Narathu was king of Pagan dynasty of Burma (Myanmar) from 1167 to 1170. Narahthu ascended to the throne by murdering his father King Alaungsithu

Alaungsithu

Alaungsithu or Sithu I was king of Pagan Dynasty of Burma from 1113 to 1167. Sithu's reign was a prosperous one in which Pagan was an integral part of in-land and maritime trading networks...

 and his elder brother Min Shin Saw

Min Shin Saw

Min Shin Saw was the eldest son of King Alaungsithu of Pagan dynasty of Burma . The prince was the heir apparent of the kingdom for a long time until he ran into disagreements with his father, late in his father's life. He was exiled to a place near Ava, a few miles north of Pagan. He turned the...

. In atonement for his many cruelties, Narathu built the largest of all the Pagan temples, the Dhammayangyi

Dhammayangyi Temple

Dhammayangyi Temple is a Buddhist temple located in Bagan, Myanmar. Largest of all the temples in Bagan, the Dhammayan as it is popularly known was built during the reign of King Narathu...

.

Narathu's conduct lowered the prestige of the dynasty, and he was widely unpopular. Narathu's reign came to an abrupt end in 1170 when the king was killed by the mercenaries sent by the chief of Pateikkaya, a tributary kingdom in the west (near or today's Chin State

Chin State

Chin State is a state located in western Burma . The Chin State is bordered by Rakhine State in the south, Bangladesh in south-west, Sagaing Division and Magway Division in the east, Indian state of Manipur in the north and Indian state of Mizoram in the west. The Chin ethnic group make up the...

). The reason was to avenge for Narathu's murder of the chief's daughter, whom the chief had sent to Narathu as tribute. Narathu did raise the chief's daughter as queen but killed her with his own hands in one of his episodes of violence.