The Sukhothai Kingdom was a post-classical Siamese kingdom (maṇḍala) in Mainland Southeast Asia surrounding the ancient capital city of Sukhothai in present-day north-central Thailand. It evolved from a trading hub to a city-state in 1127: 2–3 and emerged into the kingdom by Si Inthrathit in 1238.: 195–196 Sukhothai existed as an independent polity until 1438 when it fell under the influence of the neighboring Ayutthaya after the death of Borommapan (Maha Thammaracha IV).
Sukhothai Kingdom | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1238–1438 | |||||||||||
Sukhothai Kingdom at its greatest extent during the late 13th century under the reign of King Ram Khamhaeng according to the Ram Khamhaeng Inscription, the coastlines reflecting era-accurate coastline. | |||||||||||
Sukhothai Kingdom (orange) in 1400 CE | |||||||||||
| Capital |
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| Common languages | Old Thai | ||||||||||
| Religion | Theravada Buddhism | ||||||||||
| Government | Mandala kingdom | ||||||||||
| Monarch | |||||||||||
• 1238–1270 (first) | Si Inthrathit | ||||||||||
• 1279–1298 | Ram Khamhaeng | ||||||||||
• 1347–1368 | Li Thai | ||||||||||
• 1419–1438 (last) | Borommapan | ||||||||||
| Historical era | Post-classical era | ||||||||||
• Founded as city-state | 1127 | ||||||||||
• Kingdom established | 1238 | ||||||||||
| 1378–1438 | |||||||||||
• Annexed to Ayutthaya | 1438 | ||||||||||
• Installation of Maha Thammarachathirat | 1569 | ||||||||||
| Currency |
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| Today part of | |||||||||||
Sukhothai is traditionally understood to have been established as a commercial hub within the Dvaravati Lavo in the 7th century. Following the decline of Lavo, the polity appears to have fallen under the suzerainty of the Qiān, whose authority was ultimately extinguished following their defeat by Angkor in 946 CE. After that, Sukhothai was subsequently incorporated into the domain of Haripuñjaya approximately a decade later. By the mid-12th century, control of the city was reasserted by the Xiān monarchs—a dynasty descended from the Qiān—who are believed to have maintained a brief period of subordination to Angkor between the late 12th and early 13th centuries. Sukhothai is conventionally regarded as having emerged as an independent polity in 1238 CE.
The kingdom was centralized and expanded to its greatest extent during the reign of Ram Khamhaeng the Great (1279–1298), who some historians considered to have introduced Theravada Buddhism and the initial Thai script to the kingdom. Ram Khamhaeng also initiated relations with Yuan China, through which the kingdom developed the techniques to produce and export ceramics like sangkhalok ware.
After the reign of Ram Khamhaeng, the kingdom fell into decline. In 1349, during the reign of Li Thai (Maha Thammaracha I), Sukhothai was invaded by the Ayutthaya Kingdom, a neighboring Thai polity. It remained a tributary state of Ayutthaya until it was annexed by the kingdom in 1438 after the death of Borommapan. Despite this, the Sukhothai nobility continued to influence the Ayutthaya monarchy in centuries after through the Sukhothai dynasty.
Sukhothai was long regarded in Thai historiography as "the first Thai kingdom,” though current scholarship agrees that the origins of the Thai people extend much further back in time. The ruins of the kingdom's capital, now 12 km (7.5 mi) outside the modern town of Sukhothai Thani in Sukhothai Province, are preserved as the Sukhothai Historical Park and have been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Etymology
The English term Sukhothai (Thai: สุโขทัย) is the romanization of the Thai word per the Royal Thai General System of Transcription. The Thai word for the historical country was a transliteration of the Khmer spelling, rendered in English as Sukhodaya (Khmer: សុខោទ័យ). The Khmer term is itself derived from the Sanskrit sukha (Sanskrit: सुख, 'lasting happiness') and udaya (Sanskrit: उदय, 'rise' or 'emergence'). Together, the phrase can be interpreted as meaning "dawn of happiness".
