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105-694: Pereira and other Portuguese mercenaries helped defend the Siamese Ayutthaya Kingdom against the invading army of King Tabinshwehti of Pegu in the Burmese–Siamese War (1548–49) , introducing Early Modern warfare to the region. Pereira engaged in smuggling along the Ming Empire 's South China Sea coast, for which enterprise one notorious centre was the Taishan islet of Wuyu in Xiamen Bay. He

210-604: A center of trade, fostered by Narai. Of these competing foreign influences, Narai tended to favor relations with the French, wary of the growing Dutch and English colonial possessions in the South China Sea . Soon, Narai began to welcome communities of French Jesuits into his court, and pursue closer relations with both France and the Vatican . Indeed, the many diplomatic missions conducted by Narai to such far-flung lands are some of

315-458: A faction of native Siamese courtiers, Buddhist clergy, and other non-Catholic and/or non-French elements of Narai's court began to resent the favorable treatment French interests received under his reign. This hostile attitude was especially directed at Constantine Phaulkon , a Catholic Greek adventurer and proponent of French influence who had climbed to the rank of Narai's Prime Minister and chief advisor of foreign affairs. Much of this turmoil

420-536: A fugitive Chinese prince from the sea, a Khmer noble from Angkor, a ruler from one of the gulf cities, or a Chola ." Other than being the legendary founder of Ayutthaya, the only thing known about Uthong in the chronicles is the year of his death. In the 1290s through to the 1490s, Ayutthaya sent forces down to the peninsula and demanded tribute from the Malay principalities all the way down to Temasek ( Singapura (modern Singapore)) and Sumatra . The early Ayutthaya polity

525-683: A greatly expanded Siamese kingdom to be ruled by his younger brother, Ekathotsarot (Sanphet III). Ekathotsarot's reign was marked with stability for Siam and its sphere of influence, as well as increased foreign interactions, especially with the Dutch Republic , Portuguese Empire , and Tokugawa Shogunate (by way of the Red Seal Ships ), among others. Indeed, representatives from many foreign lands began to fill Siam's civil and military administration – Japanese traders and mercenaries led by Yamada Nagamasa , for example, had considerable influence with

630-565: A maritime state to more of a hinterland state during the 15th and 16th centuries. Its absorption of the Northern Cities and the shifting of trade power to the inland trade routes with China facilitated this change of policy. The reign of King Borommatrailokkanat was the peak of this merger between the basin and the Northern Cities , being the scion of generations of intermarriage between the two. Even though Borommatrailokkanat symbolized

735-587: A number of officials were removed from their positions and punished; Zhu Wan himself committed suicide. The Portuguese prisoners waiting for the end of their lives in Fuzhou's prison were dispatched to live out their sentences of separate internal exile, in various locations around Guilin , Guizhou . With the help of the Portuguese merchants in Canton , many of the exiles managed to make their way by bribery and stealth back to

840-497: A number of tributary states. Starting in the middle of the 16th century, the kingdom came under repeated attacks by the Taungoo dynasty of Burma . The Burmese–Siamese War (1547–1549) resulted in a failed Burmese siege of Ayutthaya. A second siege (1563–1564) led by King Bayinnaung forced King Maha Chakkraphat to surrender in 1564. The royal family was taken to Pegu (Bago), with the king's second son Mahinthrathirat installed as

945-513: A previous monk had been honored by the "King of Ayodhia" on his return from Lanka . Since the late 13th century, expeditions were sent to the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra in the goal of extracting resources to gain a share of the maritime trade. Other contemporary scholars argued that Ayutthaya had been an important commercial center since the 11th century or at least several centuries prior to 1351. The earliest written records of Ayutthaya in

1050-414: A prolonged period of peace and commerce, beginning with the reign of Ekathotsorot . The Portuguese and Dutch conquest of Malacca encouraged Asian traders to bypass Malacca by crossing the portage route mid-peninsula, controlled by Ayutthaya. This was a period of the great Asian empires: Ottoman Empire , Safavid Empire , Mughal Empire , Ming and Qing China , and Tokugawa Japan. Ayutthaya therefore became

1155-608: A prominent role. Under the reign of Maha Chakkraphat , the Northern lords, led by the Lord of Phitsanulok, Maha Thammarachathirat , became kingmakers in Ayutthaya. The final nail for this transition was the overthrow of the Suphanburi clan from the Ayutthaya throne following the 1569 Burmese capture of Ayutthaya, placing Maha Thammarachathirat on the Ayutthaya throne. The 15th century also marked

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1260-578: A separate island, as sedimentary deposits from the Pearl River system resulted in it becoming a part of a larger island. The exact location of Lampacau has been a somewhat of a puzzle to the students of the region's historical geography, since both the coastlines and the place names in the area have changed significantly since the 16th century. The Portuguese maps of the period showed it located somewhat west of Macau , but closer to that city than Shangchuan ( São João , "St John's Island") farther to

1365-506: A significant portion of Galeote Pereira's account deals with the "inner side" of the Ming courts and prisons. He described harsh conditions inside the prisons of the time, as well as the practice of corporal punishment : Their whips be bamboos, cleft in the middle, in such sort that they seem rather plain than sharp. He that is to be whipped lieth groveling on the ground. Upon his thighs the hangman layeth on blows mightily with these bamboos, that

