Suphannabhum

Suphannabhum or Suvarnabhumi; later known as Suphan Buri (Thai: สุพรรณภูมิ or สุพรรณบุรี) was a Siamese city-state, that emerged in the early "Siam proper" which stretched from present-day west central Thailand to the north of the Kra Isthmus, with key historical sites at Uthong, Nakhon Pathom, Suphan Buri, and Ban Don Ta Phet[th]. The kingdom is referred to as Xiān in the Chinese records since 1349, but according to the archaeological evidence in Suphan Buri, it was speculated to have emerged around the mid-12th century. However, a calculation made by Borihan Thepthani based on the information provided in the Northern Chronicle says that the city of Suphan Buri was founded in 877 and became a free city-state after its suzerain, Nakhon Pathom of Kamalanka, fell to Phetchaburi in 913. Japanese scholar Tatsuo Hoshino has proposed that Suphannabhum was identified in Chinese sources as Shě Bá Ruò (舍跋若), which he further interprets as the western terminus of a trans-Mekong trade confederation in the 9th century. According to this hypothesis, the confederation comprised five polities: Pó Àn (婆岸), identified with Mueang Phon; Zhān Bó, associated with Champasri; Qiān Zhī Fú, identified with Si Thep; Mó Là (摩臘), located in the coastal region of Champa; and Shě Bá Ruò, corresponding to Suphanburi.

Suphannabhum became the center of Xiān, succeeding Phip Phli, no later than 1349, when Xiān was defeated by Luó hú (Lavo) and the tribute sent to China under the name of Xiānluó hú (Siam-Lavo or Ayutthaya Kingdom) was led by Xiān's King of Su-men-bang, in which Su-men-bang has been identified with Suphanburi. Since then, it was one of the states under the mandala confederation of Ayutthaya Kingdom and was completely merged to the Ayutthaya in 1438. However, modern scholars suggest Xiān mentioned in the Chinese and Đại Việt sources since the 11th century potentially was Ayodhya, a polity that later known as the Ayutthaya Kingdom (Xiānluó hú or Xiānluó) in the mid-14th century.

Under the name of Xiānluó hú or Xiānluó, the state performed 41 tributary missions to the Chinese court during the Hongwu era, 33 in the name of Xiānluó hú and as Xiānluó for the remaining. In the era of Ankorian king Jayavarman VII (r.1181–1218), an inscription called Prasat Phra Khan (จารึกปราสาทพระขรรค์) was made, among others, the name Suvarnapura is mentioned, which has been identified with Suphanburi.

Modern scholars believe Suphannabhum was Chen Li Fu mentioned in the Chinese Sung Hui Yao Kao in 1200 and 1205.

History

According to the local legends, Suphannabhum is the succeeding state of an ancient port city of Mueang Uthong, which evolved into complex state societies around 300 C.E. Since the river leading to the sea was dried up in places, shallow, and consequently not navigable, and also due to some pandemics, Uthong lost its influence as the trading hub; the city was then abandoned around the 11th century and the people then moved to resettle in the present day Suphanburi. This timeline corresponds with that the Tambralinga's king Sujita seized Lavo and was said to conquer the Mons of the Menam Valley and the upper Malay peninsula in the 10th century, the 9-year civil wars in the Angkor in the early 11th century, which led to the devastation of Lavo, as well as the Pagan invasion of Lavo around the mid-10th century. All of these are probably the causes of the fall of Mueang Uthong.

Dvaravati period: Suvarnabhumi

This region has been claimed to be the legendary Suvarnabhumi by several local scholars. Numerous ruins and artifacts from the Dvaravati period have been discovered around the area. However, contemporary documents from this period are sparse; the available material consists primarily of local chronicles and legends.

Paul Wheatley suggests that the city-state of Chin Lin which was mentioned in the Chinese archives of the Liang dynasty as the state that was Fan Man, the Great King of Funan Kingdom, attempt to conquer in the 4th century CE, might be located in west central Thailand, since the word "Chin Lin" 金鄰/金邻 means "Land of Gold" or "Suvarnabhumi"; as mentioned in the archive, it was a state located approximately 2,000 li (800 kilometers) west of the Funan Kingdom, which corresponded to the area where is now central Thailand.

