The main dock of Royal Barges
The ancient Dock of Royal Barges stood on the north bank of the old Lopburi River (presently named Khlong Mueang or City Canal) diagonally opposite the Grand Palace. Nicolas Gervaise, a French priest residing in Ayutthaya in the late 17th century, wrote in his work "The Natural and Political History of the Kingdom of Siam":
"Outside the palace on the left can be seen on the river bank the great boat-houses where the royal barges are kept. There are more than a hundred and fifty of these barges and all of them are as magnificent as the ones that were brought out on the arrival of the ambassador of France." [3]
In the "New Historical Relation of the Kingdom of Siam" written by La Loubère, we read that the ancient dock was divided into separate trenches, each locked up in a wooden and roofed enclosure.
"Their arsenal is over against the palace, the river running between. There every one of these barges is locked up in a trench, where into runs the water of the river and each trench is shut up in an enclosure made of wood, and covered. These enclosures are locked up, and besides this is a person watches there at night." [4]
There were 20 barge houses adjacent, from the mouth of Khu Mai Rong (1) to Wat Choeng Tha. The Kalahom, or Minister of Defense, was in charge of the dock. During the last Burma-Ayutthaya war in 1767 CE, King Ekathat (reign 1758-1767 CE)] ordered the royal barges King (2), Chai (3), Sri (4), Krap (5), and all the royal barges, including the large and small head-ships, as well as all the ships and warships, to be moved to the ‘Rear of the Moat’ (south of the city) as they were vulnerable in the Burmese attack. The Burmese moved down to attack the ‘Rear of the Moat’ and then burned and destroyed the royal barges, ships, and warships. It is understood that only a few were left. The royal dock did not survive the attack. No visible traces remain of it, and the landscape has been, unfortunately, largely altered. [5]