1470-445: A turning point in Ayutthaya's view of itself. King Borommatrailokkanat performed some sort of coronation ceremony, the first in Ayutthaya history, in the 1460s. Prior to the 15th century, Ayutthaya's palaces and temples were inferior in grandeur to cities such as Sukhothai and Phitsanulok. By the early 16th century, Ayutthaya had now rivalled its regional competitors in its city grandeur, building magnificent wats and palaces for kings with

1575-649: Is observed annually on 18 January as Royal Thai Armed Forces day. Later that same year warfare erupted again (the Burmese–Siamese War (1593–1600) ) when the Siamese invaded Burma, first occupying the Tanintharyi province in southeast Burma in 1593 and later the cities of Moulmein and Martaban in 1594. In 1599, the Siamese attacked the city of Pegu but were ultimately driven out by Burmese rebels who had assassinated Burmese King Nanda Bayin and taken power. In 1613, after King Anaukpetlun reunited Burma and took control,

1680-519: Is called Tamen " (i.e., Da Ming ), and its people, Tamenjins (i.e., Da Ming ren , 大明人, "people of the Great Ming"). Interspersed with geographical details and references to his personal experience is a fair amount of information about the country's administration, the titles and roles of various government officials. Due to the peculiar circumstances of Pereira's stay in China, it is not surprising that

1785-578: Is named Fernando De Gama he is known as a Portuguese soldier of fortune helping to defend the Siamese Ayutthaya Kingdom where the film is based. Ayutthaya Kingdom The Ayutthaya Kingdom or the Empire of Ayutthaya was a Mon and later Siamese kingdom that existed in Southeast Asia from 1351 to 1767, centered around the city of Ayutthaya , in Siam, or present-day Thailand . European travellers in

1890-650: Is officially known as Krung Thep Dvaravati Si Ayutthaya ( Thai : กรุงเทพทวารวดีศรีอยุธยา ), as documented in historical sources. The lower Chao Phraya Basin around the turn of the second millennium was split between Lavo Kingdom , which dominated the eastern half of the Lower Chao Phraya, and the Suphanburi (Suvarnabhumi), which dominated the west. The lower Chao Phraya Basin was also influenced by Angkorian culture but not direct Angkorian political and military influence. Ayutthaya, argued by Charnvit Kasetsiri ,

1995-403: Is still observant and remembers of its old homeland in Çamarquão ( Samarkand ), "their posterity is so confused, that they have nothing of a Moor in them but abstinence from swine's flesh, and yet many of them do eat thereof privately". Several references to (Chinese) interpreters, or problems arising in their absence, indicate that few if any Portuguese prisoners spoke much Chinese, at least in

2100-634: The Chao Phraya River near the mouth of the Mae Bea River (แม่น้ำแม่เบี้ย), south of the present Wat Phanan Choeng . The new city was later named Sena Ratchanakhon (เสนาราชนคร) by his successor, Duangkrien Kritnarat (ดวงเกรียนกฤษณราช) or Sai Nam Peung who was appointed the new ruler by his father, Kraisornrat (ไกรสรราช) who was also the Lopburi's king. The city of Ayodhya was abandoned in 1211. After Lopburi 's King Kraisornrat died with no heir apparent,

2205-911: The Jinwan District of present-day Zhuhai , some 30 kilometers (19 mi) west of Macao and much closer than that to Zhuhai Sanzao Airport . Over the last 100 years, there has been a lively debate of what the "proper" name of the island was during its heyday. The most recent survey of the literature on that topic is probably the page-long note in Witek & al. It lists the following spelling variants as attested in European sources, mostly Portuguese: Lampacau, Lampacam, Lam Puk, Lanpacan, Lampachan, Lampchào, Lamapacào, Lamapzan, Lanpetan, Lampaço; Lan-pai-kao (in Mandarin) and Long-pa-kao (in Cantonese); Langpetsao. They note that

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2310-540: The Portuguese , and expanded Siam's foreign trade ties to include both the English East India Company and French East India Company , along with new merchant colonies in Siam representing communities from all across Asia. Additionally, Songtham maintained the service of Yamada Nagamasa, whose Japanese mercenaries were at this point serving as the king's own royal guard . As Songtham's life began to fade,

2415-573: The capture of Malacca by the Portuguese. Ayutthaya's attention to the portage routes across the upper peninsula meant that it did not send a military expedition to the lower peninsula and the Malay States throughout the 16th century. Ayutthaya's sphere of influence was now stretched from the Northern Cities to the Malay Peninsula, with its heartland centered around the old Ayutthaya-Suphanburi-Lopburi-Phetchaburi polity. The Muang Look Luang system

2520-501: The printing thereof. According to Boxer's estimate, about one-third of Galeote Pereira's account was later incorporated in Gaspar da Cruz 's A Treatise of China , the first China-specific book published in Europe (1569). Via that book, or Bernardino de Escalante 's work largely derivative of da Cruz, much of the information conveyed by Pereira got into Juan González de Mendoza 's History of

2625-426: The 12th century. Pottery shards have been discovered to have been dated as early as the 1270s. Some temples to the east of Ayutthaya, off the island, have been known to exist before 1351. Recent archaeological works reveal pre-existing barays superimposed on by subsequent structures. The Tamnan mulasasana Buddhist chronicle notes that in the 1320s, two Buddhist monks visited Ayutthaya in search of scriptures and that

