Battle of Ngasaunggyan

Battle of Ngasaunggyan
Part ofMongol invasion of Burma
Date 1277 Location Ngasaunggyan (present-dayMyazedi,Myanmar) Result Yuan victory
Belligerents
Pagan Empire	Yuan dynasty
Commanders and leaders
Narathihapate	Khudu
Strength
10,000+ plus more than 120 war elephants	6,000–12,000 cavalry
Casualties and losses
Heavy	Unknown

TheBattle of Ngasaunggyan(Chinese:Nha tung duyên chi chiến) was fought in 1277 between theYuan dynastyof China and thePagan Kingdomof Burma led byNarathihapate.The battle was initiated by Narathihapate, who invadedYunnan,a province of the Yuan dynasty. Yuan defenders soundly defeated the Pagan forces.

Prelude

Hostility between the two empires had already been established by that time. WhenKublai Khanhad sent emissaries to regional powers of eastern Asia to demand tribute, Narathihapate refused the Khan's representatives the first time they visited in 1271. A later tribute mission ended up with the Mongol envoys being killed by bandits in 1273. When Kublai Khan did not immediately respond to this insult, Narathihapate gained confidence that the Yuan would attack him.

Battle

In 1277,Narathihapatesubsequently invaded the state ofKaungai,whose chief had recently pledged fealty toKublai Khan.Local garrisons of Yuan troops were ordered to defend the area, and although outnumbered were able to soundly defeat the Pagan forces in battle.

The Burmese attack was led by theirwar elephants,which caused initial difficulty to thehorse archer-based Yuan army, as their ponies became uncontrollable in the presence of the grey beast. However the Yuan general Khudu (Qutuq)calmly ordered his men to dismount and tether their horses in a nearby woods, and fight as foot archers instead. The showers of Mongol arrows so badly wounded the elephants that they fled back in panic and trampled their own troops. Seeing this the Yuan troops immediately remounted and charged down upon the shaken Burmese infantry, first pouring arrows into their ranks and then closing into melee with sabers and maces. Eventually the Pagan troops were routed and then vigorously pursued, resulting in a comprehensive Yuan victory.

After the battle the Mongols pressed on with an offensive into the Pagan territory ofBhamo.In the end however they had to abandon their invasion and return to Yunnan after Khudu was wounded.

Aftermath

In the end of 1277,Yunnangovernor's sonNaser al-DinattackedBhamoagain and tried to establish a postal system. However, deadly heat forced him to leave Burma. He returned toKhanbaliqwith 12 elephants and gave them to Kublai Khan in 1279.

The Battle of Ngassaunggyan was the first of three decisive battles between the two empires, the others being theBattle of Bhamoin 1283 and theBattle of Paganin 1287. By the end of these battles, the Yuan dynasty had conquered the entire Pagan Kingdom and installed apuppet government.

The battle was later reported back to Europe byMarco Polo,who described the battle vividly in his reports. His description was presumably pieced together by accounts he heard while visitingKunming.

Further reading

• Hall, D.G.E. (1960).Burma.Hutchinson & Co.: London. Third edition.

External links

• Wars Myanmars FoughtArchived2006-02-12 at theWayback Machine(Retrieved May 23, 2005)