Min Bin (Arakanese and , , Arakanese pronunciation: ; also known as Min Ba-Gyi (မင်းဗာကြီး, , Meng Ba-Gri, Arakanese pronunciation: ); 1493–1554) was a king of Arakan from 1531 to 1554, "whose reign witnessed the country's emergence as a major power". Aided by Portuguese mercenaries and their firearms, his powerful navy and army pushed the boundaries of the kingdom deep into Bengal, where coins bearing his name and styling him sultan were struck, and even interfered in the affairs of mainland Burma.
After his initial military successes against Bengal and Tripura (1532–34), Min Bin began to regard himself "as a world conqueror or cakravartin", and in commemoration of his victory in Bengal he built the Shitthaung Temple, one of the premier Buddhist pagodas of Mrauk-U. His expansionist drive was to run into serious obstacles however. His control of Bengal beyond Chittagong was largely nominal and he, like the sultans of Bengal before him, never solved Tripuri raids into Bengal. Moreover, his interference in Lower Burma (1542) against Toungoo provoked Toungoo invasions in (1545–47) that nearly toppled his regime. He survived the invasions and later provided military aid to Ava, hoping to stop Toungoo's advance into Upper Burma.
The king died in January 1554, and was succeeded by his eldest son and heir apparent Min Dikkha. His legacy lived on. The defensive works he built up throughout the kingdom would deter another Toungoo invasion until 1580. He is also credited with creating a naval fleet that dominated the Bay of Bengal, which in the following century would enable Arakan to control the entire 1600-km coastline from the Sundarbans to the Gulf of Martaban. His 22-year reign transformed Mrauk-U into a major regional power, a status which Mrauk-U would maintain well into the second half of the 17th century.
Early life
The future king was born Min Pa (မင်းပါ) to Crown Prince Raza of Mrauk-U and Princess Saw Nandi in 1493. His parents were first cousins; his mother was a daughter of Raza's maternal uncle. He had at least one younger brother named Min Aung Hla, and many half-siblings. In 1502, his grandfather King Salingathu died, and his father succeeded the throne. As king, his father raised three new queens, and made his mother just a minor queen. A few years later, the king appointed Min Pa as a general in the army.
Rise to power
In 1513, Raza was overthrown by Gazapati, another son by a concubine. Although Min Pa was older than Gazapati and had a more legitimate claim to the throne, he stayed out of the limelight. He managed to survive intrigues and power struggles at the court which saw three different kings (Gazapati, Saw O and Thazata) in the next eight years. In 1521, King Thazata died, and the king's younger brother Minkhaung succeeded in getting the throne. Though he lost out the throne to Minkhaung, Min Pa however managed to get appointed as the new governor of Thandwe (Sandoway), the second most important city in the kingdom. At Thandwe, Min Pa patiently built a loyal following, and collected arms. Ten years later, he revolted, and marched to Mrauk-U with land and naval forces. At Mrauk-U, his forces defeated the king's army, and he had Minkhaung executed.
Reign
Consolidation
Min Bin ascended to the throne on Saturday, 27 May 1531, with the royal styles of Thiri Thuriya Sanda Maha Dhamma Yaza and Zabuk Shah. As someone who came to power by force, the new king immediately issued a decree to raise the defenses of Mrauk-U. (In the following decade, the capital Mrauk-U would get an elaborate defensive works consisted of massive stone walls and a deep moat filled with tidal waters. The defense works were later extended to the rest of the kingdom, as after 1532, the coastal areas of the kingdom were liable to pillage by Portuguese pirates.) He also worked to consolidate his rule, and was to face no opposition. Lords from around the kingdom came to pledge their allegiance on 16 September 1531 at the coronation ceremony at the new palace at Mrauk-U. According to chronicles, one notable absence at the coronation ceremony was Chittagong which had paid tribute to strong Arakanese kings Ba Saw Phyu (r. 1459–1482) and Dawlya (r. 1482–1492). Min Bin was determined to restore what he called his forebears' rightful realm, which according to him, included all of Bengal, not just Chittagong.