According to the Northern Chronicle, the region's political center from the 9th to 12th centuries was located at the old Kanchanaburi city ruins but local legends suggest it was in the old town Nakhon Pathom (formerly known as Nakhon Chaisri), which has been speculated to be the center of Dvaravati. As per Chalerm Kanchanakam's calculations based on the text provided in the Yonok Chronicle, which states that Phraya Phan, the founder of Suphan Buri, ascended to rule Haripuñjaya in 913, it is estimated that Suphan Buri was founded around 877–883.

George Cœdès believed that Mueang Uthong was the center of the Dvaravati civilization.

Post-Dvaravati: Suphannabhum

After the end of the ancient maritime-oriented port era and the decline of Dvaravati, Suphannabhum then emerged around the mid-12th century following the prosperity of Lavo Kingdom and the Ankorian during the reign of Jayavarman VII and the influx of people from the north. This has been supported by several ancient ruins in the area that dates before the Ayutthaya period; two of them are the Ankorian Bayon style and the other two are the Indian Pala-Sena architects, which are also found in Lavo, Pagan, and Haripuñjaya.

According to the Northern Chronicle, the city of Suphanburi existed before the mid-12 century since King Kar Tayy, who was of the Mon's Pagan Saw Lu lineage and ruled Kanchanaburi (some versions say Nakhon Chaisri) from 1165 to 1205, ordered his relative to build a temple in Phanthumburi (พันธุมบุรี) and renamed the city to Songphanburi (สองพันบุรี; present-Suphanburi). Katae's reign ended around the same time that Phrip Phri's king, Mahesvastidrādhirājakṣatriya or Pra Poa Noome Thele Seri (พระพนมทะเลศรี), who was also father of King Uthong II of Lavo's Ayodhya, expanded his power northward to Phraek Si Racha (in present-day Chai Nat) in 1204 and sent his praeceptor to govern. The area he conquered also encompassed Suphannabhum and the proposed region of Chen Li Fu. The younger prince, Soi La or U Thong I, was then enthroned as a new Suphannabhum's king.

The 12th century Prasat Phra Khan Inscription (จารึกปราสาทพระขรรค์) marks the prosperity and civilization of this region by mentioning four major cities in the Suphannabhum area, including Suphanburi, Samphukapatthana, Ratburi, and Phetburi. One of these, Suphanburi, gradually controlled the economy of all Tha Chin Rivers and raised its power until being annexed to the Sukhothai Kingdom in 1283, as recorded in the Ram Khamhaeng Inscription. However, after the death of Sukhothai's Ram Khamhaeng in 1298, several tributary states of Sukhothai, which included Suphannabhum, began to break away rapidly. Via Royal intermarriage, Suphannabhum united with the eastern neighboring Lavo Kingdom, to establish a confederated polity seat in Ayodhya in 1351. Suphannabhum gained recognition in the mid-13th century when the state leaders named ‘Khun Laung Pao Ngouy’ (later Ayutthaya's Borommarachathirat I) and ‘Jao Nakhon In’ (later Ayutthaya's Intharacha) extended their political economy influence to Ayutthaya.

In the early Ayutthaya period, Suphannabhum was ruled by the Ayutthaya's crown princes. It was demoted to the frontier city and was completely annexed to Ayutthaya in 1438. Since then, Suphannabhum has been completely restricted in terms of both economics and politics, particularly in terms of trade with China and establishing relations with other cities, because it was determined to have relations only with the capital, acting as a military base and producing tribute for the capital. These transformed Suphannabhum into an agricultural area to supply Ayutthaya for export.

