Great Burma Revolt

Saya San †
Thakin Nu
20,000 soldiers

The **Great Burma Revolt** is an ongoing colonial revolt in the Burma region of the British Raj. The revolt is considered to have began on 22 December 1930 with the first outbreak of violence in the Tharrawaddy region. In spite of military action against the rebels, the revolt has continued for over a year.

## History

The collapse of the British economy in 1929 had a long reaching effect on the Burmese economy. Demand for Burmese agricultural products, primarily rice, collapsed. Farm closures due to unprofitably caused unemployment among rural labourers to skyrocket. The subsequent anger over unemployment and taxation is considered the chief reason for the revolt. Saya San, a physician and monk, took leadership over the disaffected population of the Tharrawaddy region. His rebellion was of a deeply religious and nationalist nature.

On 22 December 1930 the first armed rebels attacked British authorities in Tharrawaddy. Within a few weeks the rebellion had spread across the region, gathering thousands of followers. The colonial authorities in Rangoon asked for military support from the central government in Delhi. In the meantime, only the Burma Military Police could be effectively deployed against the rebels. Military action proved ineffective at quelling the rebellion, which only proceeded to swell in scale.

By mid-1931, the rebellion had engulfed all of Southern Burma. The rebellion was of a very decentralized nature, with local spontaneously formed rebel leaderships coordinating actions to seize weapons and attack government structures. However, in spite of these operations the rebels were and still are poorly armed. The lack of coordination between rebel forces has proven to be a significant issue that has enabled British counterinsurgency tactics.

In August 1931 the rebel leader Saya San was captured by British forces. He was quickly tried by a special tribunal and executed on 28 November, despite the defense of his lawyer Ba Maw. The capture of Saya San disorganized the rebellion for a brief time, but his execution served only to make him into a martyr. The rebellion soon spread to the city of Rangoon, with industrial workers and students protesting against British rule and the increasingly harsh economic conditions. On 11 December a group of protestors were fired upon by British troops, killing nine and wounding numerous others. The British colonial government subsequently enacted martial law, violently quelling unrest in the city.

In the aftermath, the student-led We Burmans Association, commonly known as the Thakins, was launched to prominence as the chief political force in resistance to British rule. The underground organization, led by Thakin Nu, claims to represent the rebellion, but in reality exercises little control over its actions. Nonetheless, their actions in Rangoon has led to support from the Communist International. As of late December 1931 the rebellion persists in the countryside of Southern Burma, with the rebels controlling numerous important towns. This situation has, in effect, left Rangoon isolated from the unaffected northern areas of Burma. Estimates for the strength of the rebels differ, with somewhere around 30,000 armed militants and significantly higher numbers of sympathizers.