History
Early period
ฺBorihan Thepthani claimed the city of Sukhothai was founded in 494 CE, followed by its twin city of Chaliang (เชลียง).: 2 In contrast, the Legend of the Arhat (Tamnan Nithan Phra Arahant; ตำนานนิทานพระอรหันต์) says Sukhothai was founded in 679 CE by Indrajayadhirāja (อินทราไชยธิราช), who was from the city of Nakhon Luang (นครหลวง; lit. 'capital city'; potentially Lavapura); however, he, in 687, was deposed by Balidhiraja, the elder son of Kalavarnadisharaja of Lavo.: 3–4 The succession of rulers following Balidhiraja remains obscure in the extant historical record.: 6, 10 Nevertheless, a local textual tradition claims that both Sukhothai and Lavo were subsequently brought under the authority of Padumasūriyavaṁśa (ปทุมสุริยวงศ์), who is represented in these narratives as the inaugural sovereign of the Siamese polity,: 8 and has been identified with Pra Poat honne Sourittep pennaratui sonanne bopitra,: 38 whose reign is conventionally dated to 757–800 CE. This claim accords with Tatsuo Hoshino’s interpretation of the Cefu Yuangui and the Book of Tang, which record that the territory of Qiān—centered at Si Thep—bordered north to Duō Mó Cháng (多摩萇),: 30 a polity that Hoshino identifies as being located in the Yom and Nan river basins within the mountainous region of present-day northern Thailand.: 60 Based on this interpretation, it is presumed that the Sukhothai–Chaliang region was subordinate to Si Thep during the 8th–10th century.
From the 9th to 10th centuries, the city is generally presumed to have been abandoned following an incursion by the legendary Khom kingdom of Suvarṇakōmakam (สุวรรณโคมคำ), located in the region of present-day Chiang Saen.: 6, 10 This hypothesis, however, stands in contrast to a separate textual tradition asserting that Sukhothai played an active role in the Dvaravati polity of Sambuka’s succession. According to this account, the ruler of Sukhothai adopted Sambuka’s prince, Balaraj, supported his overthrow of his own father, and subsequently installed him as the new monarch of Sambuka,: 39 whose reign is reported to have lasted from 867 to 913 CE.: 31, 67 Furthermore, Suvarṇakōmakam is widely identified as the predecessor of the Yonok Kingdom and is generally understood to have flourished before the 7th century. This chronological positioning makes it implausible that Suvarṇakōmakam could have conducted an incursion into Sukhothai during the 9th century. Taken together, these inconsistencies substantially undermine the credibility of the abandonment hypothesis.
Following the collapse of Qiān at Si Thep as a consequence of the Angkorian incursion of 946, Sukhothai is reported to have been taken over in 957 by the Mon monarch Abhayakāminī, who purportedly fled from Haripuñjaya after its capital was captured by another Khom polity, Umoṅkaselā (อุโมงคเสลา), situated in what is now Fang.: 6, 10 The chiefdom of Sukhothai declared independence from Umoṅkaselā in 1017 during the reign of Arunaraja.: 13–14 Through its control of trade routes linking Mon city-states in the west, Tai kingdoms in the north, and Xiān polities in the lower Chao Phraya River basin in the south, Sukhothai is thought to have emerged as a regional logistics hub and to have developed into a city-state level by no later than 1127,: 2–3 a condition that appears to have persisted until the formal establishment of the Sukhothai Kingdom in 1238.: 195–196
Previously, historians suggested the migration of Tai peoples into Mainland Southeast Asia was somewhat gradual, and likely took place between the 8th and 10th centuries. Prior to the rise of Sukhothai, various other Tai kingdoms existed in the neighboring northern highlands. These include Ngoenyang of the Northern Thai people (present-day Chiang Saen) and Chiang Hung of the Tai Lue people (present-day Jinghong, China). According to semi-legendary Shan documents, the Mau Shan Prince, Sam Lung-pha of Mogaung, before he established the Tai kingdom of the Ahom in Assam in 1229, raided the Menam valley and the Malay peninsula as far as Tawi (Dawei) and Yansaleng (Junk Ceylon?). This purported influx of armed Tai may have had something to do with establishing the Tai kingdom of Sukhothai.: 301
However, according to the local textual tradition, a dynastic affiliation between the Mon monarchs of the Menam Basin and the Tai nobles of the northern valleys is recorded to have been established at an earlier period, specifically during the late 7th century.: 3–5 In this context, one of the sons of Sukhothai's king Balidhiraja is mentioned to have borne the Tai name Sai Thong Som, who is traditionally regarded as having been born to a Tai queen consort from the polity of Yonok.: 5 This inter-dynastic union is stated to have resulted from the northward political expansion of Lavo Kingdom into the territory of Yonok during the reign of King Kalavarnadisharaja (r. 648–700), as recorded in the Northern Chronicle.: 25 This dynastic relation continued to the reign of Abhayakamini, whose consort was from Nan of the Tai's Ngoenyang.
