Editing Ayutthaya Kingdom (section)

==History==
===Origins===
{{See also|History of Thailand|Xiān|Lavo Kingdom|Suphannabhum}}
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 [[Suphannabhum]], which dominated the west. The western lower Chao Phraya Basin was also influenced by [[Khmer Empire|Angkorian]] culture but not direct Angkorian political and military influence.<ref name=":4">{{cite book |last1=Lieberman |first1=Victor B. |last2=Victor |first2=Lieberman |title=Strange Parallels: Southeast Asia in Global Context, c. 800–1830 |date= 2014 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-511-65854-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vQl2AQAACAAJ |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":7"/> Ayutthaya, argued by [[Charnvit Kasetsiri]], was the merger of four different port polities along the Lower Chao Phraya Basin: Lopburi (Lavo),<ref name="thai-heritage.org">{{Cite web |title=AYUTTHAYA {{!}} National Virtual Museum |url=https://thai-heritage.org/ayutthaya/ |access-date=2023-10-15 |language=en-US}}</ref> 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 [[Vijayanagara Empire|Vijaynagar empire]] between 1400 and 1500.<ref name=":8">{{cite journal |last1=Smith |first1=R. B. |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bulletin-of-the-school-of-oriental-and-african-studies/article/abs/charnvit-kasetsiri-the-rise-of-ayudhya-a-history-of-siam-in-the-fourteenth-and-fifteenth-centuries-east-asian-historical-monographs-xii-194-pp-kuala-lumpur-etc-oxford-university-press-1976-1425/159F505F141EF6AE6E7A0222D188A96A |title=Charnvit Kasetsiri: The rise of Ayudhya: a history of Siam in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. (East Asian Historical Monographs.) xii, 194 pp. Kuala Lumpur, etc.: Oxford University Press, 1976. £14.25. |journal=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies |date=February 1978 |volume=41 |pages=202–203 |doi=10.1017/S0041977X00058286 |s2cid=161257067 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/history-of-ayutthaya/52FC0674CC0532A8F1EDB01CC37E703B |title=A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |date=2017 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-19076-4}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Lieberman |first1=Victor B. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vQl2AQAACAAJ |title=Strange Parallels: Southeast Asia in Global Context, c. 800–1830 |last2=Victor |first2=Lieberman |date=2014 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-511-65854-9 |language=en}}</ref> The earliest written records of Ayutthaya in the Chinese chronicles is that a Chinese official fled to Xian in 1282/83. Xian first sent an embassy to the Yuan dynasty in 1292, after which the Yuan requested another embassy. While older and traditional scholars argue that the ethnically Thai [[Sukhothai Kingdom|Sukhothai]] or Suphanburi was the ''Xiān''<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://lek-prapai.org/home/view.php?id=5382 |title=รายการ "อดีตในอนาคต" ตอนที่ ๑๗ สุพรรณภูมิ |access-date=10 May 2020 |archive-date=19 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519112555/http://lek-prapai.org/home/view.php?id=5382%2F |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=":8" /> mentioned in Chinese sources, more recent scholarship, like [[Chris Baker (writer)|Chris Baker]] and [[Pasuk Phongpaichit]], argue that ''Xian'' referred to Ayutthaya as that 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.<ref name=":1"/><ref name=VickeryReview />

One of the earliest foreign sources to mention [[Xiān]] are the [[Đại Việt]] texts compiled during the reign of [[Lý Anh Tông]], says merchants from Xiān Kingdom ({{lang|zh|暹羅}}) and others arrived at ''Hǎidōng'' ({{lang-vi-hantu|海東}}) and requested permission to trade and set up a trading post at ''Yún tún'' ({{lang-vi-hantu|雲屯}}) in 1149.<ref name=ctext/><sup>{{hatnote inline|:line 61}}</sup> Other requests for trade were sent in 1241<ref name=ctext/><sup>{{hatnote inline|:line 29}}</sup> and 1360.<ref name=ctext3>{{cite web|url=https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=310580|title=大越史記全書 《卷之七》|work=中國哲學書電子化計劃|language=zh|accessdate=11 November 2024|trans-title=The Complete Historical Records of Dai Viet "Volume 7"|archivedate=18 November 2022|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20221118182144/https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=310580}}</ref><sup>{{hatnote inline|:line 109}}</sup> Xian also sent tributes to [[Đại Việt]] in 1182<ref name=ctext/><sup>{{hatnote inline|:line 25}}</sup> and 1334.<ref>[[wikisource:zh:摩崖紀功文| 摩崖紀功文]]; {{hatnote inline|original text:歲在乙亥，季秋，帝親率六師巡于西鄙，占城國世子、眞臘國、暹國及蠻酋道匡、葵禽、車勒，新附杯盆蠻酋道聲，車蠻諸部各奉方物，爭先迎見。獨逆俸執迷，畏罪未即來朝。季冬，帝駐蹕于密州巨屯之原，乃命諸將及蠻夷之兵入于其國，逆俸望風奔竄，遂降詔班師。}}</ref> In 1313–1315, Xiān attempted to annex [[Champa]] but failed due to the reinforcements from [[Đại Việt]].<ref name=ctext2>{{cite web|url=https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=813962|title=大越史記全書 《卷之六》|work=中國哲學書電子化計劃|language=zh|accessdate=11 November 2024|trans-title=The Complete Historical Records of Dai Viet "Volume 6"}}</ref><sup>{{hatnote inline|:line 148}}</sup><ref name=champa>{{Citation|last=Na Nakhon|first=Prasert|type=Thesis|pages=110–223|trans-title=Stories Related To The Sukhothai Stone Inscriptions|year=1998|title=เรื่องเกี่ยวกับศิลาจารึกสุโขทัย|url=https://kukr.lib.ku.ac.th/kukr_es/prasert/search_detail/dowload_digital_file/23734%0A%0A%0A%0A/18321|archivedate=11 November 2024|publication-place=Bangkok|publisher=[[Kasetsart University]]|language=th|isbn=974-86374-6-8|access-date=30 October 2024|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20241111000000/https://kukr.lib.ku.ac.th/kukr_es/prasert/search_detail/dowload_digital_file/23734%0A%0A%0A%0A/18321}} [https://archive.org/details/stories-related-to-the-sukhothai-stone-inscriptions Alt URL]</ref>{{rp|121–3}} There was also a record of [[Thai people|Siamese]] led by ''Passara'', son of the king of Siam, settled in [[Java]] and established the city of ''Passaraan'' in 800 CE.<ref name=java>{{cite book|url=https://dn790000.ca.archive.org/0/items/historyofjava01raff/historyofjava01raff.pdf|title=History of Java|author=[[Stamford Raffles]]|publisher=|place=London|date=1817}}</ref>{{rp|xvi}}

Archaeological findings have found evidence of buildings on the island of Ayutthaya prior to 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 the traditional founding of the kingdom in 1351.<ref name=":1"/> Recent archaeological works reveal pre-existing [[baray]]s 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 a previous monk had been honored by the "King of Ayodhia" on his return from [[Sri Lanka|Lanka]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |title=A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World |date=2017 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=44–46 |edition=Kindle |url=https://www.amazon.com/History-Ayutthaya-Early-Modern-World-ebook/dp/B071KX8HY5/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= |language=English}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GHiuDgAAQBAJ |title=A History of Ayutthaya |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-107-19076-4 |pages=43 |language=en}}</ref> Other contemporary scholars argued that Ayutthaya had been an important commercial center since the 11th century or at least several centuries prior to 1351.<ref name=VickeryReview>{{cite web |url=https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/1979/03/JSS_067_2k_Vickery_ReviewArticleNewTamnanAboutAyutthaya.pdf |first=Charnvit |last=Kasetsiri |title=Review Article: A New Tamman About Ayudhya – The Rise of Ayudhya: A History of Siam in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries}}</ref>

21st-century archaeological surveys found that the name of the pre-Ayutthaya cities on the Khao Kop Inscription dated to the 14th–15th centuries is '''Ayodhaya Sriramthep Nakorn''' ({{langx|th|อโยธยาศรีรามเทพนคร}}),<ref>[https://db.sac.or.th/inscriptions/inscribe/image_detail/25692 Wat Khao Kop Inscription Face 2]. ''Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre''. Retrieved on 11 October 2024.</ref> as stated in 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).<ref name="phiromanukul.2024"/>{{rp|68}} 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<ref>The Fine Arts Department of Thailand. (1978). ''Rūang Kotmāi trā 3 dūang'' [Three Seals Law] ''เรื่องกฎหมายตราสามดวง'' (in Thai). Bangkok: The Fine Arts Department of Thailand. p. 414. {{OCLC|934462978}}</ref> (not to be confused with King [[Uthong]] reigning from 1351 to 69). It was also found that [[Thai language|Thai]] was used as the official language at that time, which reflected the social changes of the people in the Chao Phraya River Basin.<ref name="phiromanukul.2024">Phiromanukul, Rungrot. (2024). ''Ayōthayā kō̜n Sukhōthai ton kamnœ̄t Ayutthayā'' [Ayodhaya before Sukhothai, the origin of Ayutthaya] ''อโยธยาก่อนสุโขทัย ต้นกำเนิดอยุธยา'' (in Thai). Bangkok: Matichon. pp. 68, 295–296. {{ISBN|978-974-0-21878-4}} {{OCLC|1423565170}}</ref>{{rp|295–296}}

