AYUTTHAYA HISTORICAL RESEARCH



WAT HATSADAWAT





Wat Hatsadawat (1) is located north of the city island near Wat Na Phra Men in the Tha Wasukri Sub-district of Ayutthaya. The monastery was also known as Wat Chang, the Monastery of the Elephant, and was situated on the north bank of Khlong Mueang.


There is no evidence of who built it and when it was established, but it must date back prior to 1549 CE.


Wat Hatsadawat is aligned on an east/west axis. The plan of the monastery consists of a principal octagonal pagoda, a vihara situated at the front of the pagoda, and a bell-shaped pagoda on a square base east of the vihara. Excavations revealed stucco pieces of elephant statues, suggesting one of the chedis had a base surrounded by elephants, as seen at Wat Maheyong. (2)


In addition, the monastery walls have been rebuilt at the ground level, and there are traces of smaller chedis in situ.


The archaeological excavation found evidence concluding that this temple was established in the middle Ayutthaya period and abandoned in 1767 CE when the Burmese sacked the capital of Ayutthaya.


A moat surrounds Wat Hatsadawat.





History


The Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya show that this monastery was used as a site of an armistice treaty between Hanthawaddy (Burma) and Ayutthaya. King Chakkraphat (1548-1569 CE) signed this truce in 1549 CE to gain a short reprieve from a war that began when he refused to present a white elephant to the king of the Toungoo Dynasty, Bayinnaung (reign 1550-1581 CE), as a gift. King Chakkraphat realised that the Burmese army was too enormous to withstand without causing massive destruction and perdition to monks, Brahmin priests, inhabitants, and citizens of the city. Therefore, he accepted an invitation to meet with the Burmese king to negotiate a truce. He ordered officials to erect a royal pavilion and two royal thrones equal in height and space constructed between Wat Na Phra Men and Wat Hatsadawat.


King Chakkraphat then offered to give the Burmese king four white elephants instead of the two he had initially requested. The Burmese King asked that he be allowed to take Siamese Prince Ramesuan and some other men back to the Burmese capital as collateral (a customary practice at that time). Although he resisted, King Chakkraphat was forced to relent. In return, the Burmese king consented that Ayutthaya could retain all the inhabitants of the provincial cities that the Burmese had captured. They were then released. Prince Ramesuan, Phraya Chakri, and Phra Sunthon Songkhram collected their children and wives and departed for Burma following the royal decree.


"When King Maha Cakkraphat was informed of the contents of the royal letter, he made his decision, “This time their army is exceptionally enormous and it appears to be beyond the capacity of our soldiers to save the Capital. If we do not go out, the monks, Brahmans, inhabitants, citizens and populace will all be faced with perdition and destruction, and even the Holy Religion will be disgraced. We shall have to go out. Even if the King of Hongsawadi does not constantly abide by his promises, as in the royal letter which has arrived, we will see to it that our promises are firmly upheld.” Having so decided, he had a royal letter prepared to specify where he would proceed to and had an embassy carry it out to present to the King of Hongsawadi. Then he ordered officials to go out to erect a royal building with two royal thrones, equal in height and spaced four sòk apart, in the area between Phra Meru Rachikaram Monastery and Hatsadawat Monastery. Then he had a jeweled throne prepared higher than the royal thrones, and had the Holy and Glorious Triple Gems escorted out to preside over the meeting." [1]


The site is in geographical coordinates: 14° 21' 46.44" N, 100° 33' 27.08" E.


Footnotes:


(1) หัสดิน (n) elephant is a synonym of ช้าง, หัตถี, หัสดี.

(2) Next to Maheyong and Wat Hatsadawat, there were at least three more sites with a ‘chedi surrounded by elephants’, namely Wat Chang (south of Wat Maheyong), a satellite chedi at Wat Maha That and Wat Racha Burana. Elephants acquired the same symbolic significance as the Khmer lions and were an essential element in Buddhist art.





References:


[1] Cushman, Richard D. & Wyatt, David K. (2006). The Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya. Bangkok: The Siam Society. p. 48.

[2] Rajanubhap, Damrong (Prince) (1917). Our Wars with the Burmese. White Lotus, Bangkok (2000). p. 40.



GROUND PLAN OF WAT HATSADAWAT


Reference: Krom Sinlapakorn (1968), Phra Rachawang lae Wat Boran nai Jangwat Phra Nakhon Sri Ayutthaya (Fine Arts Department).





No 1: The gate in the temple wall is in the east. A walkway communicating with Wat Na Phra Men is 66.45 meters long. There were two gates in the wall, one on the east and one on the west, but the gates and the walls were deteriorated and damaged because of old age and destruction. Some foundations and walls underneath are remaining. The wall measures 330.60 m wide and 66.60 m long.


No 2: A brick-and-mortar pagoda built in the Ayutthaya period. The base is 10.40 meters wide on each side. It is a round chedi with broken tops.


No 3: A brick-and-mortar vihara built in the Ayutthaya period, facing east, with a width of 9.20 meters and a length of 16.70 meters. The vihara was destroyed, leaving only the walls. In the middle is a square base made in brick-and-mortar for the main Buddha image.


No 4: A minor chedi, made of brick-and-mortar, octagonal base, built in the Ayutthaya period. The base is 4.60 meters wide, damaged and broken, leaving only its foundation.


No 5: A minor chedi, made of brick-and-mortar, octagonal base, built in the middle Ayutthaya period. The base is 3 meters wide, damaged and broken, leaving only its foundation.


No 6: A chedi, made of brick-and-mortar, octagonal base, built in the middle Ayutthaya period, 7.60 m wide.


No 7: A minor chedi, made of brick-and-mortar, octagonal base, built in the middle Ayutthaya period, width 4.80 meters. The top is damaged and broken.


No 8: A minor chedi, made of brick-and-mortar, octagonal base, built in the middle Ayutthaya period, width 3.40 meters, damaged and broken, only the foundation remains.


No 9: Mandapa, made of brick-and-mortar, built in the Ayutthaya period, deteriorated and left the walls and its foundation.



Selected PICTURES



MAPS



Map 1 - Detail of a 19th-century map. Courtesy of the Sam Chao Phraya Museum. Remark: the map is orientated south.
Map 2 - Detail of Phraya Boran Rachathanin's map 1926 CE. Wat Suwandararam, Ayutthaya.
Map 3 - Detail of a 2007 CE Fine Arts Department GIS map. Courtesy of the Fine Arts Department 3rd Region.
Map 4 - Google Earth.



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





HISTORY OF AYUTTHAYA



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