The following individuals are recognized as the rulers of Sukhothai preceding the formal foundation of the Sukhothai Kingdom, which earlier historians have conventionally assigned to the year 1238 CE.
| Ruler | Reign | |
|---|---|---|
| Romanized name | Thai name | |
| Under Lavo Kingdom of Dvaravati | ||
| Indrajayadhirāja: 3–4 | อินทราไชยธิราช | 679–687 |
| Balidhiraja: 3–4 | พาลีธิราช | 687–mid 8th century |
| Under Qiān Zhī Fú | ||
| Unknown | 757–? | |
| Abandoned?: 8 | Late 8th – 957 | |
| Under Haripuñjaya Kingdom, which itself under Umoṅkaselā | ||
| Abhayakāminī | อภัยคามินี | 957: 9–10 –959? |
| Sricandradhipati (Phra Ruang II) | ศรีจันทราธิบดี | 959–? |
| As the free city-state of Si Satchanalai–Sukhodaya | ||
| Arunaraja (Phra Ruang I) | อรุณกุมาร | ?–1052: 18 |
| Ruled from Mueang Chaliang | Late 11th – early 12th century | |
| The polity was split into two: Si Satchanalai and Kamphaeng Phet–Sukhodaya | ||
| Pra Poa Noome Thele Seri | พนมทะเลศรี | 1155?–1156/57 |
| Suryaraja | สุริยราชา | 1156–1184 |
| Candraraja: 11 | จันทราชา | 1184–1214: 17 |
| E Daeng Phloeng | อีแดงเพลิง | 1214?–1219 |
| The two seats were merged | ||
| Pha Mueang | ผาเมือง | Passed the throne to Sri Naw Nam Thom |
| Sri Naw Nam Thom | พ่อขุนศรีนาวนำถุม | 1219–? |
| Khom Sabat Khlon Lamphong | ขอมสบาดโขลญลำพง | ?–1238 |
| Pha Mueang | ผาเมือง | 1238 |
| 1238: traditional formation of the Sukhothai Kingdom | ||
- Notes
- See Pra Poat honne Sourittep pennaratui sonanne bopitra § Dynastic traditions for the calculation.
- Son of Kalavarnadisharaja, king of Lavo
- Seat at Vicitraprakāra (modern Kamphaeng Phet)
- The hypothesis derived from the interpretation of the Wat Si Chum Inscription suggests that Pha Mueang captured the city of Sukhothai twice before ultimately ceding it to Si Inthrathit in 1238.