The existence of ''Ayodhya Sri Rama Thep Nakhon'' is also mentioned in the Burmese chronicle, ''[[Hmannan Yazawin]]'', which mentions the Gywan warriors, who are descendants of the [[Northern Thai people|Thai Yuan]],<ref name=giles>Giles, Francis H. "[https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/JSS_030_3b_Giles_AnalysisOfVanVlietsAccountContinued.pdf Analysis of Van Vliet's Account of Siam, Part Eight: Concerning Titles in Siam]," ''The Journal of the Siam Society'' 30(3)(1938): 332. "Arawsa is undoubtedly Ayocha (Ayudhya) and the Gyawns are descendants of the Thai Yuan who accompanied Prince Phromkuman of Yonoknakhon in his victorious war against the Khom when he came as far South as Khamphaengsaen."</ref> marched to [[Thaton kingdom]] in 1056 AD as inscribed on the Burmese inscriptions at Arakan Pagoda, [[Mandalay]].<ref name=burma>Archaeological Survey of Burma (ed.). (1897). ''Inscriptions copied from the stones collected by King Bodawpaya and placed near the Arakan Pagoda, Mandalay, Vol. II''. Rangoon: SGP. p. 627.</ref> The ''Hmannan Yazawin'' said the south-eastward country of the Gywans, also called ''Ayoja''.<ref>The Text Publication Fund of the Burma Research Society. (1923). [https://ia904706.us.archive.org/4/items/in.ernet.dli.2015.81533/2015.81533.The-Glass-Palace-Chronicle-Of-The-Kings-Of-Burma_text.pdf ''The Glass Palace Chronicle of the Kings of Burma'']. (Translated by Pe Maung Tin and G.H. Luce). LONDON: Oxford University Press. p. 106. "... south-eastward the country of the Gywans, also called Ayoja; ..."</ref> [[George Cœdès]] pointed out that ''Ayoja'' or ''Arawsa'' meant Ayudhya or Siam.<ref>Cœdès, George. "[https://www.persee.fr/doc/befeo_0336-1519_1925_num_25_1_3044 Documents sur l'Histoire Politique et Religieuse du Laos Occidental]," ''Bulletin de l'École française d'Extrême-Orient'' 25(1925): 24. {{doi|10.3406/befeo.1925.3044|doi-access=free}} {{ISSN|1760-737X}} "''Le Hmannan Yazawin (trad. Maung Tin et Luce, pp. 99 et 106) place les Gywam au Sud-Est des Birmans et dit que leur contrée est aussie appelée Arawsa ou Ayoja,c'est-à-dire Ayudhya = le Siam.''"</ref>

The Malay annals (''Sulalatus Salatin'') and History of the Malay Kingdom of Patani (''Sejarah Kerajaan Melayu Patani'') stated that prior to 1160 CE, the Siam-Thai of Ayutthaya (Tai-Shan's or Siam-Asli, literally "aboriginal Siamese") were migrating southward and penetrating far into the Malay Peninsula.<ref>Multiple sources:
* Syukri, Ibrahim. (1985). [https://archive.org/details/historyofmalayki0000ibra/page/6/mode/2up ''History of the Malay Kingdom of Patani (Sejarah Kerajaan Melayu Patani)'']. (Translated by Conner Bailey and John N. Miksic).The Monographs in International Studies Southeast Asia, No. 68. Athens, OH: Center for International Studies, Ohio University. p. 7. {{ISBN|0896801233}}
* Thompson, Peter Anthony. (1910). ''Siam: An Account of the Country and the People''. Boston, MA; Tokyo: J.B. Millet Company. p. 22. {{LCCN|10030568}} {{OL|6525212M}}</ref> The History of the Malay Kingdom of Patani highlights the fact that Patani rulers treated the Siam-Thai of Ayutthaya (but not [[Sukhothai Kingdom]]) as equals rather than vassals when discussing the southward expansion of Siam.<ref>Liow, Joseph Chinyong. (2009). ''Islam, Education, and Reform in Southern Thailand: Tradition & Transformation''. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. p. 108. {{ISBN|978-981-230-953-2}}</ref> In the 12th century, the [[Malays (ethnic group)|Malays]] were successful in establishing states such as [[Kedah Sultanate|Kedah]], [[Malacca Sultanate|Melaka]], and [[Temasek]]. However, [[Patani Kingdom|Patani]] and other surrounding territories remained under the control of the aboriginal Siamese.<ref>Jory, Patrick. (2013). ''Ghosts of the Past in Southern Thailand: Essays on the History and Historiography of Patani''. Singapore: National University of Singapore (NUS Press). p. 261 {{ISBN|978-9971-69-635-1}}</ref>

====Pre-Ayutthaya cities====
{{for|list of rulers during the Pre-Ayutthaya era|Lavo Kingdom#After 11th century: Ayodhya as seat}}

Archaeology surveys performed near Wat Khun Mueang Jai have found traces of pre–1100s buildings. Old temples in the area to the east may have been forest monasteries, similar to the pattern of other early towns. Digs have yielded pottery shards dating back to the 1270s.<ref name=chris/>{{rp|46}} According to the Northern Chronicle, the earliest settlement was found in 934{{efn-lr|name=A}} on the south bank of [[Lopburi River]] near the present-day [[Wat Thammikarat]] by a royal lineage from Bang Pan (present-day in [[Phran Kratai district|Phran Kratai]], [[Kamphaeng Phet province|Kamphaeng Phet]]), Phra Maha Buddha Sakorn (พระมหาพุทธสาคร),{{sfn|Thepthani|1953|p=95}} who ruled the city until he died in 964.<ref name=p60/>{{rp|30}} However, his successor was despoiled by Narai (not to be confused with King [[Narai]] reigning from 1656 to 88), the son of King Chadachota from Lavo Kingdom,<ref name=p60/>{{rp|33}} who was of the [[Suphannabhum]] lineage.<ref name=yonok>{{cite web|url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A3%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%81_-_%E0%B9%81%E0%B8%8A%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%A1_%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%B8%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%84_-_%E0%B9%92%E0%B9%94%E0%B9%97%E0%B9%99.pdf|title=Yonok Chronicle|date=1936|access-date=16 December 2024|language=th}}</ref>{{rp|191}} Narai renamed the city Ayodhya ({{lang|th|อโยธยา}}) and eventually set it [[Lavo Kingdom|Lavo]]'s new capital.<ref name=mati>{{cite web|url=https://www.matichon.co.th/news-monitor/news_771434|title=3,000ปี ลพบุรีไม่เคยร้าง "ขรรค์ชัย-สุจิตต์" ชวนทอดน่องเมืองละโว้ ค้นต้นกำเนิดอยุธยา|date=18 December 2017|accessdate=26 October 2023|language=th|work=[[Matichon]]|archivedate=26 October 2023|archiveurl=https://archive.today/20231026145922/https://www.matichon.co.th/news-monitor/news_771434}}</ref> The former capital was then renamed [[Lopburi]].{{sfn|Thepthani|1953|p=101}} The majority of Ayodhya's inhabitants are supposed to have migrated from [[Dvaravati]]'s [[Ayodhyapura|Ayojjhapura]] following its fall in 946, as well as residents from [[Lavo Kingdom|Lavo]]'s [[Lopburi|Lavapura]] who fled after the city was destroyed by [[Angkor]] in 1001.<ref name=mati2>{{cite web|url=https://www.matichonweekly.com/column/article_563337|archive-url=https://archive.today/20241218222126/https://www.matichonweekly.com/column/article_563337|url-status=dead|archive-date=2024-12-18|title=ฤๅเมืองโบราณศรีเทพ คือ 'อโยธยา-มหานคร' ในตำนานพระแก้วมรกต และตำนานพระสิกขีปฏิมาศิลาดำ?|date=16 June 2022|accessdate=19 December 2024|language=th|work=[[Matichon]]|trans-title=Is the ancient city of Sri Thep the ‘Ayutthaya-the metropolis’ in the legend of the Emerald Buddha and the legend of the black stone Buddha Sikhi Patima?|author=Pensupa Sukkata}}</ref> The rising of Ayodhya happened after the fall of [[Kamalanka]] or Mevilimbangam, centered at [[Nakhon Pathom]], which was sacked by the [[Chola]] and [[Pagan Kingdom|Pagan]] in 1030 and 1058, respectively.<ref name=kama>{{cite web|url=https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/1974/03/JSS_062_1m_ChandChirayuRajani_ReviewArticleBackgroundToSriVijaya.pdf|title=Background to the Sri Vijaya Story – Part I|author=Chand Chirayu Rajani|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200725075434/https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/1974/03/JSS_062_1m_ChandChirayuRajani_ReviewArticleBackgroundToSriVijaya.pdf |archive-date=25 July 2020 }}</ref>{{rp|180–3}}<ref name=fineart>{{cite book|url=https://www.finearts.go.th/storage/contents/2022/11/file/mcpd33eEWS9MvfPoHfCcII65qwbmCUAG4DUnaWRO.pdf|title=โบราณวิทยาเรื่องเมืองอู่ทอง|page=232|place=Bangkok|trans-title=Archaeology of U Thong City|author=[[Fine Arts Department]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241110084007/https://www.finearts.go.th/storage/contents/2022/11/file/mcpd33eEWS9MvfPoHfCcII65qwbmCUAG4DUnaWRO.pdf |archive-date=2024-11-10 |language=th}}</ref>{{rp|95, 105}}  Ayodhya then overshadowed Lopburi and other cities in the lower Chaophraya Plain by exploiting opportunities created by the decline of the [[Srivijaya]] trading network in the 13th century.<ref name=chris/>{{rp|47}} 

