Ayutthaya (Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya)
The old Thai capital of Ayutthaya (Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya), today one of the most impressive ruined cities in Asia, stands on the wide and fertile plain of the Menam Chao Phraya at a point where the river forms a
natural loop. Indeed the city is completely encircled by rivers, the Menam to the south and west, the Lopburi to the north and the Pasak to the east. A canal also links the Lopburi and the Menam, the effect being to create a most favorably situated island.
By car: Highway 1 from Bangkok. After 86 km (53 mi.) turn left onto Highway 32 at Wang Noi (signposted).
By bus: from Bangkok (Northern Bus Terminal). Departures at 40-minute intervals from 5am-7pm. All the larger Bangkok travel agencies arrange sightseeing tours (day trips).
By rail: from Bangkok-Hualampong (11/4 hours).
By boat: the excursion on the Menam Chao Phraya can be quite delightful. There is no public boat service but tourists can join an organized tour aboard, for example, the "Oriental Queen" river boat, which leaves from the pier of the Oriental Hotel at 8am. Visitors normally go one way by bus, the other by boat.
Those with a real interest in Thai history should allow at least two days for sightseeing and include visits to Lopburi and Sukhothai, two other "royal" cities in central Thailand closely linked historically with the old capital.
Organized tours usually allow visitors only an hour or so in Ayutthaya. They also tend to arrive in the heat of the day, which means not seeing the ancient ruined city at dawn or dusk when it is at its most magical.
For more than 400 years, between 1350 and 1767, Ayutthaya was the capital of the Kingdom of Siam; Western visitors waxed lyrical about the city, describing it as the most beautiful place they had ever seen. It began as a small outpost of the Khmer kingdom, being founded in the 11th c. on a site north-east of the present railway near Wat Khudi Dao. In the 13th c., after the Thais had conquered and cultivated the Menam plain, Ayutthaya and Lopburi became part of the principality of U Thong, a vassal state of Sukhothai. In 1347 disastrous plagues afflicted the country, reducing the population by more than half and forcing Prince U Thong to flee his capital. Ayutthaya, encircled by rivers and with an easily defended nucleus favorably situated beside the Menam, was chosen to replace it. Division of the Siamese kingdom into several new principalities following the death of Ramkhamhaeng led U Thong to distance himself politically from the rulers in Sukhothai. In 1350 he threw off their yoke altogether and, as King Somdet Phra Rama Thobodi (though history books usually refer to him as U Thong), established an independent state named after his new capital.
The designation "Rama Thibodi" reflects the god-like status of the kings of Thailand at that time. U Thong regarded himself as the reincarnation of the god Vishnu and of Rama, hero of the Indian epic "Ramayama". At his coronation he had his superhuman status and divine omnipotence authenticated by eight Brahmans from the holy Indian city of Benares.
Ayutthaya's subsequent history was carved out under no fewer than 33 kings. It developed into a flourishing cultural and commercial center and many European trading companies established posts there. Traces of the latter can still be seen, including the foundations of a large Dutch warehouse as well as the recently restored French St Joseph's Cathedral.
There were four customs posts, the largest being on the east bank of the Chao Phraya south of the city. Warships and the royal barges were moored on the north bank of the Lopburi near Wat Tin Tha, opposite the Royal Palace. U Thong surrounded the city with an earth wall and stockades, only replaced by a more substantial wall of plastered brickwork in 1549. In 1580 the fortifications on the north side of the city were moved closer to the river where some remains can still be seen adjoining Pa Maphrao Road.
Of the six large forts built into the walls only some fragments of Fort Phom Phet, situated where the Pasak joins the Chao Phraya, have survived. After the destruction of Ayutthaya stones from the remaining forts, like those of other fortifications, were used in the construction of Bangkok's city walls.
The sacking of Ayutthaya in 1767 was a mark of the temporary decline of the Siamese monarchy. Rival members of the royal house, a number of princes among them, became embroiled in power struggles and intrigue. King Ekatot, the last reigning monarch of the Ayutthaya dynasty and also the weakest, was unable to impose his authority. When the Burmese laid siege yet again to the city, though apparently with little hope of taking it, one of the rival factions opened a gate and let the enemy in. The Burmese held the city for the next fifteen years, the Thais finally recovering it only after some bloody battles. In the meantime the invaders vandalized the country. No temple escaped their ravages, most, together with Wang Luang (the royal palace) being razed to the ground. The fall of Ayutthaya was accompanied by the destruction of thousands of statues of the Buddha, rendered worthless to believers by having their heads smashed off - Buddhists hold that the spirit dwells in the head. Several of these decapitated figures can still be seen amid the ruins.
Ayutthaya today is a vast collection of temple and palace remains which initially excited little interest from archaeologists. Since 1956 however, the foundations of a number of temples have been excavated to give an idea of their original size, and there has also been some reconstruction. So far about a hundred buildings and ruins have been designated national monuments by the Department of Fine Arts, more being added to the list as further reconstruction and restoration work proceeds with the help of UNESCO.
At one time there were three royal palaces, 375 temples, 29 forts and 94 gates on Ayutthaya island alone. The major places of interest can be visited, and an idea obtained of the size and splendor of the city as it once was, by following the route outlined below, starting and finishing at the Prince Damrong Bridge near the railway station. The tour takes in ten temple sites, two museums, two palaces and a variety of other interesting buildings; it needs at least half a day to do it justice, more if both the museums are to be visited. Those who prefer to drive rather than walk can follow the route by taxi, asking the driver to stop at the various sights.
The Prince Damrong Bridge was erected in memory of Prince Damrong Rajanubhab, to whom is owed much of our knowledge of the history of art in Thailand. Having crossed the bridge, continue to U Thong Road which makes a complete circuit of the old city, turning left along it for some 700 m (2310 ft).
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