The Development of Ayutthaya
NOTES: Some records say that there are 34 kings in the Ayutthaya period. That was because they counted King Ramesuan who reigned two times (one as the 2nd King; and the other as the 5th King as ONE KING , and Boromracha III, then his different name in his 2nd reign: Intharacha II as ONE KING. That reduced the number of the Ayutthayan kings to 34. But this lesson runs the number according to the number of reigns, which was 36 kings. 7
King – influenced by Khmer -- reincarnated God (Hindu) – Divine Kinng
•VERTICAL – Absolute Monarchy:
Kings were regarded as the supreme power over people in the Kingdom
Special sets of words for Kings (Rachasap – ราชาศัพท์)
Kings must follow moral roles and be kind to their aristocrats, especially high officials to prevent their attempts to made revolutions and made themselves Kings.
ADMINISTRATION
as the earthly incarnation of Shiva or Vishnu
Hindu influence: the sacred object of politico-religious cult practices officiated over by royal court: brahmans
the centre of a highly stratified social and political hierarchy, extending throughout the realm/kingdom
Period I - Early Ayuthaya: 1893 – 1991
The “DECENTRALISATION” of Sukhothai was still maintained for the towns beyond the capital city of Ayutthaya:
Major town
Beyond major town/Fortress towns
Colonies
BUT the capital city of Ayutthaya was different from Sukhothai. It followed the Khmer convention: four divisions of provision, called “Jatusadom”.
“jatu” means FOUR; “sadom” means PROVISION
Major towns: Lopburi, Supanburi, … towns of about a two-day journey from the city center
Beyond Major Towns
Korat N-E
Chaiya, Nokorn Si Thammarat, Patthalung, Thalang (now =Phuket)
Dawai, Tanao-sri (these two – now in Myanmar)
Chanthaburi
East
Country Administration
People belonging to the King via the supervision of “Wieng” – the Interior Minister
Period 2: 1991– 2231 (22 kings) The 9th King (Phra Boromtrilokkanart) – the 30th King (Narai)
A. Reformation of Central Administration
KING
Wieng(Interior)
Na(Farming)
Wang(Palace)
Klang(Finance)
-peace in town
-Royal court
-Juridical issues
-Revenue
-Trades
-Taxes
-Agriculture
Military
Civil