- Tai monarch from Mueang Chaliang
Kingdom establishment
During the mid-12th century, the upper Menam Valley, which had formerly been governed by the Mon Haripuñjaya dynasty since the 10th century,: 9–10 was likely brought under the dominion of an emergent line of early Siamese monarchs, whose principal seat of authority was situated in the Phraek Si Racha region, identified in Chinese sources as Xiū Luó Fēn. According to historical records, two princes from this lineage established their respective domains in the upper valley. Suryaraja, the grandfather of Si Intharathit, is recorded in the Ayutthaya Testimonies to have established his seat at Vicitraprakāra (วิเชียรปราการ; modern Kamphaeng Phet) around 1157.: 11 His cousin, Pra Poa Noome Thele Seri—formally titled Sommedethia Pprappanom Tteleiseri Maahesa Vorauaarintti Raacha Boppitra—is mentioned in the Instructions Given to the Siamese Envoys Sent to Portugal in 1684 and in Du Royaume de Siam as having departed from Yassouttora Nacoora Louang or Tasoo Nacora Louang, identified with Lavo, to establish his authority at Sukhothai–Lacontai around 1156.: 127
The same sources further assert that in 1157/1158, Pra Poa Noome Thele Seri, together with his younger brother Uthong I of Mueang Chaliang, moved southward. The younger brother is said to have ascended the vacant throne of Suphannaphum in 1163,: 60–1 while the elder succeeded his relative at Mueang Sing around 1169 and subsequently advanced further south to re-establish Phrip Phri in 1188.: 127 Michael Smithies has tentatively proposed that this ruler may have belonged to the dynastic line of Si Intharathit,: 133 who later reigned over Sukhothai between 1238 and 1270. The lower Siamese line of Pra Poa Noome Thele Seri later became the Lavo dynasty of the Ayutthaya Kingdom,: 1, 10 and the upper line of Suryaraja became Phra Ruang dynasty of Sukhothai.: 11–29
In 1180, the principal Siamese polity of Xiū Luó Fēn, centered at Phraek Si Racha, reportedly came under the dominion of a new royal house, which may have shared dynastic affiliations with the Mahidharapura Kingdoms of the Phimai region.: 20–1 : 7–11 Under this new lineage, the polity was reorganized and became known as Chen Li Fu.: 1 This reconstituted principality appears to have remained under the suzerainty of Angkor during this period. By 1200, however, Chen Li Fu began to assert a degree of political autonomy, most notably through the dispatch of a tributary mission directly to the Chinese court, thereby circumventing Angkorian oversight.: 3 : 20 Concurrently, in the northern region, the Siamese domain ruled by Candraraja—son of Suryaraja, who had previously transferred the royal seat from Kamphaeng Phet to Sukhothai following the departure of Pra Poa Noome Thele Seri—is recorded as a tributary polity through its dynastic association with Indapraṣṭhanagara,: 15–6 a polity that early Thai scholars have attempted to identify with Angkor.: 1–3 Nevertheless, the Sukhothai–Kamphaeng Phet polity eventually terminated its tributary obligations to Indapraṣṭhanagara. This repudiation of vassalic ties provoked armed conflict between the two realms; yet the forces of Sukhothai, commanded by Si Intharathit, achieved a decisive victory, thereby effectively liberating the polity from roughly two decades of Indapraṣṭhanagara’s hegemony.: 15–6
Following this triumph, Si Intharathit was appointed to govern Mueang Bang Yang, located in the present-day Nakhon Thai district, which had previously served as the power base of his kinsman, Pra Poa Noome Thele Seri. During his tenure there, Si Intharathit married Nang Sueang, a Tai Lueang (ไทเลือง) princess and daughter of Sri Naw Nam Thum, the ruler of Mueang Rat (เมืองราด), situated in modern Lom Sak district, to the east of Mueang Bang Yang. This Tai Lueang polity subsequently expanded its sphere of influence into Mueang Chaliang, which had been under the mixed Monic–Chinese Haripuñjaya dynasty, during the waning reign of Rajadhiraj II in the early 13th century.: 15–6
After consolidating control over Mueang Chaliang, the Tai Lueang monarchs, led by Sri Naw Nam Thum and his son Pha Mueang, extended their dominion southward toward Sukhothai in 1219,: 4 overthrowing the Mon ruler E Daeng Phloeng.: 115 However, the remnants of the older Monic aristocracy, led by Khom Sabat Khlon Lamphong, staged a successful revolt, reclaiming control of Sukhothai. In response, a coalition of Siamese forces led by a local chieftain, Bang Klang Hao—later known as Si Intharathit—recaptured the city and re-established it as an autonomous Siamese polity in 1238. Si Intharathit was militarily aided by his brother-in-law, Pha Mueang, a son of Sri Naw Nam Thum.: 195–196
The aforementioned event marked a watershed moment in the history of the Siamese, as Sukhothai emerged as the principal center of their political authority, maintaining its preeminence until the close of the 14th century. Although various records suggest that the Siamese had exerted control over Sukhothai prior to this episode, previous scholarship conventionally regards this event—the reestablishment of Sukhothai under Si Intharathit in 1238—as the formal inception of the early Siamese polity.: 195–196 Notably, the revolt of the Lavo nobility that temporarily reinstated Monic authority over Sukhothai coincided with the period during which Angkor reasserted its dominion over Lavapura.
