| |
| |
|
Humanities Information |
|
|
|
History of the Royal Barges - a Timeless Tradition
The history of the royal barges dates back to the Sukhothai era in the 13th century when the first royal barges were reportedly seen. The barges were originally troop carriers at a time when it was more expedient to transport troops into battle along rivers. As life in Thailand then was so intimately linked to the river, these barges were also used for religious and ceremonial purposes. During the Ayutthaya era between the 14th - 18th centuries, the Royal Barge Ceremonies flourished, particularly during the reigns of King Naresuan and King Narai. King Naresuan (1590 - 1605 AD) named his personal barge Suphannahongsa and so started the first generation of this famous royal barge. Since then this has been the name of the King's personal barge. Two more versions have been built since. In the reign of King Narai, the Royal Barge Processions became more elaborate and one such procession had more than 100 vessels. Unfortunately all this came to an abrupt end in 1767 when the Burmese sacked Ayutthaya and destroyed all the barges. It was a sad period in the history of the royal barges. The Thonburi era (1767 - 1782) under King Taksin saw a reemergence of royal barge activity. During his reign the Emerald Buddha was brought from Vientiane to Ayutthaya. A hundred and fifteen barges went to Ayutthaya to receive this holy statue and bring it back to Bangkok. Another 131 vessels went up river to welcome the Emerald Buddha. The Bangkok era, which commenced in 1782, saw a new dawn in the history of the royal barges. King Rama I revived the tradition of the royal barges. Sixty were built and modeled on designs in the early Bangkok era. A new Suphannahongsa was built to serve as the King's personal barge. Royal barge construction continued under the reign of the Chari kings. King Rama IV ordered the construction of the Anantanakkharat with the seven-headed serpent Naga on the bow. During the reign of King Rama V, a new Suphannahongsa was built. It was completed during the reign of King Rama VI in 1911. This version of Suphannahongsa is being used to this day as the King's personal barge. The coup in 1932, when Thailand changed from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy, brought about another abrupt halt to royal barge activity. Subsequent governments ceased the Royal Barge Ceremonies for the next 25 years. The royal barges suffered a further setback when they were damaged by Japanese bombs during World War II. Damaged sections of these barges are still preserved at the Royal Barge Museum. In 1957 the history of the royal barges took a turn for the better when King Rama IX had the barges restored to their former glory. On 19 May 1957, the first Royal Barge Procession in 25 years sailed down the Chao Phraya River to commemorate the 25th century of the Buddhist Era. Since then, the tradition and grandeur of the royal barges have continued to this day. The history of the royal barges reflects an enduring tradition that flows on timelessly like the Chao Phraya River. For details on the royal barges, please see Types of Royal Barges. This article by Eric Lim first appeared in Tour Bangkok Legacies, a historical travel site on people, places and events that shaped the landscape of Bangkok. Lim, a free-lance writer, lives in Bangkok, Thailand.
MORE RESOURCES:
Humanities - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Working With The Generations For the first time in history, there are four generations in the work force. Although this is an exciting time, it is not without challenges. Gold Jewelry -The Rest of The Story Gold is one of the metals taken from the earth and is probably the first metal known to man. Its first use has been traced back to 3600 B. Berenguer Sauniere - This Place is Terrible INSPIRATIONAL COMMENTS:"Let me issue and control a nation's money and I care not who writes the laws." - Mayer Amschel Rothschild. Precious Stones -The Big Five: Part 1, The Emerald The emerald is probably the most rare of all precious stones and is considered by some to be even more valuable than the diamond. Compared with other precious stones the emerald in its occurrence in nature is unique, for it is found in the rock in which it was formed. The Man Who Loved Jail Around my twentieth birthday life became a series of incredible events. Perhaps in retrospect it has never ended. The History of Body Piercings - Ancient and Fascinating Around the World Body piercings have seen a resurgence of interest in the last ten to twenty years and are becoming more and more a part of the mainstream Western culture. Take a look at any fashion or entertainment magazine and you'll see plenty of well-known celebrities with body piercings like navel rings or a labret. True Story; Why Can't We all Just Get Along? A little girl came up to her mom in the store and she asked, Mom do we celebrate Hanukah? The little girl had obviously seen a sign in the store that said Celebrate Hanukah next to some merchandise. The mom said no we do not celebrate hanakah, but pointed to a lady sitting in the bookstore in the middle of the café and said that lady over there does. The Red Violin - Film Review The film portrays the creation, fate, and redemption of a father's legacy to his unborn child: a violin. Nicola Bussoti, a master violin craftsman, has created the "most perfect acoustic machine," in hope of his unborn son to be a great musician. Human Genome Project and Mayan Calendar HUMAN GENOME PROJECT: - In 1991 Michael Coe wrote Breaking the Mayan Code in which he said knowing how this language was 'both phonetic as well as pictographic was as important as the Human Genome Project and space colonization'. Personally I think it is very important to see the Mayans had a language understandable in many contexts across numerous tribes and people. Brazil--Comments by a Gilliam Fan a Little Too Late Either I am one of the darkest people ever or this was not one of the darkest movies ever made as its own packaging claims. I have vowed to myself not to use the following words: Orwellian or futuristic, though I had to use that sentence to get them out and make room for free, original thought. Astrologers Just Plain Stupid? We live at an interesting time of scientific knowledge. Scientists say that you cannot gain an advantage over the Casino, since the odds are stacked against you. The History of Thai Currency - from Ancient Beads to Modern Baht The history of Thailand currency traces the evolution of the medium of exchange used in Thailand prior to the 1st century. This dates from the days of barter trade, ancient beads and money in various shapes and sizes till the currency in modern times. Sterling Silver Jewelry - The Rest Of The Story Silver is widely diffused but is rarely found in the native state.Silver is originally as widespread as gold, occurring in nearly all of the volcanic rocks. OM to Ogham Plato observed that the advent of an alphabet making writing efficient for average people actually lead to less knowledge or disciplined communication. We need not blame the Phoenicians for this because people really could benefit from writing. Tarot Cards Demystified: The Suit of Pentacles There are many ways to interpret the symbolism found in Tarot Cards. There are varying points of view that exist about what each card means or represents. Crazy Horse My ancestry includes Colonel Miles (or Myles) Keough (or Keogh) through a relationship that apparently was not formalized with a lady who attended his grave, in a story made famous by many books on the matter. But it can only be true if this lady and her mother named Martin of the New York Governor's family, whose name is on the wedding certificate of my grandfather as a witness, kept the child a secret all her life. Hip-hop Jewelry and Todays Stars Watch any of the major movie, television, and music award shows on television today and one of the first things you'll notice about the celebrities on the red carpet, aside from their extravagant (and sometimes outlandish) attire, are the amount and size of the jewelry they are wearing. Hip-hop jewelry, more commonly known as bling-bling, is definitely not understated fashion. Learn How to Solve Problems With a Feng Shui Mirror A mirror, when becoming a feng shui mirror, can be used to many more things than allowing us to see how we look. Feng shui teaches how a feng shui mirror can be used in order to solve many different problems, and we will describe some of these uses through the next few lines. Copper Keels and Red Ochre Copper Keels:Nature provides varying resources in different parts of the world. In Ireland the use of leather in boat-building made sense. Carly Patterson: What Makes A Champion? If you have been following gymnastics for any length of time, odds are you have heard of a particular gymnast by the name of Carly Patterson. You probably also know that she is one of the youngest female Olympic gymnasts ever - and that she has stunned the world of late with her astounding abilities.
|
| home | index |site map |
| © 2006 |