After the end of Narai's reign in 1087, Ayodhya fell under the power struggles between nine [[amatya]]s for two years,{{sfn|Thepthani|1953|p=101}} and was won by Phra Chao Luang (พระเจ้าหลวง), who relocated the city, in 1097, southward to the east bank of the [[Chao Phraya River]] near the mouth of the Mae Bea River (แม่น้ำแม่เบี้ย), south of the present [[Wat Phanan Choeng]].{{sfn|Thepthani|1953|p=102}} However, since he had no male heir, he had his only daughter marry Sai Nam Peung ({{lang|th|สายน้ำผึ้ง}}),{{sfn|Thepthani|1953|p=103–4}} son of Kraisornrat ({{lang|th|ไกรศรราช}}) who was of [[Mon people|Mon]]'s [[Mueang Chaliang|Chaliang]] and [[Tai people|Tai]]'s [[Chiang Saen]] lineages and served as the [[Lopburi|Lavapura]] king at that time.<ref name=p60/>{{rp|21, 23}} Their descendants, later known as the Uthong (Lavo) dynasty, continued to rule Ayodhya until the traditional establishment of the Ayutthaya Kingdom in 1351.

During the pre-Aytthaya period, Ayodhya was mentioned as ''[[Xiān]]'' ({{lang|zh|暹}}; or Siam)<ref name=chris>{{cite book|chapter-url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/history-of-ayutthaya/ayutthaya-rising/8AAECCAD77F21CEB4103936A97D3F176|date=2 September 2021|accessdate=22 April 2025|author1=Chris Baker|author2=Pasuk Phongpaichit|chapter=Ayutthaya Rising|title= A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World|publisher=Cambridge University Press|pp=43–8|archivedate=22 April 2025|archiveurl=https://ia801403.us.archive.org/15/items/ayutthaya-rising/Ayutthaya%20Rising.pdf|isbn=9781108120197|doi=10.1017/9781108120197|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/a-history-of-ayutthaya/52FC0674CC0532A8F1EDB01CC37E703B}}</ref>{{rp|46}} in several Chinese and [[Đại Việt]] texts from 1149<ref name=ctext>{{cite web|url=https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=771692|title=大越史記全書 《卷之四》|work=中國哲學書電子化計劃|language=zh|accessdate=11 November 2024|archivedate=5 July 2022|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705194437/https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=771692|trans-title=The Complete Historical Records of Dai Viet "Volume 4"}}</ref><sup>{{hatnote inline|:line 61}}</sup> to the official establishment of the Ayutthaya Kingdom in 1351.<ref name=xi>{{cite web|url=https://www.matichon.co.th/politics/news_3927751|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250116002007/https://www.matichon.co.th/politics/news_3927751|url-status=dead|archive-date=2025-01-16|title=อ.ธรรมศาสตร์เปิดผลขุดค้น ‘อโยธยา’ ก่อนตั้งกรุงศรีฯ แนะชั่งน้ำหนักปมรถไฟความเร็งสูง ความเจริญต้องคู่อนุรักษ์|date=15 April 2024|accessdate=16 January 2025|language=th|work=[[Matichon]]|trans-title=Thammasat University lecturer reveals excavation results of 'Ayutthaya' before the establishment of Krung Sri, suggests weighing the issue of high-speed trains, development must go hand in hand with conservation.}}</ref> There are many records of Xiān invasion of [[Champa]],<ref name=ctext2>{{cite web|url=https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=813962|title=大越史記全書 《卷之六》|work=中國哲學書電子化計劃|language=zh|accessdate=11 November 2024|trans-title=The Complete Historical Records of Dai Viet "Volume 6"}}</ref><sup>{{hatnote inline|:line 148}}</sup> ''Dān mǎ xī'' ({{lang|zh|單馬錫}}, identified as far as Tumasik, or [[Singapore]]),<ref name=xian>{{cite journal|url=https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2004/03/JSS_092_0d_Ishii_ExploringNewApproachToEarlyThaiHistory.pdf|title=Exploring a New Approach to Early Thai History|date=2004|volume=92|journal=Journal of the Siam Society|author=Yoneo Ishii|pages=37–42|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715205744/https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2004/03/JSS_092_0d_Ishii_ExploringNewApproachToEarlyThaiHistory.pdf |archive-date=2020-07-15 }}</ref>{{rp|39}} Xī lǐ ({{lang|zh|昔里}}),<ref name=xian/>{{rp|39}} Ma-li-yü-êrh (Melayu),<ref name=luce>{{cite journal|url=https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/1958/03/JSS_046_2b_Luce_EarlySyamInBurmasHistory.pdf|title=The Early Syam in Burma's History|author=Luce, G.H.|journal=[[Journal of the Siam Society]]|volume=46|date=1958|pages=123–213|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240701080246/https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/1958/03/JSS_046_2b_Luce_EarlySyamInBurmasHistory.pdf |archive-date=2024-07-01 }}</ref>{{rp|140}} and [[Samudera Pasai Sultanate]] on [[Sumatra]],<ref name=sri>{{cite web|url=https://www.sac.or.th/portal/th/article/detail/608|archive-url=https://archive.today/20241105234239/https://www.sac.or.th/portal/th/article/detail/608|url-status=dead|archive-date=2024-11-05|title=ปาไซ-สยามยุทธ์: "พ่อขุนแดนใต้" รบ "แขกสุมาตรา"|date=17 May 2024|trans-title=Pasai-Siam Wars: "King of the South" fights the "Muslim"|language=th|author=Tongjai Hutangkur|work=[[Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre]]}}</ref> as well as a well-known bas relief panel of [[Angkor Wat]] showing mercenaries of the Khmer army, who, among others, are identified as ''syam-kuk'', perhaps "of the land of Siam." One cannot be certain what ethnolinguistic group these mercenaries belonged to, but many scholars have thought them to be [[Thai people|Siam people]].<ref name=preecha>{{cite journal|url=https://ans-names.pitt.edu/ans/article/view/1181/1180|title=Thai or Siam?|author=Preecha Juntanamalaga|pages=69–84|journal=Names a Journal of Onomastics|volume=36|issue=1–2|date=1988|doi=10.1179/nam.1988.36.1-2.69|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320123829/https://ans-names.pitt.edu/ans/article/view/1181/1180 |archive-date=2022-03-20 }}</ref>{{rp|70}} In 1431, a [[Ryukyu Kingdom|Ryukyu]] ship reported that “the King of Xian had punished the previous chief of [[Palembang]] and had put a new chief in power.<ref name=chris/>{{rp|49}}

According to [[The Customs of Cambodia]] written by [[Zhou Daguan]] as an official delegation sent by the [[Yuan Dynasty]] to [[Angkor]] from 1296–1297, the Siamese people exerted significant influence over [[Lavo Kingdom|Lavo]]'s [[Lopburi|Lavapura]] and appeared in huge numbers in the Angkorian capital of [[Yasodharapura]].<ref>{{cite journal|title=Reviewed Work: A record of Cambodia: the land and its people by Zhou Daguan, Peter Harris, David Chandler|journal = Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde|volume = 166|issue = 1|pages = 155–157|jstor = 27868568|last1 = Leang|first1 = UN|year = 2010}}</ref><ref name="siamese">{{cite book |author=Zhou Daguan|title=A Record of Cambodia: The Land and Its People|translator=Peter Harris |publisher=Silkworm Books |year= 2007 |isbn=978-1628401721 }}</ref> It was recored by Zhou Daguan that Cambodia also imported cloth and silkworms from Xian, and suffered from repeated attacks by its people.<ref name=chris/>{{rp|46}} Thus, the Siamese invasion of Angkor might have begun in the 1290s.<ref name="Coedes2">{{cite book |last=Coedès |first=George |title=The Indianized States of Southeast Asia |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |others=trans. Susan Brown Cowing |year=1968 |isbn=978-0-8248-0368-1 |editor=Walter F. Vella |author-link=George Coedès}}</ref>{{rp|211}}<ref name="Maspero">Maspero, G., 2002, The Champa Kingdom, Bangkok: White Lotus Co., Ltd., {{ISBN|9747534991}}</ref>{{rp|90}}