2730-420: The 1760s , whose post-Ayutthaya monarchs ( Taksin and Rama I ), held close ties, through blood and through political connections, to this Sino-Siamese community. Between 1600 and 1767, all but two royal successions were contested in a mini civil war in the capital. The throne became such a powerful and lucrative source of wealth during the 150 years of prosperity that many royals harbored ambitions to seize

2835-675: The Burmese in 1767, stating: Clearly, however, the late 1600s and especially the early 1700s inaugurated a period not of sustained decline, but of Chinese-assisted economic vitality that would continue into the 19th century. Instead, the 18th century was arguably the Ayutthaya Kingdom's most prosperous, particularly due to trade with Qing China . The growth of China's population in the late 17th–18th centuries, alongside nationwide rice shortages and famines in Southern China, meant that China

2940-559: The Burmese invaded the Siamese-held territories in Tanintharyi province, and took Tavoy. In 1614, the Burmese invaded Lan Na which at that time was a vassal of Ayutthaya. Fighting between the Burmese and Siamese continued until 1618 when a treaty ended the conflict. At that time, Burma had gained control of Lan Na and while Ayutthaya retained control of southern Tanintharyi (south of Tavoy). The cessation of warfare around 1600 gave way to

3045-607: The Chinese chronicles is that a Chinese official fled to Xian in 1282/83. Xian first sent an embassy to China in 1292, who the Chinese then requested another embassy soon after that, signifying Ayutthaya's early prominence before Ayutthaya's founding. While older and traditional scholars argue that the ethnically Thai Sukhothai or Suphanburi was the Xiān mentioned in Chinese sources, more recent scholarship, like Chris Baker and Pasuk Phongpaichit , argue that Xian referred to Ayutthaya as that

3150-424: The Chinese court about constant Siamese attacks down the peninsula around this time period. The 1430s through to 1600 marked a period of rising warfare throughout Mainland Southeast Asia. In 1500, the Portuguese noted that Ayutthaya had 100 elephants, 50 years later, Ayutthaya had 50,000 elephants. Ayutthaya began launching military land expeditions far to the west and east. In the west, Ayutthaya fought to acquire

3255-406: The Chinese. The period was described as a "golden age" of Siamese culture and saw the rise in Chinese trade and the introduction of capitalism into Siam, a development that would continue to expand in the centuries following the fall of Ayutthaya. Ayutthaya's failure to create a peaceful order of succession and the introduction of capitalism undermined the traditional organization of its elite and

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3360-541: The Dutch. Despite the departure of most Europeans from Ayutthaya, their economic presence in Ayutthaya was negligible in comparison to the Ayutthaya China-Indian Ocean trade. Lieberman, later reinforced by Baker and Phongpaichit, refutes the idea that Siam's alleged isolationism from global trade following the French and English departure in 1688 led to Ayutthaya's gradual decline leading up to its destruction by

3465-512: The Great and Mighty Kingdom of China and the Situation Thereof (1585), which was to become Europe's most authoritative book on China for the following three decades. Fernão Mendes Pinto 's Peregrinação ("Pilgrimage", 1614) depends heavily on Pereira at several points. The 2005 English-language Thai film The King Maker shows a character similar to Galeote Pereira. Although the character

3570-528: The Jesuits' central offices in Europe. While the original Portuguese text, entitled "Algũas cousas sabidas da China ..." ("Some things known about China ...") was not published at the time, its (slightly abridged) Italian translation appeared in Venice in 1565 in a book containing a number of other reports sent by Jesuits from India. An English translation of that Italian text, made by a former English Jesuit Richard Willis

3675-685: The Thai Chronicle, Phraratchaphongsawadan Nuea (Royal Chronicle of The North compiled in 1807 collected from old books from period of King Narai and stories told by northerners). At least three royal decrees in Thai were enacted during that period, and the name of the king who ruled Ayodhaya in the oldest of the three royal decrees, the Miscellaneous Laws (Phra Aiyakan Betset) 1225 AD , is found as King Uthong, who reigned from 1205 to 53 (not to be confused with King Uthong reigning from 1351 to 69). It

3780-583: The anti-foreign court faction were primarily concerned with Catholic influence, there is evidence to suggest that Narai was equally interested in Islam, and had no desire to fully convert to either religion. Nonetheless, a dissatisfied faction now led by Narai's celebrated elephantry commander, Phetracha , had long planned a coup to remove Narai. When the king became seriously ill in May 1688, Phetracha and his accomplices had him arrested along with Phaulkon and many members of

3885-425: The beginning. There is no explicit information on how much Chinese Pereira learned even by the end of his enforced stay in the country. Like Gaspar da Cruz a few years later, Pereira is dismayed at the prevalence and common acceptance of homosexual liaisons: The greatest fault we do find in them is sodomy , a vice very common in the meanest sort, and nothing strange among the best. Marco Polo , too, had found

3990-526: The border between the two adversaries continued for two years and at one time Narai seized Tavoy and Martaban. Ultimately, Narai and the Siamese ran out of supplies and returned home back within their border. While commercially thriving, Narai's reign was also socially tumultuous. Much of this can be attributed to three-way conflict between the Dutch , French , and English trading companies now operating in Siam at an unprecedented intensity due to Siam's role as

4095-401: The capital to press their claims, culminating in several bloody coups. With the dominance of the Suphanburi clan, it now had to face the militaristic nobles of the Northern Cities, who increasingly came south for wealth prospects at an increasingly wealthy and powerful Ayutthaya. The first real succession struggles in Ayutthaya occurred in the early 16th century, with the Northern lords playing

