What is today Yingjiang was long the territory of independent Dai chiefdoms in the lowlands, who exerted little influence over the Kachin mountain dwellers.
The main caravan route from Burmese Bhamo on the Irrawaddy passed the mountains that today mark the border to Burma, then continued in the river valley past modern-day Lianghe towards Tengchong, the first securely held outpost of the Chinese empire for a long time.
After Britain's 1852 annexation of lower Burma lucrative trade with China through its back-door seemed more than a distant possibility. But after a successful first mission up the Irrawaddy and into Yunnan in 1868, the second British mission six years later ended in tragedy.
Modern adminstrative town that was almost totally destroyed in a series of earthquakes in 2008.
Sky Lantern Festival 03 Oct 2025
| Kachang 卡场镇 | 21 Nov |