Bang Klang Hao ruled Sukhothai under the regnal name Si Inthrathit and established the Phra Ruang dynasty. Under the rule of Si Inthrathit, the primordial kingdom expanded its influence to the bordering cities surrounding the capital. By the end of his reign in 1270, Sukhothai covered the entire upper valley of the Chao Phraya River, then known simply as Mae Nam (Thai: แม่น้ำ, 'mother of waters'), the generic Thai name for all rivers. In the first era, Sukhothai strongly shared a connection with western Mon neighbor, Hanthawaddy kingdom, in present-day lower Myanmar.: 42
From the 13th to 14th centuries, Sukhothai was strongly influenced by the Khmer culture as Lavo the regional center.: 3 About some fifty kilometers north of Sukhodaya stood another sister town, Sri Sajanalaya, that would later become Si Satchanalai, an important center of Sukhothai politics alongside the capital. Under Lavo control, various monuments was built in the city, several of which still stand in the Sukhothai Historical Park. They include the Ta Pha Daeng Shrine, Wat Phra Phai Luang, and Wat Si Sawai. It was then shifted to Tai Yuan's Lan Na style in the early 14th century and steadily influenced by the Mon and Sri Lanka through Theravada Buddhism since the reign of Ram Khamhaeng.: 3
Expansion under Ram Khamhaeng
In 1270, Si Inthrathit died and was succeeded by his son Ban Mueang. At the end of Ban Mueang's reign, he was succeeded by his brother Ram Khamhaeng the Great; both expanded Sukhothai beyond the borders established by their father. To the south, Ram Khamhaeng subjugated the mandala kingdoms of Suvarnabhumi (likely present-day Suphan Buri) and Tambralinga (present-day Nakhon Si Thammarat). Through the acquisition of Tambralinga, Ram Khamhaeng is said to have adopted Theravada Buddhism as the state religion of Sukhothai; the accuracy of these claims by traditional historians is disputed.: 3–4
To the north, Ram Khamhaeng placed Phrae and Muang Sua (present-day Luang Prabang, Laos), among other mandala city-states, under tribute. To the west, Ram Khamhaeng helped assist the Mon people under Wareru (who is said to have eloped with Ram Khamhaeng's daughter) in their rebellion against Pagan control, and Wareru would establish a kingdom at Martaban, the predecessor to Hanthawaddy (present-day Bago, Myanmar). Martaban is traditionally considered a tributary state of Sukhothai, but such Sukhothai domination may not have extended that far.: 4 This policy of gathering vassals allowed him to claim suzerainty from Luang Prabang in the north to Nakhon Sithammarat in the south, from Vientiane in the east and from Pegu in the west. His success can be mainly attributed to his battlefield reputation. When he died in 1298, the far-flung bonds of vassalage that he established quickly disintegrated as his successors could not command the same level of authority.