4200-402: The character 滘 ( Cantonese : j gaau³ ; notionally Mandarin : p   jiao ) is a Cantonese character and does not often appear in standard Chinese dictionaries; it is thus only natural that the name of the place would be written differently in most Chinese sources. Modern Chinese variants include Langbaiao , Langbaizao , and Lanbaijiao . Lampacau became important for

4305-489: The chiefest men in a whole town, wanting an interpreter, ignorant of that country's language, did in the end see our great adversaries cast into prison for our sake, and deprived of their offices and honour for not doing justice—yea, not to escape death, for as rumour goeth, they shall be beheaded. Now see if [the Ming] do justice or no. Even in proportion to its (shorter) length, Pereira's work dwells less on religious issues than do

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4410-500: The cities at the head of the peninsula and slowly ascending up the Chao Phraya River Basin to the Northern Cities. The culture of early Ayutthaya, described by Ma Huan , a scribe on Zheng He's voyages , in the early 15th century, described Ayutthaya as a rowdy port town, whose men practice fighting on water, and where the affairs of everyday life was arranged by the women. The cities on the peninsula regularly complained to

4515-485: The cities of Tavoy , Mergui , Tenasserim, and Martaban in the late 15th century. Song China's increasing interests to sea commerce at the turn of the second millennium made trade between China and the Indian Ocean especially lucrative. In the 1430s, Ayutthaya attacked Angkor , but did not sack the city, although Ayutthaya did install a short-lived puppet ruler. Palace Law Codes under Borommatrailokkanat exemplified

4620-454: The city Ayodhya (อโยธยา) and eventually set it as the new capital of the Lavo Kingdom during his reign. The former capital was then renamed Lopburi . After the end of Narai's reign in 1147, Ayodhya fell under the power struggles between nine amatyas for two years, until the throne was given to Phra Chao Luang (พระเจ้าหลวง), who relocated the city, in 1157, southward to the east bank of

4725-423: The city for 97 years until he died in 974 and the throne was then transferred to another royal lineage from Inthapatnakhon (อินทปัตนคร), Phraya Khodhom (พระยาโคดม), who then relocated the city eastward to the right bank of Pasak River near the present Wat Ayodhya  [ th ] , and the old city Sangkaburi was abandoned. Khodhom ruled the new city for 30 years then his son, Kothrabong (โคตรบอง), took over

4830-489: The collapse and the seat of Siamese authority was moved to Thonburi - Bangkok within the next 15 years. In foreign accounts, Ayutthaya was called "Siam", but people of Ayutthaya called themselves Tai , and their kingdom Krung Tai ( Thai : กรุงไท ) meaning 'Tai country' ( กรุง ไท ). It was also referred to as Iudea in a painting requested by the Dutch East India Company . The capital city of Ayutthaya

4935-803: The court was led by two Prime Ministers ; the Samuha Nayok the Civil Prime Minister and the Samuha Kalahom the Grand Commander of Forces overseeing Civil and Military affairs, respectively. Under the Samuha Nayok were the Four Ministries. In the regions, the king sent not "rulers" but "governors" to govern cities. The cities were under governors who were from nobility not rulers with privileges as it had previously been. The "Hierarchy of Cities"

5040-446: The crown. The ability to appoint a Front Palace was effective in times of war but became a double-edged sword in regards to peace. Foreigners, due to their lack of connections within the kingdom, often became prominent officials within the Ayutthaya court during this period. In 1605, Naresuan died of illness while on campaign against a Burmese spillover conflict in the Shan region, leaving

5145-473: The densely populated and intensively farmed countryside. He is impressed with well-paved roads and the bridges of Fujian's coastal road, built using huge stones. Pereira is surprised that the word "China", which the Portuguese had learned in Southern and Southeastern Asia, is not known in China itself, and is curious how Chinese people call their country and themselves. He gets the answer that "the whole country

5250-458: The devil take them all" (" Moors " ( Portuguese : Mouros ) was at the time a common way for the Portuguese to refer to any Muslims). He says that there were over 200 Muslims in a Guangxi city he visited (not quite clear whether he is talking of Wuzhou or Guilin ), all attending the Friday prayers in their mosques. He thinks, however, "that will no longer endure", because while the older generation

5355-505: The divinity worshiped in some of them is referred to as Omithofom ( Āmítuó Fó ) Pereira deems the Fujian Muslims to be almost entirely assimilated into the Chinese mainstream. According to him, they "knew so little of their sect, that they could say nothing else but that 'Mahomet was a Moor, my father was a Moor, and I am a Moor', with some other words of their Alcoran , wherewithal and in abstinence from swine's flesh, they live until

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5460-555: The early 16th century called Ayutthaya one of the three great powers of Asia (alongside Vijayanagara and China). The Ayutthaya Kingdom is considered to be the precursor of modern Thailand, and its developments are an important part of the history of Thailand . The Ayutthaya Kingdom emerged from the mandala or merger of three maritime city-states on the Lower Chao Phraya Valley in the late 13th and 14th centuries ( Lopburi , Suphanburi , and Ayutthaya). The early kingdom

