PEGU, a division of British Burmah, comprising the districts of Rangoon, Hanthawaddy, Tharawadi, and Prome, has an area of 9159 square miles, with a population (in 1881) of 1,162,393. The province of Pegu was annexed by the British after the second Burmese war in 1852-53.

Pegu, an ancient town in the Rangoon district of British Burmah, is situated on the Pegu river, 20 miles west of the Tsit-toung, in 17° 20' N. lat. and 96° 30' E. long. It was founded in 573 a.d., and was for a long time the capital of the Talaing kingdom, overthrown by Aloung-bhura in the middle of the 18th century. Early European travellers describe the city as of great size, strength, and magnificence. Modern Pegu lies close to the river-side, and had a population in 1881 of 5891.