Shwe Bo is one of the big cities in Sagaing Region. The city was established by King Alaung Paya U Aung Zeya in 1752 when the Kon Baung Dynasty was founded and it served as the capital till 1760. The original name of the Shwe Bo is called Moksobo which is just a village till 1752 and has only about 300 houses. Before founded the Kon Baung Dynasty, U Aung Zeya was the chief of the village and his aim to establish the city is to resist the upcoming incursion of Lower Burma based Han Tha Waddy forces. He tried to gain the allegiance of 46 surrounding villages and organized the defenses building, a fort and digging a moat around Moksobo. King Alaung Paya renamed his village to Shwe Bo after that. Shwe Bo lost its status as the capital after King Alaung Paya's death in 1760 and the new heir Naung Daw Gyi moved the capital to Sagaing. Shwe Bo is one of the major agricultural trading cities with beans, rice and sesame are being grown in the surrounding areas.

Places to visit in Shwebo

Shwe Bon Yadana Mingalar Palace

Photo by wikimedia
Shwe Bon Yadana Mingalar Palace is an old royal palace in Shwe Bo. It was built by King Alaung Paya U Aung Zeya, the founder of the Kone Baung Dynasty in 1752. The palace was decorated with ten kinds of Art in details. There have a total of 54 apartments and halls. The most remarkable buildings are a pair of towering gold-painted wooden throne rooms and nine tiers high. The palace was reconstructed in 1999. The exhibits formerly displays in the palace are now in Nay Pyi Taw National Museum. The opening hour is from 7:30 am to 5 pm and the entrance fee is 500 Kyats for the locals and 5 $ for the foreigners (this ticket will valid the admission including Hanlin).