms and made Burma more receptive to foreign interests. But the British effected the Third Anglo-Burmese War, which lasted less than two weeks during November 1885.

British troops entered Mandalay on 28 November 1885 and Burma was attached to the British Empire on 1 January 1886.

Burmese armed resistance continued sporadically for several years, and the British commander had to coerce the High Court of Justice to continue to function. The British decided to annex all of Upper Burma as a colony, and to make the whole country a province of the Indian Empire. The new colony of Upper Burma was attached to the Burma Province on 26 February 1886. Rangoon, having been the capital of British Lower Burma, became the capital of the province.

Britain made Burma a province of India in 1886 with the capital at Rangoon and ushered in a new period of economic growth.

The British separated Burma Province from British India in 1937 and granted the colony a new constitution calling for a fully elected assembly, with many powers given to the Burmese.

Burma achieved independence from British rule on January 4, 1948.


殖民時期（1885年-1948年）

在英國的殖民統治時期，緬甸的交通和教育獲得大幅改善。英国人致力開發水路，使得無數蒸氣船得以航行於依洛瓦底江。鐵路和道路也獲興建和改善以彌補水路的不足。此時，大量的印度移民湧入導致勞工廉價，造成地方經濟受到威脅。因此緬人開始產生對印度人的仇視，以致在1930年爆發反印度人的暴動。

1936年，在英國統治下首次也是唯一一次的選舉中，巴莫博士（Dr. Ba Maw）當選為英国控制下政府的首相，1937年，英國創建一套獨特的緬甸憲法，同意緬人可以控制本國內政。

第二次世界大戰時，日本在1942年5月佔領緬甸，成立以巴莫為首的緬甸執行政府。在日本的支持下，反对英國殖民政府、渴望獨立的昂山將軍（Gen. Aung San）组织了缅甸独立义勇军，1942年他率军与日军一起参加了对英军的战斗，然后在日军支持下宣布缅甸从英国独立。1943年，巴莫与昂山等人受邀访问日本，他们回国重组缅甸政府，昂山成为国防部长。1944年，昂山開始支持美英的同盟國一方，並組織「反法西斯人民自由同盟」以對抗日軍。1945年日本投降後，宣布緬甸獨立是有效的。戰後的緬甸仍受英國控制，昂山則在1947年7月遇刺身亡。昂山的繼承人德钦努（Thakin Nu）繼續領導獨立運動，在英國議會1948年1月4日正式承認緬甸独立之后，於1948年初正式成立了緬甸聯邦。

(Extract from wikipedia)

After the First Burmese War, the Ava kingdom ceded the provinces of Manipur, Tenassarim, and Arakan to the British.[27] Rangoon and southern Burma were incorporated into British India in 1853. All of Burma came directly or indirectly under British India in 1886 after the Third Burmese War and the fall of Mandalay.[27] Burma was administered as a province of British India until 1937 when it became a separate, self-governing colony. The country became independent from the United Kingdom on 4 January 1948, as the "Union of Burma". It became the "Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma" on 4 January, 1974, before reverting to the "Union of Burma" on 23 September 1988. On 18 June, 1989, the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) adopted the name "Union of Myanmar" for English transliteration. This controversial name change in English, while accepted in the UN and in many countries, is not recognized by opposition groups and by nations such as the United Kingdom and the United States

The British "Divided and Rule" policy had left political problem and racial conflicts at Burma.Not only Burma, it also left political problem in nearby South East India and Bengal. Burma was multiracial society with many minorities, and the Panglong Agreement signed in 1947 prior to independence. Some minority groups viewed negatively on the agreement or they are not included in the plan, initiated military rebellion. Burma become independence in 1948. But the democracy did not last long, and soon Military Junta took over the country and ended the democracy of the country until today. The country was once a rich country in South East Asia with much resources, now become one of the poorest country in the world...with human right violation record.