Acting on these principles they decided in 1885, before the British Government had moved against King Thebaw, to invite the Limbin Prince, one of the Royal Family who was living in British Burma as a refugee on a small pension allotted to him by the British Government, to come up to Kengtung and to accept the position of Suzerain of the Shan States, with the object of "wresting the crown from King Thebaw." The Prince accepted the call, and arrived at Kengtung on December 10, 1885. On his arrival, forces were raised from Kengtung and the other confederating States, and advance parties were sent forward under the command of the Sawbwas of Möngnawng, Möngnai, and Lawksawk.
The States joining in this enterprise under the nominal leadership of the Limbin Prince--a poor creature quite unable to lead any one--became known as the Limbin Confederacy. A counter league was formed by all those interested in keeping the exiled Sawbwas out of their territories and maintaining the existing state of things. On the other hand, the Sawbwas of Möngpawn and several other influential Sawbwas espoused the cause of the Confederacy. Twet Nga Lu was the leading spirit of the counter league, and he directed its forces against the States which were allied to Möngnai. He was met and defeated by Möngpawn, and early in the year 1886 Kun Kyi, the Sawbwa of Möngnai, and his companions in exile had expelled the usurpers and recovered their territories. The Confederacy then set themselves to induce or compel other States to join them and to acknowledge the suzerainty of the Limbin Prince. Saw Ôn, the _de facto_ ruler of Yawnghwè, rejected their invitation. The Confederacy determined to move from Möngnai against him, as it was important to force Yawnghwè, the State adjoining Möngnai on the west, and the most powerful in the Central, or Myélat, Division, to give its adherence to the Prince.
The foregoing outline will perhaps suffice to make the situation at and immediately following the annexation intelligible.
The danger-points appeared to the Chief Commissioner to be the critical situations of the two Sawbwas, who had signified their adherence to the British Government, namely, Hsipaw in the north and Yawnghwè in the central portion of the States. Hsipaw and his ally, San Ton Hon, were pressed by the coalition under Naw Hpa, Naw Möng, and Prince Saw Yan Naing--another scion of Royalty who with his brother had raised their standard at Chaunggwa, in the Ava district, and after being driven out of that had eventually joined Naw Möng in Hsenwi. Yawnghwè was threatened by the powerful Limbin Confederacy, and had no prospect of help from any neighbouring State. Both these Sawbwas had declared themselves to be friends of the British Government, and at the time they were our only adherents.