{{multiple image
|align = center
|total_width=550
|image1=Khao Khlang Nak-004.jpg
|caption1=Ruin in [[Si Thep Historical Park|Si Thep]], which was speculated to be [[Dvaravati]]'s [[Ayodhyapura|Ayojjhapura]],<ref name=mati2/> the predecessor to Ayodhya.<ref name=13th>{{cite journal|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20072298|title=Relics, Oaths and Politics in Thirteenth-Century Siam|date=2020|author=[[David K. Wyatt]]|journal=Journal of Southeast Asian Studies|volume=32|issue=1|pp=3–65|archivedate=13 April 2025|archiveurl=https://archive.org/details/relics-oaths-and-politics-in-thirteenth-century-siam}}</ref>{{rp|56}}
|image2=Watpanuncheung.jpg
|caption2=[[Wat Phanan Choeng]], founded in the pre-Ayutthaya period during the reign of Ayodhya's King Sai Nam Peung (r. 1111–1165)
|image3=Siamese Mercenaries Angkor Wat 0876.jpg
|caption3=Image of Siamese mercenaries  of [[Xiān]] in [[Angkor Wat]], dated the 12th century. The Siamese later became a major rival of [[Angkor]].
}}

====Traditional founding of Ayutthaya====
Ayutthaya was traditionally founded by King [[Uthong]] on 4 March 1351.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |title=A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World |date=2017 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=43 |edition=Kindle |url=https://www.amazon.com/History-Ayutthaya-Early-Modern-World-ebook/dp/B071KX8HY5/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= |language=English}}</ref> 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, a fugitive Chinese prince from the sea, a Khmer noble from Angkor, a ruler from one of the gulf cities, or a [[Chola dynasty|Chola]]."<ref>{{cite web |title=The Siam Society Lecture: A History of Ayutthaya (28 June 2017) | website=[[YouTube]] | date=21 May 2020 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xA5I0jxoV8 |language=en |quote=14:53}}</ref> Other than being the legendary founder of Ayutthaya, the only thing known about Uthong in the chronicles is the year of his death.<ref name=":1"/>

Before the official establishment of the kingdom, the lower [[Chao Phraya River|Menam Valley]] entered the conflict-free era in the 12th century; artifacts and ruins dating back to the 12th–13th centuries found in the area indicate that there was a massive migration from surrounding neighbors, such as the [[Khmer people|Khmer]] from the east, the [[Mon people|Mon]] from the west, and the [[Tai people|Tai]]-[[Mon people|Mon]] from the north. Several modern mandalas then emerged, such as [[Suphannabhum]], [[Phip Phli]], [[Sukhothai Kingdom|Sukhothai]], as well as Ayutthaya Kingdom.<ref name=suphan>{{cite journal|title=การสังเคราะห์องค์ความรู้ประวัติศาสตร์รัฐสุพรรณภูมิ จังหวัดสุพรรณบุรี ด้วยกระบวนการการมีส่วนร่วม|trans-title=Synthesis of Suphannabhume historical Knowledge in Suphanburi Province by Participatory Process|language=th|date=2017|journal=Journal of Nakhonratchasima College|volume=11|issue=1|pages=272–290|author=Chantas Piantham|url=http://journal.nmc.ac.th/th/admin/Journal/2560Vol11No1_724.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231210070743/http://journal.nmc.ac.th/th/admin/Journal/2560Vol11No1_724.pdf |archive-date=2023-12-10 }}</ref>{{rp|272–3}}

===Early maritime dominance===
[[File:Ayutthaya Kingdom map in the 14th century.png|200px|thumb|The Ayutthaya Kingdom (red) and the Northern Cities (blue) in the 14th century]]
[[File:Mandalas1360-2.png|thumb|right|Intersecting mandalas circa 1360: from north to south: [[Lan Xang]], [[Lanna]], [[Sukhothai Kingdom|Northern Cities]], Ayutthaya, [[Khmer Empire|Angkor]] and [[Champa]]]]
[[File:Fra Mauro World Map detail South East Asian mainland.jpg|thumb|Ayutthaya is shown in the [[Fra Mauro map]] of the world (c. 1450) under the name "Scierno", derived from the Persian "Shahr-I-Naw", meaning 'New City'<ref>{{cite news|first=Subhatra |last=Bhumiprabhas|url=http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/09/06/headlines/headlines_30012911.php|title=Scierno: the Land of Smiles|work=The Nation|access-date=2019-05-06|date=2006-09-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303222725/http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/09/06/headlines/headlines_30012911.php|archive-date=3 March 2016|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref>|200x200px]]
In the 1290s through to the 1490s, Ayutthaya sent forces down to the peninsula and demanded tribute from the Malay principalities down to [[Early history of Singapore|Temasek]] ([[Kingdom of Singapura|Singapura]] (modern Singapore)) and [[Sumatra]]. The early Ayutthaya polity 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 labeled 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: the early chronology in the palace chronicles does not correlate with the Ayutthaya temple chronicles nor the Chinese court chronicles.<ref name=":7"/><ref name="jstor.org" /><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wade |first1=Geoff |title=The "Ming shi-lu" as a Source for Thai History: Fourteenth to Seventeenth Centuries |journal=Journal of Southeast Asian Studies |date=2000 |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=273 |doi=10.1017/S0022463400017562 |jstor=20072252 |hdl=10722/42537 |s2cid=162645676 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20072252 |issn=0022-4634|hdl-access=free }}</ref>

The integrity of the patchwork of cities of the early Ayutthaya Kingdom was maintained largely through familial connections under the [[Mandala (Southeast Asian political model)|mandala system]].<ref name="higham">{{harvnb|Higham|1989|p=355}}</ref> King Uthong had his son, Prince [[Ramesuan (king of Ayutthaya)|Ramesuan]], the ruler of Lopburi (Lavo),<ref name="thai-heritage.org"/> his brother, the ruler of Praek Sriracha<ref>สมเด็จพระศรีราชาธิราช</ref>(in modern [[Chainat Province]]) and his brother-in-law, [[Borommarachathirat I|Khun Luang Pa-ngua]], the ruler of Suphanburi. The ruler of Phetchaburi was his distant relative.<ref>{{cite book |last1=ภูมิศักดิ์ |first1=จิตร |title=สังคมไทย ลุ่มแม่น้ำเจ้าพระยาก่อนสมัยศรีอยุธยา |date=2004 |publisher=สำนักพิมพ์ฟ้าเดียวกัน |isbn=974-92593-1-9}}</ref> 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|Muang Look Luang]]'' ({{langx|th|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 the two dynasties; the [[List of monarchs of Thailand#1st Uthong dynasty (1351–1370)|Uthong dynasty]] based on Lopburi (Lavo) and the [[List of monarchs of Thailand#1st Suphannaphum dynasty (1370–1388)|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 the cities at the head of the peninsula and slowly ascending up the Chao Phraya River Basin to the Northern Cities.<ref name=":1"/><ref name=":2">{{cite journal |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |date=2003 |title=Ayutthaya Rising: From Land or Sea? |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20072474 |journal=Journal of Southeast Asian Studies |volume=34 |issue=1 |pages=41–62 |doi=10.1017/S0022463403000031 |jstor=20072474 |s2cid=154278025 |issn=0022-4634}}</ref>

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 the Chinese court about constant Siamese attacks down the peninsula around this time period.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /><ref>{{cite journal|url=https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/JSS_095_0b_Rodao_CastiliansDiscoverSiam.pdf |title=The Castilians Discover Siam: Changing Visions and Self-discovery|author=Florentino Rodao|date=2007|journal=Journal of Siam Society|volume=95|archivedate=27 December 2024|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20241227222205/https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/JSS_095_0b_Rodao_CastiliansDiscoverSiam.pdf}}</ref>{{rp|7}}

===Age of warfare===
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 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, [[Fall of Angkor|Ayutthaya attacked Angkor]], but did not sack the city, although Ayutthaya did install a short-lived puppet ruler.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

Palace Law Codes under [[Borommatrailokkanat]] exemplified 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, [[Bago, Burma|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.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

====Transition to a hinterland state====
{{See also|Ayutthaya-Lan Na War|History of Phitsanulok Province}}
The Ayutthaya Kingdom shifted from 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 [[Sukhothai Kingdom|Northern Cities]], being the scion of generations of intermarriage between the two.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

Even though Borommatrailokkanat symbolized the merger between North and South, the [[Lan Na|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 [[History of Phitsanulok province|Phitsanulok]]. Lan Na suffered setbacks and Borommatrailokkanat eventually sued for peace in 1475.<ref name=":1"/>

Ayutthaya's sphere of influence down 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 dynasty|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 the [[capture of Malacca (1511)|capture of Malacca]] by the Portuguese.<ref name="malacca">{{cite book |last=Jin |first=Shaoqing |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QmpkR6l5MaMC&q=zheng+he+mansur+shah&pg=PA58 |title=Zheng He's voyages down the western seas |publisher=China Intercontinental Press |year=2005 |isbn=9787508507088 |editor=Office of the People's Government of Fujian Province |location=Fujian, China |page=58 |access-date=2 August 2009}}</ref> 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.

