Ayutthayan Economy and Lifestyle Part 2
Ayutthayan kings continually strengthened the Thai relations with China originally fostered by Sukhothai's KingRamkam-haeng. Successive Ayutthayan kings sent tributary gifts to the Ming court (1368-1644) and acquired important trade privileges in return. Ayutthaya imported Chinese silks, satin and 'blue and white' porcelain, a vibrant trade judging by the porcelain-laden, sunken junks discovered in the Ayutthayan riverbed. Indeed, Sino-Thai relations were so close, the Chinese occasionally used Thais as intermediaries when dealing with other Southeast Asian countries.
Recurring cycles of war, consolidation and peace marked the reigns of Ramathibodi's successors, most of whom continued his aggressive expansionist policies. The Khmer threat gradually lessened. Ramathibodi himself invaded Angkor in 1369. His son Ramesuan also attacked the Khmer capital in 1393, removing 90,000 captives, thus virtually eliminating the threat of further Khmer counter-invasions. Finally, in 1432, the Khmers abandoned Angkor because of its increasing vulnerability to Thai attack and moved their capital eastwards to a Mekong riverbank site known as Phnom Penh.
In 1512, the first Europeans, the Portuguese, arrived in Ayutthaya. Having captured Malacca and subsequently discovered that Ayutthaya claimed suzerainty, the Portuguese decided to forestall future conflict by establishing relations with the Ayutthayan king, Ramathibodi II. In 1516, they signed a treaty whereby in exchange for firearms and weapons, they could reside, trade and practise their religion in Thai territory.
King Ramathibodi II died in 1529 and was succeeded by six progressively weaker monarchs whose internecine squabbles eventually sapped Ayutthaya's vitality. In 1538, a border incursion triggered the Thais' first war with Burma. The victorious Thais were aided by 120 Portuguese mercenaries who later taught them cannon foundry and musketry. In return, the Portuguese were awarded land in Ayutthaya to build an enclave for their own church and houses. Successive wars with Burma followed in 1549, 1563 and 1569. In 1569, an under mining combination of a weak king and internecine fighting conspired to bring about Ayutthaya's fall, whereupon it became a Burmese vassalage for 15 years.
Ayutthaya's Revival
Closely interwoven with cycles of war and peace were very well-defined cycles of Thai kingship. A cycle began when a warrior king (such as Sukhothai's founder, King Sri Intratit) expanded and consolidated territory by conquering rivals, building a stable, populous kingdom and forging local alliances. His accomplishments would be diplomatically and economically strengthened by a statesman and/or scholar king (such as Sukhothai's Ramkamhaeng) who would build and actively encourage culture, trade, administration and technology.
Then, after a zenith, would come decline. Kings would become self-centred, complacent and distant from the land and their people's needs. Increasingly weak, their control would slacken, resulting in increased banditry and lawlessness. Natural calamities such as floods and famine would further the process. When their vulnerability became visible, enemies would be quick to take advantage and send invading armies over the borders.
Eventually, kingdoms would fall - as did Ayutthaya in 1569 - and people would be subjugated. Then, reflecting inherent Thai resiliency, a warrior-king would emerge, phoenix-like, from the ashes of defeat to initiate a new cycle of kingship and revive the nation from the brink of annihilation. This was precisely what happened in Ayutthaya after its 1569 nadir. The greatest of all Thai warrior kings, Naresuan the Great, expelled the Burmese and restored Thai independence, thus preparing ground for the flowering of Ayutthayan civilization in all its spectacular forms.
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Ayutthayan economy and lifestyle part 2
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