Dynasties

Legends and chronicles related to Kings U Thong I–V

Uthong I and his brother

According to the Northern Chronicle, the throne at Phanthumburi (พันธุมบุรี, present-day Suphanburi) was empty following the reign of King Kar Tayy; r. 1123–1163), who was of the Pagan lineage and ruled the polity during Pagan domination of the upper Malay peninsula during the late 11th to 12th centuries. To the north, Uthong I and his brother moved south from Mueang Chaliang (the 1684 Instructions Given to the Siamese Envoys Sent to Portugal says they were from Soucouttae, whereas the Du Royaume de Siam says Locontàï). Uthong I, the younger brother, then took over the empty throne, and the older prince, Pprappanom Tteleiseri or Mahesvastidrādhirājakṣatriya moved further south and became King of Phrip Phri. Du Royaume de Siam, by Simon de la Loubère, gives the date of the enthronement of Pprappanom Tteleiseri at Phetchaburi as around 1188. Meanwhile, Dhanit Yupho provides the date that this dynasty began to rule Thepnakhòn (or Devanagara), which corresponds to Suphanburi, as 1163. The story related to the older prince is also mentioned in the southern Nakhon Si Thammarat Chronicle[th] says Mahesvastidrādhirājakṣatriya, who was also the father of Uthong II, the king of Xiān's Ayodhya, extended his territory north and south. To the north reached Phraek Si Racha, where he appointed his praeceptor as the governor, annexed Chen Li Fu in 1204, and Mahīđharavarman III who was believed to have some relation with the Mahidharapura Kingdoms in the Phimai region, enthroned as the new king. To the south, he encountered Tambralinga in 1196, but the dispute ended with the negotiation and the establishment of the royal relationship. His younger son, U Thong II, became the king of Ayodhya in 1205, and the older prince Thonglanrach (r. ?–1289) succeeded him at Phetchaburi. Through a dynastic relationship, another prince, Phanomwang (พนมวัง), moved south to revive Ligor following the fall of Tambralinga in the 14th century.

Uthong II and the two contested theories of origin

As it says in the Nakhon Si Thammarat Chronicle[th], King of Xiān's Ayodhya named U Thong (II) was the son of Pprappanom Tteleiseri, king of Phrip Phri; therefore, He may have been a distinct monarch from U Thong (I), the King of Suphannaphum, who was the younger sibling of Pprappanom Tteleiseri, referenced in the Northern Chronicle. Even in contrast to several chronicles, a Thai scholar, Manit Wallipodom, claims that U Thong (II) of Ayodhya (r. 1205–1253) was the son of the predecessor Dhammikaraja. The succession to the Ayodhya throne of U Thong II is told in the British Museum version of the Royal Chronicle of the Kingdom of Siam[th] that the King of Kampoch (Ayodhya), potentially King Dhammikaraja who reigned from 1165 to 1205, died with no male heir, the nobles then offered the throne to a plutocrat Uthong II, who then relocated the city to the south due to the endemics. This conforms to the text given in the Northern Chronicle that says the son of a Chinese mercenary named Uthong became the new ruler of Ayodhya. Thus, Uthong II was potentially the son of Pprappanom Tteleiseri, who was born to a Chinese queen. Before becoming King of Ayodhya, U Thong II was the king of Devanagara, succeeding his uncle U Thong I.

Suphannaphum clan: a new dynasty by U Thong III–IV

Several evidence regards the dynasty of Kings U Thong I–II, such as the movement of Pprappanom Tteleiseri from Yassouttora Nacoora Louang or Tasoo Nacora Louang — which several scholars identified with Lavo — to the upper Menam Valley at Soucouttae–Locontàï, the appointment of Mahīđharavarman III — who had some dynastic relations with the Mahidharapura Kingdoms to the east of Lavo – as a new king of Chen Li Fu, and a political asylum of Ramesuan to Lavo after lost Ayutthya throne to Suphannuphum dynasty in 1370, show a strong connection between this dynasty and the Lavo Kingdom in the eastern Menam Valley. Whereas, the latter Kings U Thong III–IV, who were the predecessors of Borommarachathirat I, the first Ayutthaya king from the Suphannaphum dynasty, instead show the relation with the Sukhothai Kingdom to the north in both royal intermarriage, political movements, and architectural styles; thus the origin of this dynasty may be linked to Sukhothai. During the reign of U Thong III, Suphannabhum was listed in the Ram Khamhaeng Inscription as one of Sukhothai vassals.

