**The story of King Taksin the Great and his army’s retaking of Ayutthaya from the Burmese invaders **
Published: 19/09/2010 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: Brunch
The Kingdom of Ayutthaya fell to the Burmese for the second time in 1767, but King Taksin the Great, then Phraya Kamphaengphet, regained it shortly after pooling forces and resources along his troop-marching routes between Ayutthaya and the coastal town of Chanthaburi.
HONOURED: A statue of King Taksin the Great in Chanthaburi.
“King Taksin left Ayutthaya along with 500 Thai and Chinese men. They fought and gathered more forces along the way. He had about 1,000 soldiers when reaching Chanthaburi and returned to retake Ayutthaya with some 5,000 soldiers and 100 warships, according to the Krung Thon Royal Chronicle,” said historian Charnvit Kasetsiri of Thammasat University.
Mr Charnvit recently led a trip to trace King Taksin’s routes with his troops as part of a seminar titled “Siamese Chronicles: From Thon Buri Sri Mahasamut to Chanthaboon”.
Marine archaeologist Erbprem Watcharangkoon, who also joined the trip, said King Taksin chose to retreat from Ayutthaya and wait for the right time to fight back.
RARE ITEMS: Relics being kept in the Ayutthaya-style chapel of Wat Thongthua in Chanthaburi are believed to have belonged to King Taksin the Great. The wreckage of a warship at Samet Ngam, below left. Chinese pottery also found at Samet Ngam, below.
The king led his troops on foot from Ayutthaya to Chanthaburi, starting from Wat Pichai past Ban Hantra, Ban Khao Mao, Ban Sambundit, Ban Pho Sanghan, Ban Phrannok, Ban Nong Mai Soong, Ban Naring, Kob Jae pass, Samnak Nong Nam, Ban Thong Lang, Taphan Thong, Bang Pla Soi, Ban Na Klua, Pattaya, Na Jomtien, Kai Tia, Sattahip, Hin Dong, Nam Kao, Wat Lum, Tha Prado Camp, Ban Ploi Waen to Wat Kaew Rim Muang, Chanthaburi.
“The route from Ayutthaya to Nakhon Nayok and Chon Buri was full of mangrove forests. That was why King Taksin had to take a detour leading to Chanthaburi. The shorter route was tough and full of mud and soft terrain which made it hard for men, horses and elephants to walk.”
According to the Krung Thon Buri Royal Chronicle penned by Phanchanthanumas (Jerm), when King Taksin, who also commanded a naval fleet, realised Ayutthaya would soon fall to the Burmese, he decided not to return to Ayutthaya but instead gathered about 500 Siamese and Chinese men in his attempt to regain Ayutthaya. The strategic move followed a battle which the Siamese lost against the Burmese at Wat Sangkhawart, about two kilometres south-east of Ayutthaya.
BARRIER: An old wall of the town of Chanthaburi that dates to the Ayutthaya period, above. Chanthaburi’s Samet Ngam, left, believed to be the site of King Taksin’s former shipyards where warships were built for retaking Ayutthaya.
On Saturday, the fourth day of the second lunar month in the year of the dog (1766), he led his troops and departed Wat Pichai. They forced the Burmese invaders back to the east of Ayutthaya and then headed for Ban Phrannok. From there some of his soldiers were deployed to search for food supplies but they encountered and clashed with a group of Burmese soldiers.
The Burmese followed them to Ban Phrannok, but were all defeated by Phraya Kamphaengphet and his troops.
After his victory in Ban Phrannok, more civilians who had been in hiding joined his troops. They fought their way to Na Rerng, past Nakhon Nayok and on to Sri Maha Phot in Prachin Buri.
In Sri Maha Pho, they ambushed the Burmese, who were approaching by land and water. Phraya Kamphaengphet played a trick on the Burmese. He lured them into following him to an area where his men were hiding behind bushes. Many Burmese soldiers were killed, while the rest retreated.
Later, he established a camp at Wat Lum, outside the town of Rayong. While Ayutthaya had not fallen at that stage, the governor and senior officials of Rayong considered Phraya Kamphaengphet and his troops as traitors and planned an attack on their camp. However, Phraya Kamphaengphet learned of the plan and managed to capture the governor. In the middle of the night, the attackers stormed the camp without knowing about the change, so they were ambushed and defeated. Phraya Kamphaengphet managed to take Rayong in one night.
Mr Charnvit said: “When King Taksin then reached Rayong, he asked the governor of Chanthaburi to meet and help him. But the governor seemed unwilling to help. So, the king led his army to attack this town.”