5565-481: The early chronology in the palace chronicles does not correlate with the Ayutthaya temple chronicles nor the Chinese court chronicles. The integrity of the patchwork of cities of early Ayutthaya Kingdom was maintained largely through familial connections under the mandala system . King Uthong had his son, Prince Ramesuan , the ruler of Lopburi (Lavo), his brother, the ruler of Praek Sriracha (in modern Chainat Province ) and his brother-in-law, Khun Luang Pa-ngua ,

5670-586: The government phrai system in a variety of other ways, including entering the monkhood and fleeing into the wilderness. A new category for people now appeared in the late Ayutthaya records, called phrai mangmi, or a rich "serf". Langbaijiao Lampacau or Lampacao , also known by other names , was a small island in the Pearl River Delta , which in the mid-16th century played an important role in Sino-Portuguese trade. Lampacau no longer exists as

5775-401: The impartiality of the Ming judicial system. The malign accusations of two local worthies, apparently their erstwhile partners, were not enough to see the Portuguese smugglers scapegoated : For wheresoever in any town of Christendom should be accused unknown men as we were, I know not what end the very Innocents' cause would have; but we in a heathen country, having for our enemies two of

5880-430: The international trade c.  1550 , when the center of the Portuguese offshore trade in the Pearl River Delta gradually shifted there from the more remote Shangchuan . Ptak speculates that it was a more convenient base for the transshipment of cargoes to and from sampans and other river boats traveling to the interior of Guangdong. The brief period of Lampacau's significance ended some time c.  1560 , as

5985-596: The issue by orchestrating the final dethronement and execution of the child king in 1629. Thus, Prasat Thong had completely usurped the kingdom by double (perhaps triple) regicide, extinguishing the Sukhothai dynasty 60 years after its installation by the Burmese. Many of King Prasat Thong's former allies abandoned his cause following his ascension to the throne. In the course of quelling such resistance, Prasat Thong assassinated his former ally Yamada Nagamasa in 1630 (who now opposed Prasat Thong's coup), and promptly banished all

6090-664: The issue of succession generated conflict once again when both King Songtham's brother, Prince Sisin, and his son, Prince Chetthathirat , found support for their claims among the Siamese court. Although Thai tradition typically favored brothers over sons in matters of inheritance, Songtham enlisted the help of his influential cousin, Prasat Thong to ensure his son would inherit the kingdom instead. When Songtham died in 1628, Prasat Thong used his alliance with Yamada Nagamasa's mercenaries to purge everyone who had supported Prince Sisin's claim, eventually capturing and executing Sisin as well. Soon Prasat Thong became more powerful in Siam than

6195-563: The king of Phraek Siracha (present-day Sankhaburi ), who was the grandfather of Ayutthaya's first king, Uthong , took over the throne. After he died in 1319, both Lopburi and the city of Sena Ratchanakhon was considered royal inheritances for his daughter, who later passed it to her son, Uthong. Ayutthaya was traditionally founded by King Uthong on 4 March 1351. This fact, however, has been subject to long scholarly debate. According to Chris Baker-Pasuk Phongpaichit, there are at least seven legends about who Uthong was: "a Northern Thai prince,

6300-424: The king. Ekathotsarot's era ended with his death in 1610/11. The question of his succession was complicated by the alleged suicide of his eldest legitimate son, Suthat, while his second legitimate son, Si Saowaphak , was never legally designated as an heir by Ekathotsarot himself. Nonetheless, Si Saowaphak succeeded to the throne against his late father's wishes, and led a short and ineffective reign in which he

6405-497: The later books of professional Christian missionaries (such as Gaspar da Cruz, Martín de Rada or Matteo Ricci ); nonetheless, he still gives a brief account of the religious practices of both Han and Hui people. He notes that people refer to the supreme divine power as "Heaven", explaining that "as we are wont to say 'God knoweth it', so say they at every word Tien xautee , that is to say 'The heavens do know it'". He did realize at least that there are several types of temples, and

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6510-533: The letter of Afonso Ramiro, sent from Wuzhou to the Portuguese base at Langbaijiao in 1555. The organization of Pereira's account is somewhat chaotic: it is neither a strictly chronological account describing a chain of events (a "travelogue" or "memoir"), nor a treatise describing various aspects of China in some logical order (as later book-size works by Gaspar da Cruz , Bernardino de Escalante or Juan González de Mendoza would be). Instead, both aspects are present to some extent. Pereira's manuscript starts in

6615-503: The lucrative middleman for trade between the global empires of the Early Modern World. Kings and nobles turned to hunting, trade, and the competition for the throne with the ending of warfare. This period of Ayutthaya is also characterized by the emergence of mercantile absolutism, where the king had a virtual monopoly on all incomes into the kingdom, allowing the king to build new temples and palaces, sponsor ceremonies, and enshroud

6720-696: The merger between North and South, the Lan Na Kingdom , a state North of Ayutthaya (modern-day Northern Thailand ), contested Ayutthaya's growing influence over the Northern Cities. The Ayutthaya-Lan Na War was fought over the Upper Chao Phraya valley for control of the Northern Cities. Whether he preferred the Northern Cities to Ayutthaya or the necessity to have a capital closer to the war, Borommatrailokkanat moved his capital to Phitsanulok . Lan Na suffered setbacks and Borommatrailokkanat eventually sued for peace in 1475. Ayutthaya's sphere of influence down

6825-402: The monarchy in ritual mysticism. The king had the power to appoint governors of cities in the inner Ayutthaya mueang (cities) as well as appoint ministers in charge of the government. This however all made the target of the throne much more lucrative and rewarding than before. To be able to successfully put your target onto the throne would immensely reward its facilitators as much as the winner of

