Mandalay Hill

Coordinates: 22°0′51″N 96°6′27″E / 22.01417°N 96.10750°E / 22.01417; 96.10750
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Mandalay Hill
List of mountains in Burma
Coordinates22°0′51″N 96°6′27″E / 22.01417°N 96.10750°E / 22.01417; 96.10750[1]
Naming
Native nameမန္တလေးတောင် (Burmese)
Geography
LocationAungmyethazan Township, Mandalay, Myanmar
Climbing
First ascentunknown
Easiest routeescalator

Mandalay Hill (

Buddhists
for nearly two centuries. At the top of the hill is the Sutaungpyei (literally wish-fulfilling) Pagoda. A panoramic view of Mandalay from the top of Mandalay Hill alone makes it worthwhile to attempt a climb up its stairways. There are four covered stairways called saungdan leading up the hill from the south, southeast, west and north, and convenient seats of masonry work line these stairways all the way up. A one-way motor road today saves time and also makes it accessible for those who are unable to climb up the stairs, leading to an escalator and a lift to the pagoda at the summit.

Climbing Mandalay Hill

Sutaungpyai Temple, decorative mosaics
View from the Sutaungpyai terrace

Buddhists consider climbing the hill a rewarding experience and a meritorious deed for those able to do so. Two statues of

Avici
Hell) in gory detail.

Farther up, halfway to the summit,

Kyanzittha's spear mark' near the top of the hill. According to legend, he executed a miraculous pole vault across the Irrawaddy
using his spear .

Peshawar Relics
are kept in the hermit U Khanti's dazaung (hall).

The last stop before the Sutaungpyei pagoda completes the legend of Mandalay. Here on the south terrace of a small

Samsara
(birth, suffering, death and rebirth).

At the summit

Sunset from Mandalay Hill

Once on the terrace of the Sutaungpyei Pagoda, a panoramic view of the Mandalay plain stretches far to the horizon, with the old city walls and moat, the Thudhamma

Flame tree
. Sunset over the river and the western hills as seen from Mandalay Hill can be a wonderful experience, and crowds of tourists may be encountered in the evenings enjoying it.

World War II

An ogre king and his army at the Sanda Muhki pagoda

In March 1945, the

Indian 19th Infantry Division under the command of Major-General Thomas Wynford 'Pete' Rees, dubbed the 'Pocket Napoleon' by his men on account of his size and successful military career, was closing in on the Japanese in Mandalay where resistance was based mainly at Mandalay Hill with its pagodas and temples honeycombed for machine-guns, well supplied and heavily garrisoned. Fort Dufferin or the walled city with the royal palace was another pocket of resistance by the remaining Japanese troops. A Gurkha battalion stormed up the hill engaging in fierce hand-to-hand fighting all day and night on 9 March, and they were joined the next day by two companies of a British battalion.[4]

The Japanese stood firm and the last defenders had to be blown out from the cellars by rolling down petrol drums and igniting them with tracer bullets. It was not until 11 March that the hill fell into British hands. Aerial bombardment was resorted to when shelling from the hill failed to breach the city wall and destroy the enemy, and Mandalay Palace, a national heritage of great importance, burnt down during the siege. Whether it was the shelling and bombing or the enemy that destroyed the splendid teak palace was never determined with any certainty.[4]

Gallery

  • Two giant chinthes guard the southern approach to Mandalay Hill
    Two giant chinthes guard the southern approach to Mandalay Hill
  • Sanda Muhki, the ogress, offering her own breasts to the Buddha
    Sanda Muhki, the ogress, offering her own breasts to the Buddha
  • Mandalay Hill from East Moat Bridge
    Mandalay Hill from East Moat Bridge
  • Sandamuni Pagoda where Crown Prince Ka Naung lies buried
    Crown Prince Ka Naung
    lies buried
  • Up the saungdan at Mandalay Hill
    Up the saungdan at Mandalay Hill
  • The lizard is one of many former incarnations of the Buddha
    The lizard is one of many former incarnations of the Buddha
  • Mandalay Hill from Mingun across the Irrawaddy
    Mandalay Hill from Mingun across the Irrawaddy
  • The Shan Yoma east of Mandalay Hill
    The
    Shan Yoma
    east of Mandalay Hill
  • View from the west, on the River Irrawaddy
    View from the west, on the
    River Irrawaddy
  • View from the east, Maymyo Road
    View from the east,
    Maymyo
    Road
  • View from the north, Madaya Road
    View from the north, Madaya Road
  • Detail of part of the Sutaungpyai Temple
    Detail of part of the Sutaungpyai Temple
  • View from Mandalay Hill
    View from Mandalay Hill

See also

References

  1. ^
    GoogleEarth
  2. ^ Ludu Daw Amar (1994). Kyama do nge nge ga - "When We Were Young" in Burmese. Mandalay: Kyipwa Yay Press. pp. 44–45.
  3. ^ "The Shweyettaw Buddha is halfway up Mandalay Hill". Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  4. ^ a b Sir William Slim (1956). Defeat into Victory. Great Britain: Pan Books 1999. pp. 390, 468, 470.

External links

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