thaihistory

Narai "the Great" is Ayutthaya's most famous King outside of Thailand. But he cuts an unusual figure, breaking with the pattern of his predecessors. Warlike to a degree not seen since Naresuan, and unconcerned with tradition, he followed his own desires and interests. Foreign visitors and communities in Ayutthaya never found a firmer friend than King Narai. Indeed, it was by their aid that he came to the throne at all. Persians, Japanese, Malays, Dutch and Chinese were rewarded for service or simply for their friendship to the King. In time, this would bring about momentous chaos. But for now, it created a strange era of rich cultural exchange - not to be seen again in Siam for two centuries.

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The early 17th century was an age of contradictions - peace abroad and prosperity at home contrasted with political intrigue and civil wars upon the death of kings. Illustrative of this was the coup of King Prasat Thong - "Golden Tower" - a distant relative who utilized wealth and influence to steal the throne for himself.

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The Age of Warfare dies with King Naresuan. The final years of his reign were marked by the reestablishment of Ayutthayan supremacy across the region. Old vassals were restored to subservience, trade routes were brought back under central control, and rebels were snuffed out in an instant.

But King Naresuan garnered a reputation for being quick to anger, cruel and merciless. His epithet "The Black Prince" reveals much of his perception then and now. Indeed, the Age of Warfare was as much a rejection of his brand of kingship as it was a natural phenomenon.

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Ayutthaya was a husk of its former self. A burnt out shell, ruled by a puppet king installed by their conquerors in Burma. But that puppet would not sit dormant. He rebuilt the city, drove off attackers from Cambodia, and prepared the way for an Ayutthayan resurgence.

But this is not, really, his story. The liberation of Ayutthaya would not have happened without the capable leadership of Prince - then King - Naresuan, the "Black Prince" of Ayutthayan history. Though cruel, abrasive, and obsessed with war, Naresuan would free his country from the Burmese once and for all.

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Southeast Asia in the 16th century was a playground for ambitious kings hoping to build their empires. The kings of Ayutthaya, Burma, Lan Xang and Cambodia vied for dominance - to become a Chakkavatti - a "Wheel Turning King" from Buddhist philosophy.

From the many, only one would stand victorious. The question is: Who would it be? And what would become of the losers?

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A brief lull in the fighting presents an opportunity to discuss the Ayutthayan military in the so-called Age of Warfare.

The reforms of Trailokanat and his successors enabled the kingdom to muster larger armies than ever before. The result was greater bloodshed, longer wars and widespread suffering. Little more than a half century after Trailok's death, tragedy would befall Ayutthaya as a direct result of this Age of Warfare.

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In 1448 King Trailokanat ascended to the Ayutthayan throne. His 40 year reign would see Ayutthaya transformed from just-another-Muang city state to a centralized, autocratic kingdom. Bolstered by intensifying commerce, his armies would fan out across the Northern Cities in a great war with Lan Na, expanding Ayutthaya's borders and forcing the city to expand its bureaucracy to meet the needs of administration.

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The foundation of Ayutthaya - parsing history from legend, and surveying the city's first 100 years.

A curious blend of maritime commerce, with Tai martial culture, Ayutthaya would go on to become the greatest kingdom of the Southeast Asian mainland in the Early Modern period.

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The Tai migrated into Southeast Asia over the course of centuries. During that time, they became transformed as a people through their encounters with the hostile Chinese and the indigenous peoples they found in Southeast Asia.

The Classical Age of Southeast Asian history laid the foundation for the future Tai kingdoms of the Chaophraya, the Khmer and Dvaravati civilizations especially. Today, we explore these cultures and their legacy on the region.

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Introducing Southeast Asia: The land and people who live there.

The history of Ayutthaya begins with the peopling of the Indochinese Peninsula, ca. 40,000 years ago. Since then, the development of agriculture, metalworking and urbanization led to the rise of states and kingdoms. Before we learn about Ayutthaya, we have to set the stage for its emergence.

In which we announce our third season of History Unwritten.

We return to our Thai history series with a fascinating look at the role that several Thai cannons played in some important historical events. 

First, with the help of a cool blog on Thai history from our friend Ken Lohatepanont, Greg tells the story of some silver cannons gifted by King Narai of Siam to Louis XIV of France. It turns out that during the world-changing storming of the Bastille in 1789, those very same cannons were used by the revolutionaries to bring down the notorious prison. Who would have thought that Thai military equipment would play such a key role in world history?

Next, Greg tells the story of two large cannons, known as Seri Negara and Seri Pattani, used by the southern Sultanate of Pattani. When Pattani eventually challenged Siam and lost, the Thai King seized the cannons as spoils of war. Alas, one ended up at the bottom of the sea, but the other is on display in front of the Thai Ministry of Defense to this day.

Last, Greg relates the use of cannons by the famous Thai developer Nai Lert to mark the boundaries of his property that borders Sukhumvit and Wireless Road. The concrete remains can still be seen today outside of Central Embassy shopping mall. 

As always, the podcast will continue to be 100% funded by listeners just like you who get some special swag from us. And we’ll keep our Facebook, Twitter, and LINE accounts active so you can send us comments, questions, or whatever you want to share.

You know how foreigners aren’t allowed to be tour guides in Thailand? Well guess what - there’s an interesting little loophole to that, and it’s a great opportunity to get to know Thai culture in a very real way.

Greg interviews Dr. Peter Hufschmid-Hirschbuehl (hereinafter referred to as ‘Dr. Peter’ for obvious reasons), the President of the National Museum Volunteers, the only museum that allows foreigners to train and work as tour guides. The training program provides a quite extensive background in Thai culture, and many go through the program just for the education. Once finished, graduates lead tours in English, German, Japanese and French. 

Dr. Peter goes into detail on the National Museum, highlighting both its positives and negatives, and relates insights into its collection and what it says about the Thai culture, and the artistic and creative things that it’s produced over the millenia. 

Dr. Peter then explains the training program, which involves quite a few hours of work, and has a nuanced focus depending on where the tour groups are coming from (for  example, the French have a very different history in Southeast Asia than the British or the Germans or the Japanese). 

All in all, the National Museum should be on the itinerary of any tourist to Thailand, and the guide program should be on the list of any expat with an interest in Thai culture. 

As always, the podcast will continue to be 100% funded by listeners just like you who get some special swag from us. And we’ll keep our Facebook, Twitter, and LINE accounts active so you can send us comments, questions, or whatever you want to share.