6930-646: The most celebrated accomplishments of his reign. Narai as well leased the ports of Bangkok and Mergui to the French, and had many French generals incorporated into his army to train it in Western strategy and supervise the construction of European-style forts. During this time, Narai abandoned the traditional capital of Ayutthaya for a new Jesuit-designed palace in Lopburi . As a growing Catholic presence cemented itself in Siam, and an unprecedented number of French forts were erected and garrisoned on land leased by Narai,

7035-556: The newfound attention to warfare, citing a number of rewards for the number of enemies beheaded. The introduction of elephants, guns, and mercenaries made wars in Southeast Asia much more chronic and much more deadly. By the late 16th century, Pegu (Bago) suffered a severe conscript revolt, Ayutthaya phrai fled into the forests or bribed the conscription officers, and the construction of sturdier and stronger city walls made warfare largely ineffective. The Ayutthaya Kingdom shifted from

7140-491: The newly crowned King Chetthathriat, and through further intrigue staged a coup in which Chetthathirat was deposed and executed in favor of his even younger brother Athittayawong , whom Prasat Thong intended to use as a puppet ruler. This form of government was quickly met with resistance by elements within the Thai court who were dissatisfied with the idea of having two acting heads of state. Since Prasat Thong already ruled Siam in all but name as Kalahom , he opted to resolve

7245-478: The old bonds of labor control which formed the military and government organization of the kingdom. In the mid-18th century, the Burmese Konbaung dynasty invaded Ayutthaya in 1759–1760 and 1765–1767 . In April 1767, after a 14-month siege, the city of Ayutthaya fell to besieging Burmese forces and was completely destroyed, thereby ending the 417-year-old Ayutthaya Kingdom. Siam, however, quickly recovered from

7350-574: The original (i.e., the earliest known to us) Portuguese manuscript was made by Boxer and published in 1953 in Archivum Historicum Societatis Iesu , vol. XXII, pp. 63–92. The original Portuguese text has since been published in Portugal, and in vol. 153 of Archivum Historicum Societatis Iesu in Rome. Published accounts of other Portuguese prisoners captured together with Pereira include

7455-490: The palaces of noblemen to be seen of them and their wives", which allowed Pereira to see something of Fuzhou. Fortunately for Pereira and other surviving Portuguese (and their companions, coming from various parts of the Portuguese colonial empire in Asia), Zhu Wan 's enemy at the imperial court learned of the irregularities involved in the execution of the prisoners and the handling of captured merchandise; censors arrived from Beijing,

7560-545: The peninsula was contested by the Malacca Sultanate . Ayutthaya launched several abortive conquests against Malacca which was diplomatically and economically fortified by the military support of Ming China . In the early-15th century the Ming admiral Zheng He established a base of operation in the port city, making it a strategic position the Chinese could not afford to lose to the Siamese. Under this protection, Malacca flourished, becoming one of Ayutthaya's great foes until

7665-589: The practice quite as prevalent and accepted under the Mongol-ruled Yuan . But too like Polo, Pereira has some surprising lacunae : he makes not one reference to the widespread, customary practice of foot binding (six hundred years old in his time, three in Polo's). Nor does he mention the use of the herb Camellia sinensis (tea), nor the unique character of the Empire's writing system nor to its marvelous facilities for

7770-496: The remaining Japanese from Siam. While a community of Japanese exiles were eventually welcomed back into the country, this event marks the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate's long-standing formal relationship with the Ayutthaya Kingdom. Upon his death in 1656, King Prasat Thong was succeeded first by his eldest son, Chai , who was almost immediately deposed and executed by the late King's brother, Si Suthammaracha , who in turn

7875-504: The royal family, all of whom were put to death besides Narai, who died in captivity in July of that year. With the king and his heirs out of the way, Phetracha then usurped the throne and officially crowned himself King of Ayutthaya on 1 August. King Phetracha took Mergui back from French control almost immediately, and began the pivotal Siege of Bangkok , which culminated in an official French retreat from Siam. Phetracha's reign, however,

7980-469: The ruler of Suphanburi. The ruler of Phetchaburi was his distant relative. The king would appoint a prince or a relative to be the ruler of a city, and a city that was ruled by a prince was called Muang Look Luang ( Thai : เมืองลูกหลวง ). Each city ruler swore allegiance and loyalty to the King of Ayutthaya but also retained certain privileges. Politics of Early Ayutthaya was characterized by rivalries between

8085-468: The sea coast and to Portuguese ships and off-shore bases. Pereira was one of these escapees. It is known that in mid-February 1553, he was already in the Shangchuan Island , assisting at the exhumation of the incorrupt remains of Francis Xavier . Several of the Portuguese survivors of the 1549 incident and the subsequent imprisonment and exile wrote accounts of their experiences. The first of them

8190-402: The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, Ayutthaya emerged as an entrepôt of international trade and its cultures flourished. The reign of Narai ( r. 1657–1688) was known for Persian and later, European, influence and the sending of the 1686 Siamese embassy to the French court of King Louis XIV . The Late Ayutthaya Period saw the departure of the French and English but growing prominence of

