as the raiders torched villages, ransacked pagodas, and took away captives. It was during these troubled times in the absence of royal authority that men like Aung Zeya came forward. He assumed his father's responsibilities as chief of his village in his early twenties. A tall man for the times, ( as described by an English envoy), the solidly built, sunburnt Aung Zeya displayed his natural ability to lead men and was viewed as a leader by his gentry peers throughout the valley. They began to take matters into their own hands to defend against the raids. The sickly regime at Ava was wary of any potential rivals. In 1736, Taungoo Yaza, commander-in-chief of the army of Ava, summoned Aung Zeya to Ava to check if the village headman was a potential threat to the regime. Satisfied that the 22-year-old had no designs on the throne, Taungoo Yaza on behalf of the king bestowed the title Bala Nanda Kyaw () to Aung Zeya. Aung Zeya became deputy to his uncle the lord of Mu Valley, and the administrative officer kyegaing (, ), responsible for tax collection and for the preservation of order. Founding of Konbaung Dynasty The authority of Ava continued to decline in the following years. In 1740, the Mon of Lower Burma broke away and founded the Restored Hanthawaddy Kingdom with the capital at Bago. Ava's feeble attempts to recover the south failed to make a dent. Low-grade warfare between Ava and Bago went on until late in 1751, when Bago launched its final assault, invading Upper Burma in full force. By early 1752, Hanthawaddy forces, aided by the French East India Company-supplied firearms and Dutch and Portuguese mercenaries, had reached the gates of Ava. The heir-apparent of Hanthawaddy, Upayaza, summoned all administrative officers in Upper Burma to submit. Some chose to cooperate, but others, like Aung Zeya, chose to resist. Aung Zeya persuaded 46 villages in the Mu Valley to join him in resistance. He found a ready audience in "an exceptionally proud group of men and women" of Upper Burma who longed to redress the numerous humiliations that their once proud kingdom had suffered. On 29 February 1752 (Full moon of Tabaung 1113 ME), as the Hanthawaddy forces were about to breach the outer walls of Ava, Aung Zeya proclaimed himself king with the royal style of Alaungpaya ("One Who Is the Future Buddha", Maitreya) and