The presupposition mentioned above conforms to a local legend of Thao Saenpom[th], a commoner who married a princess of Trai Trueng[th] — a city which was built by Singhanavati's Chaiyasiri in 1000 and was later under the Sukhothai Kingdom — but both were expelled by the king of Trai Trueng. They moved south and established Thepnakhòn (or Devanagara; เทพนคร), which Dhanit Yupho equates with Suphanburi. His son U Thong (III) succeeded him. Some argues Thao Saenpom was not a commoner but instead a prince of Sri Vijaya (present-day Nakhon Pathom or Sumbuka of Kamalanka). Dhanit Yupho instead says Suphanburi was ruled by the same dynasty (Lavo dynasty) since the reign of King U Thong I in 1163 to the establishment of the Ayutthaya Kingdom in 1351, and additionally asserts that this dynasty ruled Trai Trueng[th] from 1004 to 1163, then moved the seat to Suphanburi. King Rama VI even identified U Thong (III), son of Saenpom, with U Thong (V), who was the first Ayutthyan king. However, the theory that says U Thong V of the Uthong dynasty (later known as Lavo dynasty) was from the western Valley has been proven to be false.

Emergence of Ayutthaya by U Thong V

Previously, scholars believed U Thong V or Ramatibodi I, the first Ayutthaya King, was from Mueang Uthong, the predecessor of Suphanburi in the western valley. However, later historical document studies revealed that he was of the Lavo in the eastern plain. Due to U Thong IV having no male heir, U Thong V, who married a princess of King U Thong III, took over the Suphanburi throne in 1341. One year later, U Thong V was appointed by his father, Boromracha — who ruled Xiān's Ayodhya — as the governor of Phetchaburi. However, Boromracha was ordained as a monk in 1344 and appointed U Thong V as regent, making U Thong V the ruler of all early Siamese polities, including Suphanburi, Phetchaburi, and Ayodhya. He also relocated Ayodhya to the present Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya; this new city took 8 years to complete. After that, U Thong V was enthroned as the first Ayutthaya King by uniting all principalities in the lower Menam Valley in 1350/1351. He appointed his queen consort's older brother, Borommarachathirat I, to rule Suphanburi.

Suphannabhum clan origin

The origin of the Suphannabhum dynasty remains unclear. Previous scholars believed that the first king of the Ayutthaya Kingdom, later called by modern historians King Uthong, once ruled the city of Uthong, but the theory has been proven to be false. It was expected that Khun Laung Pho Ngouy, who was later known as the 3rd Ayutthaya' king Borommarachathirat I – the first king from Suphannabhum clan, might have lineage from Sukhothai as he married a princess in Sukhothai's Loe Thai and royal intermarriages between his descendants and the Sukhothai dynasty happened multiple times. Furthermore, political movements and architectural styles in Suphanburi during the Ayutthaya period demonstrate a tight relationship between these two dynasties. The kinship between the royal families of Suphanburi and Sukhothai probably existed for a long time, at least since the reign of the Sukhothai's king Ramkhamhaeng.

Local legends say Khun Laung Pho Ngouy is a descendant of Khun In (ขุนอิน), while the Ayutthaya Kingdom's 1st king, Uthong, is a descendant of Khun Kham Phong (ขุนคำผง) founder of Singhanavati's capital Yonok Nahaphan. Both Khun In and Khun Kham Phong are two of seven sons of Khun Borom, a legendary progenitor of the Southwestern Tai-speaking peoples. Simon de la Loubère's record, Du royaume de Siam, refers to the first Siamese king as a descendant of Chaiyasiri, son of a legendary King Phrom of the Singhanavati clan.

The early era of the Suphannabhum dynasty and its relations with other royal families in the lower Chao Phraya Valley from the 10th century to the formation of the Ayutthaya Kingdom is shown below.

Note

List of rulers

Notes

Art

Gallery

• U-Thong style sculpture, found in Wat Kai Tia[th], Si Prachan district, Suphan Buri province
• Main stupa at Wat Morakot, Mueang Suphan Buri, dates to the early 10th century.
• Chedi at the Wat Kuti Song ruin, Mueang Suphan Buri.
• Chedi at the Wat Nong Neng ruin, Mueang Suphan Buri, dates to the early Ayuttha period.
• Wat Pa Lelai Worawihan, dates before 1181 (King Katae's reign).
• Ancient ruin in Wat Phra Sri Rattana Mahathat[th], dates before 1408.
• Lan Na style[th] chedi in an ancient Wat Thale Thalai, Mueang district.
• Dvaravati style sculpture, found in Wat Chi Suk Kasem[th], Mueang district.
• Thailand's oldest Reclining Buddha, found in Wat Phra Non[th], Mueang district.