History of Tenasserim: observations and explorations, 1825

History of Tenasserim: observations and explorations, 1825

Author: James Low

Year: 1825

Captain James Low explored Tenasserim for the British East India Company in 1825, even while the company was still wresting it away from Myanmar in the First Anglo-Burmese War. His reports form a unique document of a pivotal time in the region's history, in which the every-day lives of common people are given precedence over the ambitions of kings. He also captured details of both Burma and Siam at a time when they were embroiled in conflict, and thus often opaque to history. In the 1830s, Low's observations were published in serial form by the Royal Asiatic Society. However, they were never collated together and published with Low's maps and illustrations as he intended. This edition finishes the job, though unfortunately copyright issues require the images to be blurred in this edition for archive.org. A print edition with high-resolution images is available elsewhere. The text is accompanied by a detailed introduction, and annotated both with Captain Low's footnotes and those of the current editor. The editor also wishes to extend his gratitude to the archivists and librarians of both the Royal Asiatic Society and British Library in London for their kind and invaluable assistanc