Min Dikkha

Min Dikkha (Burmese: မင်းတိက္ခာ, Burmese pronunciation: [mɪ́ɴdeiʔkʰà]; 1515–1556, in the Arakanese language as Mong Tikkha) was ruler of the Kingdom of Mrauk U from 1554 to 1556. He was the heir-apparent of the kingdom for 22 years during the reign of his father, King Min Bin. Dikkha was an able military commander who led the Arakanese navy in Min Bin's conquest of Bengal in 1532–1533. He led the Royal Arakanese Navy in the Taungoo–Ava War (1538–45), and in the Taungoo–Mrauk-U War (1545–47).

Reign

The king was also known as Bahadur Shah by the neighbouring Bengal.

During his short reign, Islam Shah Suri of the brief but influential Sur Empire died, creating a power vacuum leading to the re-emergence of the Bengal Sultanate. Based on coinage issued by the new Bengal Sultan Muhammad Khan Sur, some historians believe that Bengal pushed its influence into Arakan, far beyond the usual contestation over Chittagong. The extent of this is contested since the coinage uses the term "Rakan" rather than "Mrauk U", which could either be an early use of the later word "Arakan" or an atypical coin issued for the Chittagong province and no the capital at Mrauk U.

Min Dikkha built the Koe-thaung Temple, the largest of all temples in Mrauk U during his short reign.

Death

Min Dikkha died from a kidney disease.

Notes

Bibliography

• Gutman, Pamela (2001). Burma's Lost Kingdoms: Splendours of Arakan. Bangkok: Orchid Press. ISBN 974-8304-98-1.
• Royal Historical Commission of Burma (1832). Hmannan Yazawin (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3 (2003 ed.). Yangon: Ministry of Information, Myanmar.
• Sandamala Linkara, Ashin (1931). Rakhine Yazawinthit Kyan (in Burmese). Vol. 1–2 (1997–1999 ed.). Yangon: Tetlan Sarpay.
• Aye Chan (2017). ရခိုင်သမိုင်းမိတ်ဆက် [Introduction to Rakhine History]. Yangon: Shwe Thazin Publishing House.
• Chowdhury, Mohammaed Ali (2004). Bengal-Arakan Relations. Kolkata: Firma KLM Private Limited. ISBN 81-7102-118-2.