With regard to religion and culture, Ram Khamhaeng requested monks from Sri Thamnakorn to propagate Theravada Buddhism in Sukhothai. In 1283, the Sukhothai script was likely invented by Ram Khamhaeng; the earliest evidence of this ancient Thai writing is seen in the Ram Khamhaeng Inscription, discovered by Mongkut (Rama IV) nearly six centuries later. The script later evolved into the modern Thai script of today.
It was also during this time that the first relations with Yuan China were established and Sukhothai began sending trade missions to China. The well-known exported good of Sukhothai was the sangkhalok ware. This was the only period in Thai history that Siam produced Chinese-style ceramics, and they fell out of use by the 14th century.
Decline and tributary status
By the beginning of the fourteenth century, Sukhothai controlled the Chao Phraya plain, with spurs West to the Hanthawaddy kingdom and South to the Nakhon Si Thammarat Kingdom. After the death of Ram Khamhaeng, he was succeeded by his son Loe Thai.
Tributary states of Sukhothai began to break away rapidly after the death of Ram Khamhaeng. To the north, Uttaradit and the Lao kingdoms of Muang Sua and Vieng Chan Vieng Kham (present-day Vientiane) liberated themselves from their Sukhothai overlords. In 1319, Martaban in the west broke away. In 1321, Lan Na (the successor state to Ngoenyang) annexed Tak, one of the oldest towns in Sukhothai. To the south, Suphannaphum Kingdom and Nakhon Si Thammarat also broke free early in the reign of Loe Thai. Thus, the kingdom was quickly reduced to its former status as merely a local power.
In 1323, Loe Thai was succeeded by his cousin, Ngua Nam Thum. In 1347, he was succeeded by Li Thai (Maha Thammaracha I), the son of Loe Thai. In 1349, armies from Ayutthaya invaded the kingdom and forced Sukhothai to become its tributary.: 222 The center of power in the tributary state shifted to Song Khwae (present-day Phitsanulok). In 1378, Lue Thai (Maha Thammaracha II) had to submit to this new Thai power as a vassal state.: 29–30 He was succeeded by Sai Lue Thai (Maha Thammaracha III) in 1399.
In 1424, after the death of Sai Lue Thai, his sons Phaya Ram and Phaya Ban Mueang fought for the throne. Intharacha of Ayutthaya intervened and installed Ban Mueang as Borommapan (Maha Thammaracha IV). When Borommapan died in 1438, Borommarachathirat II of Ayutthaya installed his son Ramesuan (the future Borommatrailokkanat of Ayutthaya) as Upparat in Sukhothai, a position similar to both that of a viceroy and an heir presumptive, establishing a form of personal union and creating the Siamese Front Palace system. Prince Ramesuan was presumably accompanied by Ayutthayan administrative staff and a military garrison, thus affirming the end of Sukhothai as an independent kingdom.
Annexation and further influence
Under tributary status, the former territories of Sukhothai, known to the people of Ayutthaya as the Northern Cities (Thai: เมืองเหนือ, RTGS: Mueang Nua), continued to be ruled by local aristocrats under Ayutthaya's overlordship per the mandala systems of both dominions. The mandalas would politically and culturally merge during the 15th and 16th centuries, and Sukhothai's warfare, administration, architecture, religious practice, and language influenced those of Ayutthaya. Sukhothai nobles linked themselves with the Ayutthayan elite through marriage alliances, and often played the role of kingmaker in Ayutthayan succession conflicts. Sukhothai military leaders served prominently in Ayutthaya's army as the military tradition of Sukhothai was considered to be tougher.
From 1456 to 1474, former Sukhothai territory became a battleground during the Ayutthaya-Lan Na War (1441–1474). In 1462, Sukhothai briefly rebelled against Ayutthaya and allied itself with their enemy, Lan Na. In 1463, Borommatrailokkanat temporarily moved the monarch's residence to Song Khwae, presumably to be closer to the frontline, and the city was permanently renamed to Phitsanulok.[citation needed] Contemporary Portuguese traders described Ayutthaya and Phitsanulok as "twin states".
