In the lowlands of Burma lie the remains of thousands of crumbling temples... In this episode, we tell one of the most colourful stories of civilizational survival: the story of the Bagan Empire of Myanmar. Find out how this kingdom rose up in the Irrawaddy river valley of central Myanmar, and built one of the most remarkable series of monuments to have survived from the medieval world. Discover what life was like for the people who lived there, and find out what happened to cause its sudden and complete collapse. ** Fall of Civilizations the book is now available to pre-order: linktr.ee/fallofcivilizations ** SOURCES: https://www.patreon.com/posts/72823363 Voice actors: Paul Casselle Michael Hajiantonis Nick Denton Alexandra Boulton Jay Forrester Readings in Burmese were performed by Daniel San. Sound engineering by Alexey Sibikin. Title theme: Home At Last by John Bartmann https://johnbartmann.com/ Footage of Mongolian horse archery by the Namnaa Horse Archery Academy. Website: http://namnaa.com/ To see more: https://www.youtube.com/c/AltanNergui Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT6Y5JJPKe_JDMivpKgVXew/join Chapters 0:14 - Intro 12:26 - Origins of the Bagan Empire 38:04 - Anawrahta 47:43 - The fall of King Anawrahta a 59:00 - The reign of King Kyansittha 1:17:58 - The Rise and Fall of King Narathu 1:23:08 - The Role of the Church 1:35:06 - The Mongol Invasion 1:47:01- The Kingdom of Bagan Collapses 1:58:37 - Final Poem