Pwin-u-Lwin is a town in upper Burma, situated in the hills east of Mandalay, known for its cool climate. Yet for many, Pwin-u-Lwin is better known as Maymyo. Renamed in 1896 after the head of the 5th Bengal infantry, Colonel James May, Maymyo was the most famous hill station in colonial Burma. The British occupied Maymyo in 1895 and a military garrison was erected there in 1897. It soon became a popular holiday destination for those living in Burma. In 1900, following the construction of a train line to Mandalay, it became the summer capital for the British Raj in Burma, allowing colonial officials to leave steamy Rangoon behind until the heat and rains had subsided.
The hill stations, including Simla, Darjeeling and Ooty, were popular staples of Raj life, and Maymyo was no different. The climate and rail links to Rangoon attracted many to make their home in Maymyo, which had soon grown into a sizable community. By 1930 there were more than 140 houses for expatriates to call home, along with schools and department stores. Yet many more passed through for extended stays in the summer months. It is Maymyo’s heyday in the early first half of the 20th century, and the people who lived there, that Stephen Simmons has chosen to portray in his book Maymyo Days: Forgotten Lives of a Burma Hill Station.
This isn’t a book about wider Burmese history or one that focuses on the political aspects of British colonial rule in Burma, instead, Simmons focuses on the individuals who made their life in Maymyo. His theory is that
there was something about Maymyo and the Shan hills, something very difficult to define, hard to put your finger on, which attracted extremely interesting people, gifted people, unusual people, odd people even.
This eclectic and often eccentric group was made up of people who resided either temporarily or permanently in Maymyo, many of whom had distinguished careers in the Raj or elsewhere in colonies.
Throughout the book Simmons draws heavily on diaries and quotes extensively from period sources, but the most effective sources used are the many drawings, photographs and illustrations contained within the book. This wide-ranging collection of 170 color and 50 black and white illustrations, paintings and photographs is the key highlight of this coffee table format book. These range from family portraits to photos of colonial Burma and paintings of Burmese botany.
Despite the significant space allocated to the visual resources, Simmons constructs a useful supporting narrative. This is a rather conventional, at times almost nostalgic, retelling of some key events in Burmese history and it must be noted that there is little to no mention of the violent repression inherent in British rule. Yet as a coffee table book however, it is unsurprising that there is no new analysis or deep historical revelations, given the book focuses on a small town and the individuals who made their lives there.
Simmons offers a series of portrayals of individuals shaped by Maymyo, including teak wallahs, artists, soldiers, botanists, writers and cartographers. He explains their background, and what drew them to Maymyo and in many cases, what led them to stay. Through these portrayals, Simmons tells the rise and fall of Maymyo, including the role Maymyo played as a sanatorium, offering a place of recuperation from dengue, malaria, cholera, dysentery and all the other common ailments that befell those working and living in Burma. He details how the town offered a place to socialize and play cricket, ride horses, drink and gossip, all of which were particularly important for those stationed in remote offices further up the country. These portrayals are essentially mini-biographies, which take us from all over the UK to Burma, the rest of the British Raj and other colonial possessions.
At times these biographies often wander far from Maymyo with some characters spending only a brief time in the town. Indeed, the portrayal of Felice Beato who was “considered by many to be the father of modern photojournalism” had a just fleeting relationship with Maymyo. Simmons notes “It is a stretch of the imagination to include Beato amongst the Maymyo people about whom we have chosen to write. As far as we know, he did not reside in Maymyo for any length of time.” However, he did take some photos of the town and spent time in Mandalay, hence his inclusion in the book.
While the photos and paintings may be the real highlight, Simmons has written a compelling series of portrayals of the myriad and often peculiar individuals that made up a colonial hill station. The book is an interesting and wonderfully illustrated contribution for those interested in daily life in colonial Burma.