[note 2] His mother died shortly after giving birth to him, and he was adopted by his paternal aunt Princess Maha Dewi of Dagon.

[2] He grew up in Dagon (modern downtown Yangon) in his early years before moving to Pegu (Bago) with his adoptive mother, c. mid 1370s.

He had been persuaded by Minister Zeik-Bye that his adoptive mother was planning to put her lover (and Nwe's brother-in-law) Smim Maru on the throne.

It would have led to another quick arrest like before except that Zeik-Bye advised against taking any action, characterizing the insurrection as a harmless exercise by a restless teenager.

By August, he believed he had found sufficient local support that he sent missions to farther provincial capitals of Martaban (Mottama) and Myaungmya.

Even then, Maha Dewi hoped to avoid a showdown, reluctantly authorizing a military expedition that would begin only at the end of the rainy season.

[11] Meanwhile, in October, the ailing king officially handed power to his sister, giving her the right to raise the white umbrella, a symbol of Burmese sovereigns.

[29] This time, Laukpya wanted to seek the backing of the northern Ava Kingdom but Byattaba, whose territory bordered the Tai states to the east, demurred.

By then, Ava had emerged as the main power in the Irrawaddy valley, with its king Swa Saw Ke intent on restoring the erstwhile Pagan Empire.

Over the next few months, larger forces of Pegu eventually captured the entire northern province, including Donwun, a strategic town 100 kilometres (62 mi) north of Martaban (Mottama), the former capital of the kingdom.

[note 12] After the improbable victory, an overjoyed Razadarit appointed Than-Lan governor of Donwun with the princely title of Smin Byat Za.

(In the superstitious world of Burmese politics, he was alarmed when the wife of Prince Min Swe of Ava gave birth to a son about a year later.

[66] A delighted Razadarit sent an embassy led by chief ministers Byat Za and Dein Mani-Yut to receive the elephant at Kamphaeng Phet.

His administration consisted mainly of ministers from his father's court led by Dein Mani-Yut, Byat Za, Zeik-Bye and Maha Thamun.

Maha Pyauk of Yamethin, who commanded a sizeable army—vied to seize power while the rightful successor Prince Min Swe was too concerned to claim the throne.

[69] By November 1401, they had collected a 1300-boat river-borne invasion fleet that would transport 5000 (or 7000) troops, horses and elephants upriver to Ava; and a 3000-man army that would attack Prome.

Initially, the Pegu navy faced little opposition as Ava was caught flatfooted, and its forces had to stay inside the fortified towns along the river.

The size of the invasion force (no more than 7000 troops in the northern theater) was simply too small to storm or lay siege to Ava or any nearby fortified cities.

[77] On the southern front, the army also withdrew but Prome's counterattack captured Razadarit's daughter Tala Mi Kyaw, accompanying her husband Gen.

[86][87] Circa February/March 1403, the two kings met at the Shwesandaw Pagoda in Prome, and agreed to return to the prewar border, with explicitly stated demarcation points.

In return, Razadarit sanctioned Princess Tala Mi Kyaw's status as a queen of Minkhaung; he also agreed to grant Ava the annual customs revenue of the port of Bassein, and 30 war elephants—annually.

[note 22] When the attempts failed, Razadarit personally led the counterattack, forcing Ava armies to withdraw in complete disarray.

A month into the siege, he had to hastily marched down to Martaban because a Siamese army led by Lord of Kamphaeng Phet was raiding Ye.

[117][118][119] Razadarit immediately sent an embassy carrying 7 viss (11.43 kg) of gold to Hsenwi (via Chiang Mai) to make sure that the Shan state open the northern front after the rainy season.

During the rainy season, Chinese-backed Hsenwi forces raided Ava's northern territories, destroying "over 20 cities and stockades", and taking back elephants, horses, and other goods (which were presented at the Chinese capital in September 1413).

[107] Minkhaung recalled Minye Kyawswa to face the Chinese, and sent his younger son Thihathu to Prome to take over the southern command.

After defending against Ava's first wave of invasions, he invested much political capital in integrating the region's main centers of power: Martaban, Moulmein, Bassein and Myaungmya.

He invested much energy on integrating hitherto factious centers of power—in particular, Martaban, Moulmein, Bassein and Myaungmya—into a more centralized administration, which on balance were generally successful.

[145][note 30] The king's story is recorded in a classic epic called Razadarit Ayedawbon that exists in Burmese Mon and Thai language forms.

Razadarit's struggles against Minkhaung I and Minye Kyawswa of Ava are part of classic stories of legend in Burmese culture to the present day.