AYUTTHAYA HISTORICAL RESEARCH



HISTORICAL EVENTS - 1200 CE





1239 - Reign of Sri Indraditya at Sukhothai under Khmer rule Ca. 1239 - Ca. 1259 [Reference: Wyatt, David K. (2003) - Thailand, A short history (2nd Ed.) - Silkworm Books]


1247 - Circa 1247, Pha Mueang, the lord of the small principality of Mueang Rat, gathered an army and joined with those of a neighbouring Siamese ruler, Bang Klang Hao of Mueang Bang Yang, who had not submitted to the Khmer. After reducing nearby Bang Khlang and Satchanalai, they marched on the main Khmer outpost in the region at Sukhothai. The Khmer gave battle but were defeated, and Pha Mueang entered the city. Pha Mueang then presented his conquest to his ally, Bang Klang Hao, together with his own title and sword, and he presided over the new Sri Indraditya’s coronation as king of Sukhothai. [Reference: Wyatt, David K. (2003) - Thailand, A short history (2nd Ed.) - Silkworm Books - page 43]


1259 - Ban Mueang ascends the throne of Sukhothai, Ca. 1259 - Ca. 1279 [Reference: Wyatt, David K. (2003) - Thailand, A short history (2nd Ed.) - Silkworm Books]


1262 - Establishment of the City of Chiang Rai in 1262 by King Mengrai.


1279 - Death of King Ban Mueang of Sukhothai and throne ascendance of King Ramkhamhaeng (reign ca. 1279-1298) [Reference: Wyatt, David K. (2003) - Thailand, A short history (2nd Ed.) - Silkworm Books]





The bronze statue of King Ramkhamhaeng stands to the north of Wat Maha That. King Ramkhamhaeng made Sukhothai a powerful and extensive kingdom which included many parts of what are today neighbouring countries. He opened direct political relations with China and made two trips to China - the first in 1282 CE to visit Emperor Kublai Khan and the second in 1300 CE after Kublai Khan's death. On the second visit, he brought back Chinese artisans who taught the Thais the art of pottery. Today, the old 'Sangkhalok Potteries' are eagerly sought by collectors. A significant achievement of King Ramkhamhaeng was the revision of various forms of the Khmer alphabet into a system suitable for the writing of Thai words. The alphabet that he invented in 1282 CE was essentially the same as that in use today.



1289 - Lopburi, known to the Chinese as Lo-hu, send a tribute mission to China. These missions were sent aside from economic aims, with the intention of seeking political support from China. On one of these missions, Lopburi was reported to have petitioned the Chinese emperor to order Sukhothai to stop attacking its territory. [Ref: The Rise of Ayudhya - Charnvit Kasetsiri - (1976) - Page 80]

1291 - Lopburi sent a tribute mission to China. [Ref: The Rise of Ayudhya - Charnvit Kasetsiri - (1976) - Page 80]

1292 - Sukhothai, known to the Chinese as Hsien, send a tribute mission to China. [Ref: The Rise of Ayudhya - Charnvit Kasetsiri - (1976) - Page 80]

1296 - Lopburi sent a tribute mission to China. [Ref: The Rise of Ayudhya - Charnvit Kasetsiri - (1976) - Page 80]

1298 - Death of Ramkamhaeng of Sukhothai and throne ascendance of King Lo Thai (reign 1298-1346/7). Sukhothai went into rapid decline and lost all political influence in the area of the Menam Basin immediately south of its borders, as many of its dependencies broke away and became independent. [Griswold and na Nagara placed the death of Ramkhamhaeng in 1298 from the evidence that a mission came to China from Sukhothai to report the death of a king and the beginning of a new reign. See Griswold and na Nagara, Epigraphic and Historical Studies, No. 10, pp. 21-2. ][Reference: The Rise of Ayudhya - Charnvit Kasetsiri - (1976) - Page 80 Wyatt, David K. (2003) - Thailand, A short history (2nd Ed.) - Silkworm Books] 1299 - Lopburi sent a tribute mission to China. [Ref: The Rise of Ayudhya - Charnvit Kasetsiri - (1976) - Page 80]




Phra Prang Sam Yot is a former Hindu shrine and Lopburi's best-known landmark. The laterite and sandstone structure was constructed in the Lopburi style and decorated with stucco. Adjoining towers symbolise the Hindu Trimurti: Brahma, the creator Vishnu, the preserver and Shiva, the destroyer. During the reign of King Narai, the shrine was converted into a Buddhist temple. Two prangs contain ruined Lopburi-style Buddha images. A U Thong-styled Buddha image sits in the brick sanctuary in front of the prangs.



When the past no longer illuminates the future, the spirit walks in darkness.
(Alexis de Tocqueville)





HISTORY OF AYUTTHAYA



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