8295-491: The son of Sanphet I, proclaimed Ayutthaya's independence. This proclamation resulted in repeated invasions of Ayutthaya by Burma which the Siamese fought off ultimately finishing in an elephant duel between King Naresuan and Burmese heir-apparent Mingyi Swa in 1593 during the fourth siege of Ayutthaya in which Naresuan famously slew Mingyi Swa, although the existence of this battle has been challenged by modern scholars such as Sulak Sivaraksa . Today, this Siamese victory

8400-512: The south-eastward country of the Gywans, also called Ayoja . George Cœdès pointed out that Ayoja or Arawsa meant Ayudhya = Siam. In 877, a royal lineage from Bang Pan (present-day in Phran Kratai , Kamphaeng Phet ), Phra Maha Buddha Sakorn (พระมหาพุทธสาคร), founded a new city named Sangkaburi (สังขะบุรี) on the south bank of Lopburi River near the present-day Wat Thammikarat Sakorn ruled

8505-423: The southwest. According to the research of Chang Tseng-hsin, making use of both Chinese and Western sources, Lampacau has become connected with the neighboring island of Lianwan ( 連灣 山 ). The name of Lianwan was thus used for the entire "new" greater island, and the name Langbaiao became relegated to the narrow straight separating Lianwan from the nearby Wenwan Island ( 文灣 山 ). This would place Lampacau within

8610-419: The standers-by tremble at their cruelty. Ten stripes draws a great deal of blood, twenty or thirty spoil the flesh altogether, fifty or threescore will require a long time to be healed, and if they come to the number of one hundred, then they are incurable—and they are given to whosoever hath nothing wherewith to bribe these executioners who administer them. Despite the severity of its punishments, Pereira extols

8715-465: The style of a geographical overview. Like most later geographical works on China, he starts with listing China's provinces (" shires ", in Willis' translation), stating that there are 13 of them, giving names of 11 of them and a brief information about some, and concluding that for "Confu", Yunnan and Sichuan , "how many towns [those] three shires have, we are ignorant as yet, as also of the proper names of

8820-413: The throne in 1004. Later in 1022, Kothrabong lost power to Kreak (แกรก), a commoner from Lavo , who was then crowned as the new ruler named Sinthapomarin (สินธพอมรินทร์). Because Kreak was not originally considered a royal lineage, after he died in 1081, the throne was despoiled by Narai, the son of King Chadachota from Lavo Kingdom, who was of the lineage of the previous Sangkaburi's kings. Narai renamed

8925-520: The throne. An Ayutthaya noble in the 18th century lamented that a large portion of court officials and able generals were killed in multiple succession struggles over the past 90 years. The last monarch, Ekkathat , alongside his brother, Uthumphon , undermined Prince Thammathibet , the Front Palace Uparaj and designated heir to his father, King Borommakot , by instigating or exposing his affair with two of his fathers' consorts. Prince Thammathibet

9030-605: The twelfth and thirteenth shires, and the towns therein". This shows that Pereira (or his early Jesuit editors) were not in possession of the information that the Lisbon historian João de Barros had when writing the Third of his Décadas da Ásia (published 1563, but written much earlier), which correctly lists all fifteen provinces. He then proceeds with a brief description of Chinese cities whose "streets are wonderful to behold" and which are decorated with numerous " arches of triumph ", and of

9135-515: The two dynasties; the Uthong dynasty based on Lopburi (Lavo) and the Suphannabhum dynasty based on Suphanburi. Traditional narratives argued that Ayutthaya conquered Sukhothai, Angkor , etc., but more modern narratives argue that territorial conquest was a European thing and not a Southeast Asian thing. Rather, the processes which saw Ayutthaya expand was one of political merger and consolidation between

9240-450: The vassal king. In 1568, Mahinthrathirat revolted when his father managed to return from Pegu as a Buddhist monk . The ensuing third siege captured Ayutthaya in 1569 and Bayinnaung made Maha Thammarachathirat (also known as Sanphet I) his vassal king, instating the Sukhothai dynasty . In May 1584, less than three years after Bayinnaung's death, Uparaja Naresuan (or Sanphet II),

9345-425: Was a maritime confederation, oriented to post- Srivijaya Maritime Southeast Asia, conducting raids and tribute from these maritime states. After two centuries of political organization from the Northern Cities and a transition to a hinterland state, Ayutthaya centralized and became one of the great powers of Asia. From 1569 to 1584, Ayutthaya was a vassal state of Toungoo Burma , but quickly regained independence. In

9450-512: Was a maritime-oriented confederation, more in line with the Malay polities of Maritime Southeast Asia than with states inland like Sukhothai and the Northern Cities. Muslim and European mapmakers labelled the Malay Peninsula up to the Tenasserim coast as part of Ayutthaya in the 15th and early 16th centuries. Early Ayutthaya did not keep records and their early dynastic chronology is likely fabricated by later Ayutthaya elites writing their histories:

9555-692: Was aboard one of the two Portuguese junks seized in March 1549 near the Dongshan Peninsula during the Pirate Extermination Campaign of the Jiajing Emperor , which was actively carried out by Fujian 's grand coordinator Zhu Wan . Luckily not among the crew members executed extrajudicially , Pereira and others were incarcerated at Fuzhou . During and subsequent to his trial, the detainees were taken out "many times ... and were brought to