====Centralization and dominance of the Northern lords====
{{See also|Chatusadom|Muang}}
[[File:Three Chedi(s) of Wat Phra Si Sanphet.jpg|thumb|Three pagodas of [[Wat Phra Si Sanphet]] which house the remains of King [[Borommatrailokkanat]], [[Borommarachathirat III]], and [[Ramathibodi II]]]]
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 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 ({{langx|th|จตุสดมภ์}} lit. "Four Pillars), in which the court was led by two [[Prime Ministers]]; the ''[[Ministry of Interior (Thailand)|Samuha Nayok]]'' the Civil Prime Minister and the ''[[Ministry of Defence (Thailand)|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" 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 the capital to press their claims, culminating in several bloody coups.<ref name="succ">{{cite web |title=The Aytthaya Era, 1350–1767 |url=http://countrystudies.us/thailand/7.htm |access-date=25 July 2009 |website=U. S. Library of Congress}}</ref> 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.<ref name=":2"/><ref name=":1"/> The first real succession struggles in Ayutthaya occurred in the early 16th century, with the Northern lords playing a prominent role. Under the reign of [[Maha Chakkraphat]], the Northern lords, led by the Lord of Phitsanulok, [[Mahathammarachathirat (king of Ayutthaya)|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.<ref name=":1"/>

The 15th century also marked 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 a number of tributary states.<ref name=":1"/>

====First Burmese wars====
{{Main|Burmese–Siamese wars}}
[[File:Burmese-Siamese War of 1548-49.svg|thumb|200px|King [[Tabinshwehti]] of Pegu's [[Burmese–Siamese War (1547–49)|invasion of Ayutthaya in 1547–1549]].]]
Starting in the middle of the 16th century, the kingdom came under repeated attacks by the [[Taungoo dynasty]] of [[Burma]]. The [[Burmese–Siamese War (1547–49)|Burmese–Siamese War (1547–1549)]] resulted in a failed Burmese siege of Ayutthaya. [[Burmese–Siamese War (1563–1564)|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 the vassal king.<ref name="Phayre">{{cite book | title=  History of Burma, including Burma Proper, Pegu, Taungu, Tenasserim, and Arakan| last=Phayre|first=Sir Arthur P|year=1883|edition=1967|publisher=Susil Gupta|location=London}}</ref>{{RP|111}}<ref name="Harvey-1925">{{cite book | last=Harvey|first=G E |title=History of Burma|publisher=Frank Cass & Co. Ltd.| year=1925 | location=London}}</ref>{{RP|167–170}} In 1568, Mahinthrathirat revolted when his father managed to return from Pegu as a [[bhikkhu|Buddhist monk]]. [[Burmese–Siamese War (1568–1569)|The ensuing third siege captured Ayutthaya in 1569]] and Bayinnaung made [[Maha Thammaracha (king of Ayutthaya)|Maha Thammarachathirat]] (also known as Sanphet I) his vassal king, instating the [[List of Thai monarchs#Sukhothai dynasty (1569–1629)|Sukhothai dynasty]].<ref name="Harvey-1925"/>{{RP|167}}

In May 1584, less than three years after Bayinnaung's death, [[Uparaja]] [[Naresuan]] (or Sanphet II), 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 [[Burmese–Siamese War (1584–1593)|1593 during the fourth siege of Ayutthaya]] in which [[Naresuan]] famously slew Mingyi Swa,<ref name=Kohn>{{cite book |last1=Kohn |first1=George Childs |title=Dictionary of Wars |url=https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofwars0000kohn |url-access=registration |date=1999 |publisher=Facts on File, Inc. |location=New York |isbn=0-8160-3928-3 |edition=Revised}}</ref>{{RP|443}} although the existence of this battle has been challenged by modern scholars such as [[Sulak Sivaraksa]]. Today, this Siamese victory is [[Public holidays in Thailand#National observances|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 Region|Tanintharyi province]] in southeast Burma in 1593 and later the cities of [[Moulmein]] and [[Mottama|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.<ref name=Kohn/>{{RP|443}}

In 1613, after King [[Anaukpetlun]] reunited Burma and took control, 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).<ref name="Phayre"/>{{RP|127–130}}<ref name=Kohn/>{{RP|443}}

===Peace and commerce===
[[File:AMH-5638-KB Map of East India.jpg|thumb|left|Map of South East Asia, published by Nicolaas Visscher II (1649–1702). The map shows the entire trading region of the [[Dutch East India Company]] (VOC).]]
The cessation of warfare around 1600 gave way to a prolonged period of peace and commerce, beginning with the reign of [[Ekathotsarot|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 Shogunate|Tokugawa]] Japan. Ayutthaya therefore became 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.<ref name=":1"/>

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 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 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.<ref name=":1"/>

====Later Phitsanulok dynasty to early Prasat Thong dynasty====
[[File:Army-of-Yamada-Nagamasa-in-Ayutthaya-Kingdom.png|thumb|right|Pictured in this Siamese painting, the mercenary army of Japanese adventurer [[Yamada Nagamasa]] played a pivotal role in court intrigue during the first half of the 17th century.]]
In 1605, Naresuan died of illness while on campaign against a Burmese spillover conflict in the [[Shan State|Shan]] region, leaving a greatly expanded Siamese kingdom to be ruled by his younger brother, [[Ekathotsarot]] (Sanphet III).<ref name="Damrong">Rajanubhab, D., 2001, Our Wars With the Burmese, Bangkok: White Lotus Co. Ltd., {{ISBN|9747534584}}</ref>{{RP|173–180}} 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 the king.<ref name ="Chakrabongse">Chakrabongse, C., 1960, Lords of Life, London: Alvin Redman Limited</ref>{{RP|51}}

Ekathotsarot's era ended with his death in 1610/11.<ref name=":0" /> 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 was kidnapped and held hostage by Japanese merchants, and later murdered.<ref name="Damrong" />{{RP|203–206}} After this episode, the kingdom was handed to [[Songtham]], a lesser son born of Ekathotsarot and a first-class concubine.

[[File:Saraburi Wat Phra Buddha Baat.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Wat Phra Phutthabat]], Saraburi, constructed by King [[Songtham]] as a royal pilgrimage site]]
[[File:Wat Chaiwatthanaram by drone.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Wat Chaiwatthanaram]], constructed by King [[Prasat Thong]] during the Age of Peace and Commerce (1600–1688)]]
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, [[Post-Angkor period|Cambodia]] and Tavoy,<ref name ="Damrong" />{{RP|207–208}} expelled the [[Portuguese Empire|Portuguese]],<ref>{{cite web|author=Tricky Vandenberg |url=http://www.ayutthaya-history.com/Settlements_Portuguese.html |title=History of Ayutthaya – Foreign Settlements – Portuguese Settlement |publisher=Ayutthaya-history.com |access-date=2013-10-20}}</ref> and expanded Siam's foreign trade ties to include both the [[English East India Company]] and [[Louis XIV's East India Company|French East India Company]], along with new merchant colonies in Siam representing communities from all across Asia.<ref name="Chakrabongse"/>{{RP|53–54, 56}} Additionally, Songtham maintained the service of Yamada Nagamasa, whose Japanese mercenaries were at this point serving as the king's own [[royal guard]].<ref name="Damrong" />

As Songtham's life began to fade, 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.<ref name="Damrong" />{{RP|213}} Soon Prasat Thong became more powerful in Siam than 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.<ref name="Damrong" />{{RP|215–216}}

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 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.<ref name="Damrong" />{{RP|216}} 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 the remaining Japanese from Siam.<ref name="Chakrabongse" /> 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.<ref name="Chakrabongse" />

====Persian and French influences====
{{Main|Narai|Siamese revolution of 1688}}
{{multiple image
|align=right|direction=vertical|width=220
|width1=200
|image1=Bird's Eye View of Iudiad City (Ayutthaya) c1665.jpg
|caption1= Painting by [[Johannes Vingboons]] of Ayutthaya, c. 1665.
|width2=200
|image2=View of Iudea (Ayutthaya), Capital of Siam ca. 1662 (SK-A-4477).jpg
|caption2=Painting of Ayutthaya c. 1665, painted by Johannes Vingboons, ordered by the [[Dutch East India Company]], Amsterdam.}}
[[File:View of Ayutthaya City (Iudia) by Alain Mallet 1683.png|thumb|View of Ayutthaya City, by [[Alain Manesson Mallet|Alain Mallet]] 1683]]
[[File:Narai.JPG|thumb|left|180px|Statue of King [[Narai]], created in 1966, near [[Lopburi]] provincial hall.]]
Upon his death in 1656, King Prasat Thong was succeeded first by his eldest son, [[Chai (king of Ayutthaya)|Chai]], who was almost immediately deposed and executed by the late King's brother, [[Si Suthammaracha]], who in turn was defeated in single combat by his own nephew, [[Narai]].<ref name="Damrong" />{{RP|216–217}} 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.<ref name="Damrong" /> It should therefore come as no surprise that the era of King Narai 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.<ref name="wyatt2">{{harvnb|Wyatt|2003|pp=90–121}}</ref>

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.<ref>Rajanubhab</ref>{{RP|220–227}} Fighting along 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.<ref name="Phayre" />{{RP|139}}<ref name=Kohn/>{{RP|443–444}}

