History
During the Han Dynasty, Xishuangbanna was subordinate to the Yizhou commandery, after which control passed to the Kingdom of Shu. In the 12th century, a Tai Lue kingdom was established in this area. During the Yuan Dynasty, Xishuangbanna was reorganized as the Cheli Commandery (Chinese: 車里宣慰使司; pinyin: Chēlǐ Xuānwèishǐ Sī) and the local leaders are recognized as tusi. Many of the leaders adopted the Chinese family name Dao (刀). The name Xishuangbanna emerged during the Ming Dynasty.
The Xishuangbanna Dai people recognized the Qing Dynasty, as with previous Chinese states, as "Muong Haw", which is traditionally rendered as "the Heavenly Dynasty". They adapted Chinese placenames to their local language by adding "Muong" in front; for example, Dali was "Muong Tali". At the beginning of the Sino-Burmese War (1765–1769), the Burmese invaded and sacked Xishuangbanna, devastating the area's economy. The Qing counterattacked, recovering Xishuangbanna and even capturing Kengtung (part of modern Myanmar). To punish the local leadership for not halting the invasion, the Qing replaced tusi chief Tau Sau Vuen with Dao Weiping in 1767. After the War ended, thousands of Chinese troops remained in the area with their wives and children.
Xishuangbanna's border with Burma was formally demarcated in the 1890s. During the final phase of the Chinese Civil War, many remnants of the Guomindang fled the victorious Communists into Shan State from Xishuangbanna. In 1953, the People's Republic of China (PRC) established the Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Region and ended the tusi system. The area was renamed an autonomous prefecture in 1955. State-owned rubber plantations accounted for most of the region's wealth during the early PRC period. Xishuangbanna also received a wave of educated youths during the late 1960s Down to the Countryside Movement. Shao Cunxin (召存信, 1922-), former head of the Chieftain's outer council (1944-1950) and chief of Meng Peng (1938-1950), was the chief of the autonomous prefecture from 1955 to 1992.
Read more about this topic: Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
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