9660-492: Was also found that Thai was used as the official language at that time, which reflected the social changes of the people in the Chao Phraya River Basin. The existence of Ayodhya Sri Rama Thep Nakhon is also mentioned in the Burmese chronicle, Hmannan Yazawin , which mentions the Gywan warriors marched to Thaton kingdom in 1056 AD as inscribed on the Burmese inscriptions at Arakan Pagoda, Mandalay . The Hmannan Yazawin said

9765-414: Was defeated in single combat by his own nephew, Narai . Narai finally assumed a stable position as King of Ayutthaya with the support of a mainly foreign court faction consisting of groups that had been marginalized during the reign of his father, Prasat Thong. Among his benefactors were, notably, Persian, Dutch, and Japanese mercenaries. It should therefore come as no surprise that the era of King Narai

9870-533: Was eager to import rice from other nations, particularly from Ayutthaya. During the Late Ayutthaya Period (1688–1767), the Chinese population in Ayutthaya possibly tripled in size to 30,000 from 1680 to 1767. The Chinese played a pivotal role in stimulating Ayutthaya's economy in the last 100 years of the kingdom's existence and eventually played a pivotal role in Siam's quick recovery from the Burmese invasions of

9975-453: Was established and cities were organized into four levels. Large, top level cities held authorities over secondary or low-level cities. The increased wealth of Ayutthaya resulted in the beginnings of a chronic succession struggle for the Ayutthaya throne. Due to the lack of stable succession law , from each succession from the 16th century onwards, princely governors or powerful dignitaries claiming their merit gathered their forces and moved on

10080-422: Was executed for his alleged crimes. Corruption was rampant due to economic prosperity. Position buying and bribery for political offices became commonplace. The mass arrival of Chinese farming settlers to Siam in 18th century introduced Capitalism to Siam. The past 150 years of growth encouraged phrai to flee the bonds of government control and become peasant farmers in the countryside to earn wealth. People fled

10185-580: Was inadequate to govern relatively vast territories. The government of Ayutthaya was centralized and institutionalized under King Borommatrailokkanat in his reforms promulgating in Palatine Law of 1455, which became the constitution of Ayutthaya for the rest of its existence and continued to be the constitution of Siam until 1892, albeit in altered forms. The central government was dominated by the Chatusadom system ( Thai : จตุสดมภ์ lit. "Four Pillars), in which

10290-464: Was kidnapped and held hostage by Japanese merchants, and later murdered. After this episode, the kingdom was handed to Songtham , a lesser son born of Ekathotsarot and a first-class concubine. Songtham temporarily restored stability to Ayutthaya and focused inward on religious construction projects, most notably a great temple at Wat Phra Phutthabat . In the sphere of foreign policy, Songtham lost suzerainty of Lan Na, Cambodia and Tavoy, expelled

10395-452: Was not stable. Many of Phetracha's provincial governors refused to recognize his rule as legitimate, and rebellions by the late Narai's supporters persisted for many years. The most important change to Siam in the aftermath of the revolution was Phetracha's refusal to continue Narai's foreign embassies. King Phetracha opted instead to reverse much of Narai's decisions and closed Thailand to almost all forms of European interaction except with

10500-518: Was one of an extroverted Siam. Foreign trade brought Ayutthaya not only luxury items but also new arms and weapons. In the mid–17th century, during King Narai 's reign, Ayutthaya became very prosperous. In 1662 war between Burma and Ayutthaya (the Burmese-Siamese War (1662-64) ) erupted again when King Narai attempted to take advantage of unrest in Burma to seize control of Lan Na. Fighting along

10605-457: Was primarily religious, as the French Jesuits were openly attempting to convert Narai and the royal family to Catholicism . Narai was courted not just by Catholic conversion, but as well by proselytizing Muslim Persians, Chams and Makassars in his court, the later of which communities launched an unsuccessful revolt in 1686 to replace Narai with a Muslim puppet king. While members of

10710-571: Was printed in 1577, in the History of Travayle in the West and East Indies , under the title "Certain reports of the province China, learned through the Portugals there imprisoned, and chiefly by the relation of Galeote Pereira, a gentleman of good credit, that lay prisoner in that country many years. Done out of Italian by R.W.". Willis' translation was reprinted a number of times. A complete English translation of

10815-542: Was published as early as 1555. However, Galeote Pereira's is considered the most complete, and is the best known. It is not known when Pereira first wrote his account. While C. R. Boxer surmised that Pereira may have penned his recollections soon after his escape to safety, the earliest known manuscript of his notes dates to 1561. It is a copy made by Indian pupils of the Jesuit Saint Paul's College in Goa, and sent to one of

10920-541: Was the merger of four different port polities along the Lower Chao Phraya Basin: Lopburi (Lavo), Suphanburi, Ayutthaya, and Phetchaburi. Suphanburi had first sent a tribute mission to Song dynasty in 1180 and Phetchaburi to the Yuan dynasty in 1294 and tribute missions to Vijaynagar empire between 1400 and 1500 Archaeological findings have found evidence of buildings on the island of Ayutthaya prior to

11025-446: Was the same name later used for Ayutthaya by the Chinese court. Michael Vickery argued that it is likely the Chinese used Xian to refer to the lower Chao Phraya Basin from its inception. Recent 21st-century archaeological surveys have found that the name of pre-Ayutthaya cities is Ayodhaya Sriramthep Nakorn ( Thai : อโยธยาศรีรามเทพนคร ) found on Wat Khao Kop Inscription (N.W. 2, Face 2, Line 21) aged 14th–15th centuries, as stated in

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