[[File:Audience with Narai, 1685-10-18 (b).jpg|thumb|200px|The French ambassador [[Chevalier de Chaumont]] presents a letter from Louis XIV to King Narai. Constance Phaulkon is seen kowtowing in the lower left corner of the print]]
[[File:Innocent XI Dec 1688.jpg|thumb|The Siamese embassy, with Father [[Guy Tachard]] meeting with [[Pope Innocent XI]], 23 December 1688]]
While commercially thriving, Narai's reign was also socially tumultuous. Much of this can be attributed to three-way conflict between the [[Dutch East India Company|Dutch]], [[Louis XIV's East India Company|French]], and [[English East India Company|English]] trading companies now operating in Siam at an unprecedented intensity due to Siam's role as 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]].<ref name = "Chakrabongse" />{{RP|58}} Soon, Narai began to welcome communities of French [[Jesuits]] into his court, and pursue closer relations with both France and [[Holy See|the Vatican]].<ref name="Damrong" />{{RP|243–244}} Indeed, the many diplomatic missions conducted by Narai to such far-flung lands are some of 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.<ref>{{cite book |author=Cruysse, Dirk van der |title=Siam and the West |publisher=Silkworm |location=Chiang Mai |year=2002 |pages=343}}</ref> During this time, Narai abandoned the traditional capital of [[Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya (city)|Ayutthaya]] for a new [[King Narai's Palace|Jesuit-designed palace]] in [[Lopburi]].<ref name="Damrong" />{{RP|250–251}}

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, 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.<ref name="Chakrabongse" />{{RP|63}} 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.<ref>[http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/317794/it-all-started-back-when-bangkok-was-just-a-french-fort When Bangkok was just a French fort]</ref> Much of this turmoil was primarily religious, as the French Jesuits were openly attempting to convert Narai and the royal family to [[Catholicism]].<ref name="Chakrabongse" />{{RP|62}}

[[File:Siege of Bangkok.JPG|thumb|The [[Siege of Bangkok|siege of the French fortress in Bangkok]] by the Siamese revolutionary forces of [[Phetracha]] in 1688.]]
Narai was courted not just by Catholic conversion, but as well by proselytizing Muslim Persians, [[Chams]] and [[Makassar people|Makassars]] in his court, the later of which communities launched an unsuccessful [[Makassar revolt of 1686|revolt in 1686]] to replace Narai with a Muslim puppet king.<ref name=MS>{{cite web|url=http://www.siamese-heritage.org/jsspdf/2001/JSS_090_0f_Smithies_AccountOfMakasarRevolt.pdf|author=Michael Smithies|title=Accounts of the Makassar Revolt, 1686|website=Siamese-heritage.org|access-date=28 September 2018}}</ref> While members of 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.<ref>{{cite book |author=Muhammad Rabi' ibn Muhammad Ibrahim |translator=J. O'Kane |title=The Ship of Sulaiman |publisher=Routledge |location=London |year=1972 |pages=98–99}}</ref>

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 the royal family, all of whom were put to death besides Narai, who died in captivity in July of that year.<ref name ="Damrong" /> {{RP|271–273}}<ref name ="Smithies" >''Mission Made Impossible: The Second French Embassy to Siam, 1687'', by Michael Smithies, Claude Céberet, Guy Tachard, Simon de La Loubère (2002) Silkworm Books, Thailand {{ISBN|974-7551-61-6}}</ref>{{RP|46, 184}} 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.<ref name = "Smithies" /> {{RP|184}}

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, 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.<ref name="Damrong" />{{RP|276–277}} 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 the Dutch.<ref name="Damrong" />{{RP|273–276}}

===Late Ayutthaya period===
[[File:Laos - Division territòriala vèrs 1750 (vuege).png|thumb|Ayutthaya and Mainland Southeast Asia in 1707. Note: Southeast Asian political borders remained relatively undefined until the modern period.]]
[[File:จิตรกรรมฝาผนังสมัยอยุธยา.JPG|thumb|18th-century Ayutthaya temple murals in [[Wat Ko Kaew Suttharam]], [[Phetchaburi]] constructed by King [[Borommakot]] (r. 1733–1758)]]

====Continued prosperity and increased Chinese connections====
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 the Burmese in 1767, stating: {{blockquote|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.<ref>Lieberman 2003, 299 (Kindle Edition)</ref><ref name="lieberman" /><ref>{{Cite book|last1=Baker|first1=Chris|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GHiuDgAAQBAJ|title=A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World|last2=Phongpaichit|first2=Pasuk|publisher=Cambridge University Press|pages=211–212, 258|year=2017|isbn=978-1-316-64113-2|location=|edition=Kindle}}</ref>}}

Instead, the 18th century was arguably the Ayutthaya Kingdom's most prosperous,<ref>{{cite web |title=Chris Baker and Pasuk Phongpaichit, "A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World |url=https://newbooksnetwork.com/chris-baker-and-pasuk-pongpaichit-a-history-of-ayutthaya-siam-in-the-early-modern-world-cambridge-up-2017 |website=New Books Network |language=en}}</ref> particularly due to trade with [[Qing dynasty|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 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–Siamese War (1765–1767)|Burmese invasions of the 1760s]],<ref>Lieberman 2003, 299 (Kindle Edition) "...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."</ref>{{sfn|Wyatt|2003|p=109}} whose post-Ayutthaya monarchs ([[Taksin]] and [[Rama I]]), held close ties, through blood and through political connections, to this [[Thai Chinese|Sino-Siamese]] community.<ref name="lieberman" />

====Succession conflicts and corruption====
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 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.<ref name="A History of Ayutthaya">{{cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |title=A History of Ayutthaya |date=2017 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-19076-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GHiuDgAAQBAJ |language=en}}</ref> 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 was executed for his alleged crimes.

Corruption was rampant due to economic prosperity. Position buying and bribery for political offices became commonplace.<ref name="A History of Ayutthaya"/>

====Introduction of capitalism, rise of commoners, and proto-nationalism====
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 the government phrai system in a variety of other ways, including entering the monkhood and fleeing into the wilderness.<ref name="A History of Ayutthaya"/>

A new category for people now appeared in the late Ayutthaya records, called phrai mangmi, or a rich "serf".<ref name="A History of Ayutthaya"/>

From 1688 onwards, the period was characterized by the increasing severity of commoner revolts. The 1688 mass commoner revolt against French Catholicism was unprecedented in Ayutthaya history prior to 1688.<ref name="A History of Ayutthaya"/> The revolts of 1688 also marked the beginning of proto-nationalism, in which the concept of a proto-Siamese Buddhist nationality was formed. However, Ayutthaya kings only occasionally viewed themselves as the defender of "the kingdom, people [sic], and Buddhism", which wouldn't be fully realized until the Thonburi and Bangkok regimes in response to the traumatic destruction of the Siamese state in 1767.<ref>{{cite journal |journal=Journal of Siam Society|page=91 |title=The image of the Burmese enemy in Thai perceptions and history writings|first=Sunait|last=Chutintaranond|url=https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/1992/03/JSS_080_1l_SunaitChutintaranond_ImageOfBurmeseEnemy.pdf|accessdate=30 August 2023|date=1992|archivedate=15 July 2020|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715205410/https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/1992/03/JSS_080_1l_SunaitChutintaranond_ImageOfBurmeseEnemy.pdf}}</ref><ref name=":4"/><ref name="A History of Ayutthaya"/>

====Nobility and Buddhism====
[[File:118 King Rajasingha makes Ven Saranankara Sangharaja (19820173144).jpg|thumb|180px|Painting of King [[Kirti Sri Rajasinha]] of [[Kandy]] (r. 1747–82) and [[Sinhalese people|Sinhalese]] monk [[Weliwita Sri Saranankara Thero]]]]
[[File:001 Wihan Phra Mongkhon Bophit (9197756441).jpg|thumb|Wihan Phra Mongkhon Bopit, one of King [[Borommakot]]'s major construction projects that drastically transformed the 18th century Ayutthaya skyline]]
The 150 years of prosperity brought significant fortunes to the Ayutthaya elite. The Ayutthaya elite created theatre tropes and held elaborate celebrations, funeral ceremonies, and were awarded royal titles, all of which was previously privilege only to royalty.

Kings and nobles now contested with one another for control of the decreasing pool of labor. Repeated Ayutthaya laws on improving the controls of labor highlighted the increasing failures of the elite to control the people.

The turmoil which resulted from increasing wealth resulted in the Ayutthaya nobility turning towards the reformation of Buddhism as a new source of societal order. This was symbolized with the reign of King Borommakot (1733–1758), who was championed as a pious king for having all the characteristics of a virtuous and pious [[Bodhisattva]]: building and restoring new temples and dramatically transforming the Ayutthaya skyline during his reign.<ref name="A History of Ayutthaya"/> In 1753, following the request made by a delegation of Sri Lankan monks who traveled to Ayutthaya, Borommakot sent two Siamese monks to reform [[Theravada Buddhism]] in [[Sri Lanka]].

It will however take until the early Rattanakosin period for the surviving Ayutthaya nobility (under the future King [[Rama I]] of the Rattanakosin Kingdom) to successfully reform Buddhism in their image and form a near unbroken bond between the Siamese monarchy and Buddhism lasting until the present in modern Thailand.<ref name="A History of Ayutthaya"/>

====Military and political situation to 1759====
In the period between 1600 and 1759, the scale of war subsided compared to the preceding era of warfare. Narai tried (and failed) to capture Chiang Mai in the 1650s and 1660s. Ayutthaya fought with the [[Nguyễn Lords]] (Vietnamese rulers of south Vietnam) for control of [[Cambodia]] starting around 1715. In contrast, the Ayutthaya Kingdom and the Restored Taungoo Burma overall generally engaged in harmonious relations with each other and traded an embassy with each other in the 17th century.

