The Cambridge History of India, Vol. IV: The Mughul Period v4.c23.s4.64

v4.c23.s4.64

The victory, coming as it did on top of a generation of continuous warfare which might well have exhausted the race, shows that the exploits of Alaungpaya were no mere flash in the pan but were broad-based on the energy of the race as a whole. His tradition was not only maintained, it was eclipsed. The chronicles for the period are verbose and pompous, but it is impossible to read them without being struck with their fierce pride. The Burman of those days knew that to the north lay a big country called China; to the east, Shans of various sorts some of whom had a kingdom called Siam; to the west a place called India and, further west still, a country of white people, which some people said was an island.