Htayanka Princess

Htayanka Hteik Kaung Tin, also known as Htanyanka Princess, a Burmese royal princess. She married her half-brother Pyinmana Prince. During the Japanese occupation, the couple was considered a potential puppet king and queen by the Japanese government but refused the role.

Life

Htayanka Hteik Kaung Tin was born in 1873 in Mandalay to King Mindon and his consort, Ngazun Mibaya, a queen of the fourth rank. The youngest of three siblings, her mother hailed from the Ayodhaya royal lineage, with her grandfather being a prince of the Ayodhya Kingdom.

Htayanka was granted the appanage of Htayanka and Myohla, holding the rank of Hteikkaungtin, the second-rank Princess of Burma.

During King Mindon's illness before his final days, she served as a masseuse to him. While observing her and Pyinmana Prince, the right masseur, King Mindon was delighted and ordered their marriage once they reached adulthood. As they prepared to return, both Prince Pyinmana and Princess Htayanka were awarded a diamond necklace.

Upon reaching adulthood, she married Pyinmana Prince on March 25, 1902, during British rule. At the time, the princess was 28, and the prince was 30. He remained devoted to her, never taking another woman as a concubine.

Sent to India by the British government, they gave birth to their first son there. Kyaymyin Mibaya, the mother of Pyinmana Prince, later brought the child back to Burma, but unfortunately, he died at a young age.

After the fall of the Konbaung dynasty, Pyinma Prince, her husband, was considered a puppet heir to the throne by the Japanese government, but he refused the offer in 1942.

Following a novitiate ceremony (Shinbyu) for her grandchild, Princess Htayanka fell ill and died on June 2, 1963, at the age of 90. Her husband, overwhelmed with sorrow, died on June 7, four days after her death. They were laid to rest together in the courtyard of Kyaumyin Mibaya Tomb.

See also

• Konbaung dynasty
• Mindon Min