Pattaya administrators
pose for a commemorative in front of the King Taksin the Great monument
at City Hall.
Vittaya Yoondorn
Pattaya officials and business leaders marked the 243rd
anniversary of the coronation of King Taksin the Great, who was adopted
by Pattaya as its founding father.
The ceremony at the King Taksin the Great Monument in front of Pattaya
City Hall Dec. 28 was led by Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome and attended by
businesspeople and club members.
The ceremony started around 7 a.m. with the lighting of candles and
incense to worship the “Three Gems.” Buddhist monks then performed a
religious ceremony, which was followed by a worship ceremony. This was
followed by Thai dance and Muay Thai boxing demonstrations.
Actors portray the exciting lifestyle of
warriors living by the sword during the reign of King Taksin the Great.
After the show, all local officials, along with state
and private representatives presented flower trays in front of the King
Taksin Monument.
Somdet Phrachao Taksin Maharaj was born April 17, 1734 and became the
only king of the Thonburi Kingdom, taking the throne Dec. 28, 1768 and
reigning until his death - and the start of the current Chakri Dynasty
in 1782. He is greatly revered by Thais for leadership in liberating
Siam from Burmese occupation after the second fall of capital Ayutthaya
in 1767, and the subsequent unification of Siam after it fell under
various warlords.
He established the city of Thonburi, across the Chao
Phraya River from the current Bangkok, as the new capital, as Ayutthaya
had been almost completely destroyed by invaders. His reign was
characterized by numerous wars fought to repel new Burmese invasions and
to subjugate the northern Thai kingdom of Lanna, the Laotian
principalities and Cambodia.
Upon coronation at age 34, he assumed the official name of Boromraja IV,
but is known in Thai history as King Taksin, a combination of his
popular name, Phya Tak, and his first name, Sin, or the King of
Thonburi.
Taksin’s father was at least partly Chinese and his
mother Siamese. He was said to believe that even the forces of nature
were under his control and this faith led him to attempt tasks which
others called impossible. He never had time, however, to build Thonburi
into a great city, as he was fully occupied with suppression of internal
and external enemies, as well as territorial expansion throughout his
reign.
Taksin’s ties to the Pattaya area stem from 1767,
when he battled his way out of a besieged Ayutthaya and fled to Chonburi
and Rayong to raise an army of 500 to return to free the capital.
In 1981 the Thai Cabinet passed a resolution to bestow on King Taksin
the honorary title of “the Great.” The date of his coronation, Dec. 28,
is the official day of homage to the king, although it is not designated
as a public holiday.
Chonburi marked King Taksin Day with public officials and residents
joining Gov. Senee Jittakasem in laying flowers at the King Taksin the
Great Monument there.