According to the royal chronicle, when in Rayong, Phraya Kamphaengphet sent a letter to the governor of Chanthaburi (Chanthaboon) seeking his co-operation to regain Ayutthaya, which had fallen in the fifth lunar month of 1767. However, the governor played a trick. He sent four monks to invite Phraya Kamphaengphet to the town in the hope of killing him.
The Krung Thon Buri Royal Chronicle states: "On Monday, the troops moved close to the town of Chanthaburi. Then Phraya Chanthaoon told Luang Palad and some good men to lead the troops into the town. It was a trick to lure the troops south across the river to the east side where armed men were waiting for them. When the king learned the truth, he ordered his servant Boonmee to ride a horse to tell the front-liners to stop following Luang Palad and head to the Tha Chang Gate instead. At Wat Phra Kaeo Rim Muang Chanthaburi, the king ordered his troops to establish a camp at this temple’s vihara.
"The king ordered all the forces to finish their dinner and then break all the pots. He remarked: ‘We shall take Chanthaboon [Chantaburi] tonight and then have our breakfast in the town. Otherwise, all of us shall die together.’ On Sunday in the seventh lunar month of the year of the pig (1767), the king ordered his troops to move south-east. He rode his war elephant, Phang Khiri Kunchorn Chatthan, to force open the gate of the town. He ordered the mahout to ram the elephant into the gate, but the mahout failed to do so.
"At first he decided to have the mahout executed, but later forgave him. He thrust a dagger into the elephant’s skin. His elephant jerked forward and hit the gate. The king eventually managed to enter the town of Chanthaburi along with some 1,000 men.
“Then, he deployed some 600 men on board 50 vessels to surround Ban Thungyai, where many junks were docked. After a half-day battle, leader Chine Jiam surrendered and presented his daughter to the king. The king returned to Chanthaboon along with 100 ships,” said Mr Charnvit, quoting the chronicle.
Mr Erbprem said: "The reason King Taksin the Great chose Chanthaburi as his base was because Chanthaburi was located the farthest distance from the Burmese and was abundant with natural resources and had a big river where many cannon-equipped junks were being docked.
“King Taksin needed to gather weapons and forces. Those junks were equipped with weapons and capable of carrying more weapons and towing small ships.”
Kammanit Direksilp, head of King Taksin’s Shipyard Museum at Samet Ngam in Chanthaburi, said King Taksin used Chanthaburi as his base for gathering junks to support his operation. It is believed he used a 4.4-square-kilometre area in Samet Ngam as his shipyard. This area is full of waterways and located only 4km away from the river mouth."
In 1981/2, the wreckage of a 24-metre-long and 8-metre-wide ship believed to be one of King Taksin’s warships was unearthed there together with Chinese pottery. Similar wreckage and more than 100 ancient artefacts and carpenters’ tools were later found at the site. There is archaeological evidence that suggests seven shipyards were lined up there at that time.
It took about six months for King Taksin the Great to prepare a naval fleet to regain Ayutthaya. The troops travelled by water from Chanthaburi past Rayong, Chon Buri, Pak Nam Samut Prakan, Thon Buri and Tambon Phaniad.
“In the 11th lunar month of the year of the pig (1767), the king led his 100-vessel naval fleet and 5,000 soldiers to depart Chanthaburi,” reads the royal chronicle.
They encountered and defeated many small rebel groups along the way. Approaching Chon Buri, the king learned that Phraya Anurat, Luang Pol and Khun Inchiang, who oversaw Chon Buri, were corrupt, extorting people and seizing merchants’ ships. Therefore, he ordered the arrest and execution of the three and appointed a new governor.
His troops later passed Pak Nam, retook Thon Buri and executed Thong In, a Siamese traitor who had been appointed by the Burmese to govern Thon Buri. However, some of Thong In’s aides managed to escape to Pho Sam Ton Camp to alert Burmese army leader Suki Phranai Kong. A Burmese naval fleet was dispatched to stop the king and his army at Tambon Phaniad. However, those Burmese soldiers fled because they were scared by the king’s previous victories.
“On the 12th day of the 11th lunar month, the king led his troops to storm the east side of Pho Sam Ton Camp, forcing the Burmese soldiers outside to escape to the camp. He then ordered his troops to build ladders and prepare to storm into the camp. However, the Burmese surrendered. He then arranged a royal cremation for the late King Suriyart Amarin at Pho Sam Ton,” states the royal chronicle.
After retaking Ayutthaya, he led his army and the surviving civilians to Thon Buri. He was crowned as King Taksin, made Thon Buri his capital and ruled for 15 years. King Taksin the Great is always remembered and respected as the warrior king who returned independence to the Siamese.
Bron: Bangkok Post