Ayutthaya's military organization had remained virtually unchanged for the next 150 years. Ayutthaya still heavily relied on its mercenary forces. It had failed to create an elite military caste like the [[Samurai]] of Japan or the [[Sikh]] [[Rajput]]s, perhaps due to Ayutthaya kings purposely undermining the creation of such an elite group of warriors that can significantly influence or challenge the throne. On the other hand, the city of Ayutthaya relied on the wet season monsoons making the city impenetrable to a siege for six months a year. Ayutthaya had over time amassed a huge stockpile of large cannons and arms that amazed the Burmese when they opened the treasury of Ayutthaya in the sack of Ayutthaya in 1767. It however lacked the men to arm these weapons, with the failure of the Ayutthaya corvee system and increased economic incentives for phrai to escape due to greater integration with the world's economy over the past 150 years of peace.<ref name=":7"/>

===Fall of Ayutthaya===
{{Main|Burmese–Siamese War (1759–1760)|Burmese–Siamese War (1765–1767)|Siege of Ayutthaya (1766–1767)}}
[[File:Burmese-Siamese war (1765-1767) map - EN - 001.jpg|thumb|175px|1765–1767 Burmese invasion routes]]
[[File:D85 3734 อนุสรณ์สถานแห่งชาติ The National Memorial of Thailand Photographed by Trisorn Triboon (27).jpg|thumb|250px|Modern depiction of the 1767 Fall of Ayutthaya]]
The weakened Burmese [[Toungoo dynasty]] was overthrown by the [[Mon people|Mons]] of [[Restored Hanthawaddy Kingdom]] in 1752.<ref name=":22">{{Cite book |last1=Topich |first1=William J. |title=The History of Myanmar |last2=Leitich |first2=Keith A. |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2013}}</ref>{{sfn|Wyatt|2003}}{{rp||page=116}} [[Alaungpaya|Aung Zeiya]], a local Burmese leader, arose against the Mons and reconquered [[Upper Myanmar|Upper Burma]], proclaiming himself [[Alaungpaya|King Alaungpaya]] and establishing militaristic regime of the new [[Konbaung dynasty]]. Alaungpaya proceeded to conquer the Mons of [[Lower Myanmar|Lower Burma]] in 1757,<ref name=":22" />{{sfn|Wyatt|2003}}{{rp||page=116}} unifying Burma under his rule. Next year, in 1758, the Mons rebelled in Lower Burma against Alaungpaya<ref name=":22" /> but were quelled and took refuge in Siamese-held [[Tanintharyi Region|Tenasserim Coast]]. Alaungpaya demanded that Siam repatriate the Mon rebels but Ayutthaya was not cooperative. The Burmese king was then convinced that Siam supported the Mon rebels. Alaungpaya also sought to expand his powers and glory in accordance with [[Chakravarti (Sanskrit term)|''Chakravartin'']] ideology of universal ruler.<ref name=":11">{{Cite book |last=Thant Myint-U |title=The River of Lost Footsteps |publisher=Faber & Faber |year=2011}}</ref> Alaungpaya marched his war-hardened Burmese armies to attack Ayutthaya in mid-1759 conquering Tenasserim, coming through the [[Singkhon Pass]] and attacking on the way to northwestern outskirts of [[Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya (city)|Ayutthaya city]] itself in early 1760. Ayutthaya was not prepared for war.{{sfn|Wyatt|2003}}{{rp||page=116}} Long absence of external threats and economic prosperity in the mid-eighteenth century rendered traditional conscription system useless and ineffective. Manpower shortage undermined Siamese defense system.<ref name=":52">{{Cite book |last1=Watson |first1=Noelle |title=Asia and Oceania: International Dictionary of Historic Places |last2=Schellinger |first2=Paul |last3=Ring |first3=Trudy |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2012}}</ref> Panicked Ayutthayan people beseeched the more-capable temple king Uthumphon to leave monkhood to lead the defenses. Fortunately, the treacherous wet rainy season arrived, obliging the Burmese to retreat. Alaungpaya himself was either ill and injured from cannon explosion, died on his way back to Burma in 1760. Ayutthaya was thus saved from Burmese conquest for one last time.

After the Burmese retreat, Siam did little to improve or reform its own military in preparation against Burmese invasions. Ekkathat pressured Uthumphon to return to monkhood permanently in mid-1760 and resumed powers. Prince Thepphiphit, who had been exiled to Ceylon previously in 1758, became involved in local rebellion and was repatriated to Siam in 1762,<ref name="Ruangsilp-2007">{{cite book |last=Ruangsilp |first=Bhawan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0xBGwFrYnaMC |title=Dutch East India Company Merchants at the Court of Ayutthaya: Dutch Perceptions of the Thai Kingdom c. 1604–1765 |publisher=Koninklijke Brill NV |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-300-08475-7 |place=Leiden, Netherlands |access-date=20 November 2009}}</ref> upsetting Ekkathat. The new Burmese king [[Hsinbyushin]], who had partaken in the 1759–1760 invasion of Siam, was determined to accomplish the unfinished campaign of his father Alaungpaya to conquer Ayutthaya. Burma conquest of Lanna (modern [[Northern Thailand]]) in 1763 and Laos in 1765 allowed Burmese access to vast manpower.<ref name=":6">{{Cite book |last1=Andaya |first1=Barbara Watson |title=A History of Early Modern Southeast Asia, 1400–1830 |last2=Andaya |first2=Leonard Y. |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2015}}</ref> Hsinbyushin ordered the grand invasion of Ayutthaya through two routes; the [[Dawei|Tavoy]]-Tenasserim route with 20,000 Burmese-Mon men under [[Maha Nawrahta]] and the Lanna route under [[Ne Myo Thihapate|Nemyo Thihapate]] with 20,000 Burmese-Lanna men.<ref name=":72">{{Cite book |last=Phraison Salarak (Thien Subindu) |first=Luang |title=Intercourse between Burma and Siam as recorded in Hmannan Yazawindawgyi |year=1916 |location=Bangkok}}</ref> These two routes were to converge on Ayutthaya. In early 1765, the Burmese Tavoy regiment conquered [[Western Thailand|Western Siam]].<ref name=":6" /> In mid-1765, Nemyo Thihapate marched his Burmese-Lanna regiment to attack and conquer Northern Siam. Suppression of peripheral governors in response to internal rebellions meant that little could be provided for frontline defenses. Siamese peripheral cities fell to Burmese invaders one-by-one. Maha Nawrahta marched his main column from Tavoy to attack Ayutthaya in November 1765.<ref name=":72" /> William Powney,<ref name=":14">{{Cite journal |last=na Pombejra |first=Dhiravat |date=2017 |title=Alangkapuni: An English Captain at the Siege of Ayutthaya |url=https://so06.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/pub_jss/article/view/158017/114430 |journal=Journal of the Siam Society|volume=105 |pages=115–129 }}</ref> a British merchant who happened to be trading in Ayutthaya, led British-Siamese forces to attack the Burmese in the Battle of Nonthaburi in December 1765 but was defeated.

Two Burmese invading regiments eventually converged on Ayutthaya in January 1766 and laid siege. Maha Nawrahta placed his Tavoy regiment at Siguk (modern [[Bang Ban district]]) to the west of Ayutthaya in Nemyo Thihapate at Paknam Prasop (ฺ[[Bang Pahan district]]) to the north. Ayutthaya initially flaired well in the siege due to abundance of supplies as Ayutthayan defenders simply waited for rainy season to arrive. The Burmese, however, did not plan to leave. [[Bang Rachan|Bang Rachan camps]], a group of self-defenders in [[Khai Bang Rachan district|Bang Rachan]], managed to locally resist Burmese occupying forces for five months in early 1766.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Heroes Of Khai Bang Rachan Monument And Khai Bang Rachan Park |url=https://www.tourismthailand.org/Attraction/heroes-of-khai-bang-rachan-monument-and-khai-bang-rachan-park |website=Tourism Thailand}}</ref> When the rainy season approached, the Burmese held their grounds by staying on flotillas and concentrated on high grounds.{{sfn|Wyatt|2003}}{{rp||page=118}} The Burmese approached Ayutthaya city walls in September 1766. In early 1766, due to conflicts over the [[Shan States]], [[Qing dynasty|Qing China]] invaded Burma in the [[Sino-Burmese War]]. Burmese king Hsinbyushin urged his commanders to finish up the conquest of Ayutthaya in order to divert forces to the Chinese front. The besieging Burmese then constructed twenty-seven fort towers surrounding Ayutthaya<ref name=":15">{{Cite journal |last=Soe Thuzar Myint |date=2011 |title=Yodayar Naing Mawgun by Letwe Nawrahta: A Contemporary Myanmar Record, Long Lost, of How Ayutthaya Was Conquered |url=https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/JSS_099_0d_SoeThuzarMyint_YodayarNaingMawgun.pdf |journal=Journal of the Siam Society}}</ref> to escalate the siege in January 1767. Situation for Ayutthayan defenders became dire as more Siamese people surrendered to the Burmese<ref name=":15" /> in escape from anarchy and starvation. [[Taksin|Phraya Tak]], a Siamese military man of Chinese heritage, upon realizing hopelessness in defenses of Ayutthaya, gathered men and broke through Burmese siege in January 1767 to seek for new position in Eastern Siam. French-Portuguese Christians and Chinese immigrants provided the last defense line south of Ayutthaya. In March 1767, Ekkathat attempted to reach for truce with the Burmese but failed.<ref name=":72" /> Shortly after that, Maha Nawrahta died, leaving Nemyo Thihapate to assume commands over all Burmese besiegers. The Burmese put down Chinese and Christian resistances in March 1767.