In 1548, Maha Chakkraphat named Khun Phirenthorathep, a noble from the Sukhothai clan, as the leader in Phitsanulok. Phirenthorathep was conferred with the name Maha Thammaracha in line with the historical kings of Sukhothai, and married one of Maha Chakkraphat's daughters, strengthening his claim to both a historical and present monarchy. Despite this, the title of Upparat went to Maha Chakkraphat's son Ramesuan (who died in 1564) and later his brother Mahinthrathirat. After a series of wars with the Burmese Toungoo Empire, Maha Thammaracha allied himself with the Burmese against Ayutthaya. In 1569, Ayutthaya under Mahinthrathirat fell to the Burmese, and Bayinnaung installed Maha Thammaracha (Sanphet I) as the vassal king in Ayutthaya and the first king of the Sukhothai dynasty.
In 1584, Maha Thammaracha and his son, the Upparat and future Naresuan the Great (Sanphet II), would free Ayutthaya from Burmese overlordship in the Burmese-Siamese War of 1584–1593. After the Battle of the Sittaung River, Naresuan forcibly relocated people from the northern cities of Phitsanulok, Sukhothai, Phichai, Sawankhalok, Kamphaeng Phet, Phichit, and Phra Bang closer to Ayutthaya. Since then, the ruins of the capital city of the former Sukhothai Kingdom have been preserved as the Sukhothai Historical Park and designated a World Heritage Site.
Legacy
The Silajaruek of Sukhothai are hundreds of stone inscriptions that form a historical record of the period. Among the most important inscriptions are the Ram Khamhaeng Inscription (also known as Inscription No. 1), Silajaruek Wat Srichum (an account on the history of the region itself and of Sri Lanka), and Silajaruek Wat Pamamuang (a politico-religious record of Loe Thai).
Mongkut (Rama IV) is considered the champion of Sukhothai narrative history due to his discovery of Inscription No. 1, the "first evidence" of the history of Sukhothai. Mongkut said that he found a "first stone inscription" in Sukhothai which told of heroic kings such as Ram Khamhaeng, the administrative system, and other developments in what was considered the "prosperous time" of the kingdom. The story of Sukhothai was incorporated into Thailand's "national history" in the late 19th century by Mongkut as a historical work presented to the British diplomatic mission.
From then on, as a part of modern nation-building process, modern national Siamese history included the history of the Sukhothai Kingdom. Sukhothai was said to be the "first national capital", followed by Ayutthaya and Thonburi, until Rattanakosin, or today Bangkok. Sukhothai history was crucial among Siam's "modernists", both "conservative" and "revolutionary".[citation needed] Sukhothai history became even more important after the Siamese Revolution of 1932. Research and writing on Sukhothai history were abundant. Ideas derived from the inscription were studied and "theorised".
One of the most well-known topics was Sukhothai's "democracy" rule. Stories of the close relationship between the king and his people, vividly described as a "father-son" relationship, were considered the "seed" of ancient Thai democracy; however, changes in government took place when later society embraced "foreign" traditions, like those of Angkor, influenced by Hinduism and "mystic" Mahayana Buddhism. The story of Sukhothai became the model of "freedom". Chit Phumisak, a "revolutionary" scholar, saw the Sukhothai period as the beginning of the Thai people's liberation from their foreign ruler in Angkor.[citation needed]
During military rule beginning in the 1950s, Sukhothai was increasingly featured in the Thai national history curriculum. Sukhothai's "father-son" model for Thai democracy in contrast to Angkorian tradition became one of freedom from the "foreign ideology" of Cambodian communism. Other aspects of Sukhothai were also explored under the new curriculum, such as the commoner and slave status as well as economics. These topics became the subject of ideological controversy during the Cold War and the communist insurgency in Thailand.[citation needed]
See also
- Mandala (political model)
- List of Thai monarchs
Notes
Further reading
- Ekachai, Sanitsuda (28 September 2019). "Opening minds with an ancient 'mandala'". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
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