British rule in Burma

1824–1948 British colonial rule on Burma

British rule in Burma lasted from 1824 to 1948. This started from the successive three Anglo-Burmese wars through the creation of Burma as a province of British India to the establishment of an independently administered colony. The rule finally ended with independence. The region under British control was known as British Burma.

Colony of Burma
မြန်မာကိုလိုနီ
1824–1948
Emblem (1939–1948) of Burma
Emblem
(1939–1948)
Anthem: God Save the King (1824–1837; 1901–1948)
God Save the Queen (1837–1901)
British Burma during World War II Dark green: Japanese occupation of Burma Light silver: Remainder of British Burma Light green: Occupied and annexed by Thailand
British Burma during World War II
Dark green: Japanese occupation of Burma
Light silver: Remainder of British Burma
Light green: Occupied and annexed by Thailand
StatusDivision of the Bengal Presidency (1826–1862)
Province of British India (1862–1937)
Colony of the United Kingdom (1937–1948)
CapitalMoulmein
(1826–1852)
Rangoon
(1853–1942)
Shimla
(1942-1945)
Rangoon
(1945–1948)
Capital-in-exileShimla, British India
(1942–1945)
Common languagesEnglish (official)
Burmese
Religion
Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam
Monarch 
• 1862–1901
Victoria
• 1901–1910
Edward VII
• 1910–1936
George V
• 1936
Edward VIII
• 1936–1948
George VI
Governor 
• 1862–1867 (first)
Sir Arthur Purves Phayre [a]
• 1946–1948 (last)
Sir Hubert Rance
LegislatureLegislative Council of Burma (1897–1936)
Legislature of Burma (1936–1947)
Senate
House of Representatives
Historical eraColonial era
5 March 1824
1824–1826, 1852–1853, 1885
• Separation from British India
1937
1942–1945
• Independence from the United Kingdom
4 January 1948
CurrencyBurmese rupee, Indian rupee, Pound sterling
ISO 3166 codeMM
Preceded by
Succeeded by
British Raj
Konbaung Dynasty
State of Burma
Japanese occupation
Thai occupation
Union of Burma
Today part ofMyanmar

Further reading

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  • Baird-Murray, Maureen [1998]. A World Overturned: a Burmese Childhood 1933–47. London: Constable. ISBN 0094789207 Memoirs of the Anglo-Irish-Burmese daughter of a Burma Frontier Service officer, including her stay in an Italian convent during the Japanese occupation.
  • Charney, Michael (2009). A History of Modern Burma. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Desai, Walter Sadgun (1968). History of the British Residency in Burma. London: Gregg International. ISBN 0-576-03152-6.
  • Fryer, Frederick William Richards (1905). "Burma" . The Empire and the century. London: John Murray. pp. 716–727.
  • Harvey, Godfrey (1992). British Rule in Burma 1824–1942. London: AMS Pr. ISBN 0-404-54834-2.
  • Imperial Gazetteer of India vol. IV (1908), The Indian Empire, Administrative, Published under the authority of His Majesty's Secretary of State for India in Council, Oxford at the Clarendon Press, pp. xxx, 1 map, 552
  • Naono, Atsuko (2009). State of Vaccination: The Fight Against Smallpox in Colonial Burma. Hyderabad: Orient Blackswan. pp. 238. ISBN 978-81-250-3546-6. ( http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/4729301/Cite Archived 2020-07-30 at the Wayback Machine)
  • Richell, Judith L. (2006). Disease and Demography in Colonial Burma. Singapore: NUS Press. pp. 238.
  • Myint-U, Thant (2008). The River of Lost Footsteps: a Personal History of Burma. London: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 9780374531164.
  1. as Chief Commisoner

Other websites

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