Min Letwe (Burmese: မင်းလက်ဝဲ, pronounced [mɪ́ɴ lɛʔ wɛ́]; d. 1386) was a Pinya prince who served as governor of Pinle from c. 1349 to 1386 under both Pinya and Ava monarchs. The prince was killed in action outside of Hmawbi in 1386, during the first campaign of the Ava–Hanthawaddy War (1385–1391).

Min Letwe
မင်းလက်ဝဲ
Governor of Pinle
Reignc. 1349 – 1386
PredecessorNawrahta
SuccessorThray Thinkhaya
Governor of Sikyay
Reign? – 1349
Predecessor?
Successor?
Bornc. 1330s
Pinle
Pinya Kingdom
Died1386
Hmawbi
Hanthawaddy Kingdom
FatherKyawswa I of Pinya
MotherMway Medaw of Pinya
ReligionTheravada Buddhism

Brief

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Min Letwe was the elder child of King Kyawswa I of Pinya and Queen Mway Medaw of Pinya. His father hailed from both Myinsaing and Pagan royal lines while his mother was of the Pagan royal line. He had one younger full sister,[note 1] and at least six half-siblings.[1][2][3]

According to the royal chronicles, Min Letwe's first fief was Sikyay before being appointed governor of Pinle, one of the three ancestral capitals of the Myinsaing–Pinya dynasty. He succeeded his uncle, Nawrahta, who fled to the rival Sagaing Kingdom during King Nawrahta Minye's short reign in 1349.[note 2]

He apparently survived the fall of Pinya in 1364, and the subsequent founding of the kingdom of Ava a year later. In late 1385, Letwe went to the front in what turned out to the first campaign of the Ava–Hanthawaddy War (1385–1391). But he died in battle while leading his regiment en route to Hmawbi.[4][5][6] His Pinle post was succeeded by Thray Thinkhaya.[7]

Ancestry

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The following ancestry information is per the Hmannan Yazawin chronicle, which corrects Queen Mway Medaw's ancestry reported in the earlier Maha Yazawin.[3]

Notes

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  1. ^ Chronicles report slightly different information about his full sister(s). (Maha Yazawin Vol. 1 2006: 266) says Letwe had two full siblings: an unnamed middle sister, who was married to Gov. Min Maha of Nyaungyan, and Saw Min Hla who died before reaching the age of marriage. (Yazawin Thit Vol. 1 2012: 168) says he had just one full younger sister named Saw Min Lat, who was married to Gov. Min Maha of Nyaungyan. (Hmannan Vol. 1 2003: 380) follows Yazawin Thit but corrects the sister's name to Saw Min Hla.
  2. ^ Per inscriptional evidence (Yazawin Thit Vol. 1 2012: 175, footnotes 5 and 6), Nawrahta Minye reigned for seven months and was alive on 8 November 1349 (Sunday, 13th waning of Tazaungmon 711 ME).

References

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  1. ^ Maha Yazawin Vol. 1 2006: 266
  2. ^ Yazawin Thit Vol. 1 2012: 168
  3. ^ a b Hmannan Vol. 1 2003: 380
  4. ^ Maha Yazawin Vol. 1 2006: 292
  5. ^ Yazawin Thit Vol. 1 2006: 196
  6. ^ Hmannan Vol. 1 2003: 418
  7. ^ Hmannan Vol. 1 2003: 429

Bibliography

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  • Kala, U (2006) [1724]. Maha Yazawin (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3 (4th printing ed.). Yangon: Ya-Pyei Publishing.
  • Maha Sithu (2012) [1798]. Myint Swe; Kyaw Win; Thein Hlaing (eds.). Yazawin Thit (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3 (2nd printing ed.). Yangon: Ya-Pyei Publishing.
  • Royal Historical Commission of Burma (2003) [1832]. Hmannan Yazawin (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3. Yangon: Ministry of Information, Myanmar.
Min Letwe of Pinle
Born: c. 1330s Died: early 1386
Royal titles
Preceded by Governor of Pinle
c. 1349 – 1386
Succeeded by