Myanmar

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Myanmar
Societal information
Ethnic groups	Bamar Karen Rakhine Shan Mon Chin Kachin Kayah
Languages	Burmese
Major religions	Buddhism Christianity Islam
Demonym	Burmese Myanmarian
Political information
Current state	Republic of the Union of Myanmar
Capital	Naypyidaw
Geographical information
Region	Southeast Asia
Other major cities	Yangon

Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and also known as Burma, is a country in northwest Southeast Asia and the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia. It is bordered by India to the west, Bangladesh to the southwest, China to the northeast, Laos and Thailand to the east and southeast, and the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal to the south and southwest. Its capital is Naypyidaw, and its largest city is Yangon.

History

Toungoo dynasty

Between the 16th and mid-18th centuries, most of modern-day Myanmar was ruled by the Toungoo Empire, although the latter part of its reign was turbulent and marked by both internal and external conflicts.

In 1725, the members of the Zhang Wei Union sailed to Burma from Singapore after Edward Kenway's visions revealed the whereabouts of a Piece of Eden housed within the Shwedagon Pagoda. Arriving in Yangon, the Union members were greeted by a group of Buddhist monks, who offered to help them retrieve the Piece of Eden, believing that the artifact would be safer in their hands. With the monks' aid, the Union members entered the city in disguise and began looking for ways to infiltrate the heavily-guarded pagoda.

At night, Edward and Shimazu Saito used the Celestial Chariot, a hot air balloon built by Yun Pyeong-Gyu, to fly over Yangon and parachute onto the Shwedagon Pagoda. They then entered the temple through a hole in the roof and found the Piece of Eden at its center.

After escaping from the guards with the help of the monks, who offered him and Saito disguises to allow them to blend in with them, Edward promised to return the Piece of Eden to the pagoda once he was done using it. Edward and Saito then returned to Yun and John Young and gave the artifact to the former to study.

However, John secretly betrayed his allies and knocked out Yun to steal the Piece of Eden, intending to use it to resurrect his fiancée, Xialun Qing. He then revealed himself as a Templar double agent and escaped when the group's ship and the Fenghuang came under attack by an East India Company fleet. After Nagamasa and his mercenaries saved the Fenghuang and picked up Edward, Saito, and Yun, Edward gave the order to chase the enemy fleet to the Strait of Malacca to recover the stolen Piece of Eden.

British colonial rule

The Japanese invasion of Burma

In the 19th century, Burma's ruling Konbaung dynasty fought three losing wars against the British Empire, leading to the annexation of its territories to the British Raj. After the third Anglo-Burmese war, the Konabaung dynasty was officially dissolved and Burma became a colony of the British Empire.

During World War II, Burma was invaded by Japan, but it would eventually be recaptured by the Allied forces in 1945. On 4 January 1948, Burma gained independence from the United Kingdom and, in 1989, changed its official name to Myanmar, though Burma or similar names are still used in certain regions of the world.

Modern times

Since 2021, Myanmar has been engulfed in a civil war between the ruling State Administration Council and the exiled National Unity Government, after the former took over the country in a coup d'état and installed a military junta. This new regime was secretly supported by Abstergo Industries, who formed an alliance with the Tatmadaw, Myanmar's armed forces.

In 2023, while hiding out in Singapore, the Abstergo turncoat Shimazu Sei and her bodyguard Yuki learned about the Piece of Eden housed in the Shwedagon Pagoda, after Noa Kim used the Animus to relive the genetic memories of his ancestor Edward Kenway. Sei, Yuki, Noa, and the Assassin Nathan Zhang subsequently traveled to Myanmar to retrieve the artifact, using a secret smuggling route that Nathan knew to arrive undetected in Yangon.

Yangon in the modern day

In the city, the group stayed at a hotel near the Shwedagon Pagoda, where Sei talked to Noa, who believed himself to be Edward due to the Bleeding Effect. After convincing "Edward" to help recover the Piece of Eden from the pagoda, Sei and Noa infiltrated the temple while Nathan and his Doom Eagle thugs staged a distraction. Noa ultimately managed to retrieve the Piece of Eden after overcoming its trials, and escaped with Sei, Yuki, and Nathan, just as Abstergo's Sigma Team arrived and attacked the pagoda in an attempt to capture them and seize the artifact.

While hiding out in a safehouse outside Yangon, Noa and his allies discussed what to do with the Pieces of Eden in their possession. Ultimately, they decided to only use them if absolutely necessary, and later returned to Yangon, looking for a way to leave Myanmar and escape from the Abstergo forces hunting them. They infiltrated the city's harbor, which was guarded by Sigma Team, but they were discovered, and Yuki sacrificed herself to buy the others time to escape.

After reaching a hangar containing a seaplane, Sei seized the crescent amulet in Noa's possession and used it to subdue the incoming agents long enough for Noa and Nathan to escape with the artifact they had recovered from the Shwedagon Pagoda. Sei was subsequently captured by Abstergo, who placed her in the Animus to use her genetic memories to find the last Piece of Eden located in Southeast Asia.

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed II (photo only)
• Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple (first appearance)