In April 1767, Nemyo Thihapate ordered the digging of underground tunnel into Ayutthaya, setting fire on the roots of the city walls, causing northeastern portion of city walls to collapse, allowing the Burmese to enter the city. After enduring fourteen months of siege, four-century-old Siamese royal capital of Ayutthaya finally fell to Burmese invaders on 7 April 1767.{{sfn|Wyatt|2003}}{{rp||page=118}} Unlike the previous fall of Ayutthaya in 1569,<ref name=":6" /> the Burmese destruction of Ayutthaya in April 1767 was permanent, profound and extensive. Palaces and temples were burnt to the grounds and inhabitants were indiscriminately slaughtered. Ekkathat, the last king of Ayutthaya, either died from starvation or random fatal gunshot. Treasures and cultural artifacts were seized. Buddha image of Phra Si Sanphet, stood at [[Wat Phra Si Sanphet|Wat Phra Si Sanphet Temple]] for two centuries and a half as the [[Palladium (protective image)|palladium]] of Ayutthaya kingdom, was destroyed and molten for gold.<ref>{{Cite web |title=War Phra Sri Sanphet  |url=https://www.ayutthaya-history.com/Temples_Ruins_PhraSisanphet.html |website=Ayutthaya History}}</ref> Estimated 200,000 Siamese people died during the war and 30,000<ref name=":6" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wattanasukchai |first=Sirinya |date=2 May 2013 |title=On the walls of Mandalay |website=Bangkok Post |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/life/arts-and-entertainment/348017/on-the-walls-in-mandalay}}</ref> to 100,000 Siamese people, including the temple king Uthumphon, other members of Ban Phlu Luang dynasty and thousands of courtiers, were deported ''en masse'' from [[Central Thailand]] to Burmese capital of [[Inwa|Ava]]. Burmese conquest of Siam in 1767 left Siam depopulated<ref name=":6" /> for about a century after until mid-nineteenth century. Nemyo Thihapate and Burmese victors left Ayutthaya in June 1767,<ref name=":72" /> leaving Mon commander Thugyi or Suki to be in charge of relatively small Burmese occupying forces at Phosamton north of Ayutthaya.<ref name=":112">{{Cite book |last=Mishra |first=Patit Paban |title=The History of Thailand |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010}}</ref> Local regimes emerged from various regional centers due to absence of central authority.{{sfn|Wyatt|2003}}{{rp||page=122}}

Lieberman states that, "hundreds of thousands possibly died during the [1765–67] Burmese invasion."<ref>Lieberman 2003, 293 (Kindle Edition)</ref> Many people were either forcibly taken by the Burmese or fled into the forests. Objects were hauled back to Burma. Whatever that wasn't movable was burned by Burmese soldiers.<ref name=":7" /><ref name="youtube.com">{{cite web |title=เล่าเรื่องเสียกรุงศรีอยุธยา ครั้งที่ 2 (15เม.ย.62) ฟังหูไว้หู {{!}} 9 MCOT HD | website=[[YouTube]] | date=15 April 2019 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ng3jGB0n5w |language=en}}</ref> The fall of Ayutthaya was, paraphrasing historians Chris Baker and Pasuk Phongpaichit, "a failure of defense, a failure of dealing with rising wealth". By 1767, Ayutthaya had become a prize that many kingdoms would have seek to acquire. In an age where warfare was fought among kings than ethnic boundaries, a number of Siamese joined the Burmese in the sack of Ayutthaya. Ayutthaya nobles who were seized from Ayutthaya settled according to their stations at the court of Ava and settled in well, according to the Burmese chronicles. To paraphrase the words of historian Nidhi Eoseewong, the "kingdom fell even before the walls of Ayutthaya fell".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |title=A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World |date=2017 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-19076-4 |page=268 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/history-of-ayutthaya/52FC0674CC0532A8F1EDB01CC37E703B}}</ref><ref name=":7">{{cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |title=A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World |date=2017 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-19076-4 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/history-of-ayutthaya/52FC0674CC0532A8F1EDB01CC37E703B}}</ref><ref name="youtube.com" />

====Aftermath====
{{Main|Taksin's reunification of Siam}}
[[File:View of Ayuthia, Siam, now known to the Siamese as Krung Kao Wellcome L0020134.jpg|thumb|250px|The skyline of Ayutthaya, photographed by [[John Thomson (photographer)|John Thomson]], early 1866]]
Ayutthaya however, according to Liberman, represented centuries of political and economic development that was hard to destroy.<ref name=":5" /> One general, Phraya Taksin, former governor of [[Tak Province|Tak]] and of Siamese-Chinese descent, began the [[Taksin's reunification of Siam|reunification effort]].<ref name="Syamananda">{{harvnb|Syamananda|1990|p=94}}</ref><ref name="Wood">{{harvnb|Wood|1924|pp=254–264}}</ref> He gathered his forces and retook the ruined capital of Ayutthaya from the Burmese garrison at Pho Sam Thon in June 1767, using his connections to the Chinese community to lend him significant resources and political support.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lieberman |first1=Victor |title=Strange Parallels: Volume 1, Integration on the Mainland: Southeast Asia in Global Context, c. 800–1830 (Studies in Comparative World History) |date=2003 |page= |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0521800860|edition=Kindle }}</ref><ref name="books.google.com">{{Cite book|last1=Baker|first1=Chris|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GHiuDgAAQBAJ|title=A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World|last2=Phongpaichit|first2=Pasuk|publisher=Cambridge University Press|pages=|year=2017|isbn=978-1-316-64113-2|location=|edition=Kindle}}</ref> He finally established a capital at [[Thonburi]], across the [[Chao Phraya]] from the present capital, [[Bangkok]]. Taak-Sin ascended the throne, becoming known as King Taak-Sin or Taksin. By 1771, he reunited Siam (with the exception of the cities of Mergui and Tenasserim) and defeated all local warlords. The new conflict between Burma and Siam would last for another 50 years, depopulating large areas of Siam (including the Northern Cities and Phitsanulok, the former second capital of Ayutthaya) and leaving some areas deserted as late as the 1880s.<ref name="Syamananda" /><ref name="Wood" /><ref name=":7" />{{sfn|Wyatt|2003}}{{page needed|date=February 2023}}

The palaces and temples that marked Ayutthaya as a royal capital was reduced to "heaps of ruins and ashes".<ref name="cambridge.org">{{cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |title=A History of Ayutthaya: Siam in the Early Modern World |date=2017 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-19076-4 |page=258 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/history-of-ayutthaya/52FC0674CC0532A8F1EDB01CC37E703B}}</ref> The city, described by a Danish visitor in 1779 to be a "terrible spectacle", totally buried in undergrowth and inhabited by elephants and tigers,"<ref name="cambridge.org"/> was resettled quite soon after, with former Ayutthaya temples being used for festivals and celebrations following the sack.<ref>{{cite web |title=เศรษฐกิจและสังคมสยามจากอยุธยาถึงกรุงธนบุรี | website=[[YouTube]] | date=26 September 2017 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdZMg4EKE34 |language=en |quote=34:00–1:13:00}}</ref> According to one historian, the post-Ayutthaya monarchs were the real demolishers of the former capital,<ref name="ถอดบทเรียนว่าด้วยกรุงแตกครั้งที่ 2">{{cite web |title=ถอดบทเรียนว่าด้วยกรุงแตกครั้งที่ 2 : อ.สมฤทธิ์ ลือชัย | website=[[YouTube]] |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVu-m40zz_I |language=en}}</ref> they took apart most of the ruins that survived the Burmese sack for the construction of the new capital at Bangkok for symbolic and practical reasons; Bangkok was the successor of Ayutthaya in the eyes of the new Bangkok elite and therefore had to transfer its spiritual power through the reuse of its bricks to build Bangkok<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rod-ari |first1=Melody |chapter=Beyond the Ashes: The Making of Bangkok as the Capital City of Siam |title=Political Landscapes of Capital Cities |date=2016 |pages=155–180 |chapter-url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1dfnt2b.10 |publisher=University Press of Colorado|doi=10.5876/9781607324690.c004 |jstor=j.ctt1dfnt2b.10 |isbn=9781607324683 }}</ref> while the prospect of future Burmese invasions meant that there was not enough time to build a capital via the traditional method during the early Rattanakosin Kingdom.<ref name="ถอดบทเรียนว่าด้วยกรุงแตกครั้งที่ 2"/>