The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 25, No. 1 (Nov., 1965), pp. 105-118 Thai Historical Materials in Bangkok

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Thai Historical Materials in Bangkok Author(s): David K. Wyatt and Constance M. Wilson Source: The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 25, No. 1 (Nov., 1965), pp. 105-118 Published by: Association for Asian Studies Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2051043 Accessed: 28/01/2010 05:00 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use. Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=afas. Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transmission. JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

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Thai Historical Materialsin Bangkok DAVID K. WYATT AND CONSTANCE M. WILSON

COMPARED with the other countries of Southeast Asia, the Western-language historiography of Thailand is meagre indeed. Western sources have furthered scholarship considerably, but historical writing on Thailand will remain unbalanced until Thai materials have been fully exploited. Some beginning has been made on this work by both Thai and Western scholars, but as yet this is only a beginning. The epigraphic evidence for the early history of Thailand was first made prominent by Coed&salmost forty years ago in his monumental Recueil des Inscriptions du Siam,1 and this work has since been elaborated by the same author, almost alone, in numerous articles; but large numbers of inscriptions still await translation and publication in Western languages. Similarly, published Thai chronicles and historical documents have been utilized by Prince Damrong Rajanubhab, Coedes, W. A. R. Wood, Camille Notton, H. G. Quaritch Wales, Prince Dhani Nivat, Walter F. Vella, Prince Chula Chakrabongse, and others,2but they would be the first to admit that they have barely begun to tap the existing materials. A third major class of historical materials, much of which has become available only in comparatively recent years, has not yet been utilized by any Western scholar-that is the manuscript and archival materials relating to the Bangkok period of Thai history, I782 to the present. It is the purpose of this article to take stock of the existing store of Thai historical materials in Bangkok, attempting briefly to indicate their nature, origins, extent, and accessibility, as essential to the writing of the modern history of Thailand. The bulk of Thailand's historical records is in the custody of the various divisions of the Department of Fine Arts (Krom Sinlapakpn), whose Director-General, Nai Dhanit Yupho, should be consulted by those who wish to use the Department's collections.8 Since its establishment in I934 on the foundations of earlier departments David K. Wyatt is a lecturer in the History of Southeast Asia at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Constance M. Wilson is a graduate student in Southeast Asian History at Cornell University. Their research in Thailand in I962-I964 was made possible by fellowships granted by the Foreign Area Fellowship Program. I G. Coedes, Recueil des Inscriptionsdu Siam (Bangkok, 1924-29). 2 Prince Damrong Rajanubhab, Miscellaneous Articles Written for the journal of the Siam Society (Bangkok, I962); G. Coedes, "Documents sur l'Histoire politique et religieuse du Laos occidental," BEFEO,XXV (I925), I-200; W. A. R. Wood,A Historyof Siam (London,I926); C. Notton,Annales du Siam (Paris, I926-32; Bangkok, 1939); H. G. Quaritch Wales, Ancient Siamese Government and Administration (London, 1934); Prince Dhani Nivat, "The Reconstruction of Rama I of the Chakri Dynasty," ISS, XLIII:i (Aug. 1955), 21-47; Walter F. Vella, Siam Under Rama III (Locust Valley, N. Y., 1957); Prince Chula Chakrabongse,Lords of Life (New York, I960); and Selected Articles from

the SiamSocietyjournal(Bangkok,1954-62). 3 Department of Fine Arts, Na Phra That Road, Bangkok. There are many good libraries in Bangkok which scholars may find useful, e.g. the Siam Society Research Center Library and the libraries of the Institute of Public Administration, Thammasat University, Chulalongkorn University, Prasanmit College of Education, the Ministry of Education, etc. In general they are at present more comfortable and convenient than the National Library, but none can offer anything approaching the comprehensiveness, variety, and sheer masses of material to be found in the National Library.

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and institutions which had been promoted by Thailand's most eminent historian, Prince Damrong Rajanubhab, the Department has served as the custodian and defender of Thailand's cultural heritage, conserving and promoting the publication of its records, sponsoring and fostering the performing and visual arts, and striving to keep this priceless heritage strong in the face of growing--and sometimes overpowering-cultural contacts with the West.4 For the historian and social scientist, three of the Department's divisions are of primary importance: the National Library, the Library's Manuscript Section at the National Museum, and the National Archives. The National Library Na Phra That Road, Bangkok Director: Nai Boworn Dimakorn The National Library was founded in 1905 by the amalgamation of three previously-existing libraries, two of which were primarily religious and bequeathed to their successor an excellent collection of religious books and manuscripts; and a third, the old VajiranianaLibrary, a private society which held extensive literary and historical collections and which lent its building to the new institution. The National Library now functions as a repository not only for books in Western and Asian languages, but also for inscriptions and manuscripts, most of which are in the care of a separate section located at the National Museum which will be discussed below. As presently constituted, the Library proper concentrateson printed materials. It is by law the official depository for all books and periodicals published in Thailand, and, through the prodigious efforts of the Literary and Historical Division of the Department of Fine Arts,5 contributes significantly to the advance of Thai scholarship by providing scholarly, edited manuscripts and texts for publication by individuals, government agencies, commercial firms, and the Department itself. The Library's holdings of printed materials are extensive, totaling in I964, an estimated I40,000 volumes, of which approximately io,ooo volumes are in Asian languages other than Thai and approximately 20,000 volumes are in Western languages. The Library's collection of materials on Buddhism is excellent, both in quantity and quality, and it includes, in addition to numerous Thai and Pali works, substantial numbers of volumes in Sanskrit, Mon, Burmese, and Chinese. While this collection is understandably good for its materials on Buddhism in Thailand, it is reputedly outstanding for its textual completeness, and, as such, important in the world of Theravada Buddhist scholarship at large.6 The Library has also made a special effort to collect Western-language books relating to Thailand, and it possesses a number of items unobtainable elsewhere. Although severely limited budgets in recent years have restricted acquisitions of current publications, these collections on Buddhism and on Thailand must be considered among the finest of their kind. For the historian it is the Library's collection of Thai printed books which is of 4Cf. Dhanit Yupho, comp., Rrang watthanatham thai rakha phaeng [On the High Price of Thai Culture] (Bangkok, I962). 5 The Literary and Historical Division, headed by Nai Tri Amatyakul, can be of great assistance to the inquiring scholar in providing specific information on the Library's holdings and general advice on historical matters. 8 Cf. G. Coedes, The VaiiraiidpaNational Library (Bangkok, I924), pp. 2I, 24-25.

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most interest. The unique Thai custom of publishing and distributing religious and historical volumes at cremation ceremonies has given Thailand a printed literature of unusual volume and variety. Collections of historical documents and chronicles are frequent subjects of these books, and the inclusion in them of biographies of the crematees provides scholars with an excellent biographical source for the past century.7 Of the considerable historical literature included in cremation volumes, the outstanding example is the monumental Prachum Phongsawadan [Collected Chronicles], which in the seventy-eight volumes published and re-published to date, contains numerous national and local chronicles, documents on foreign relations, and translations of important Western- and Chinese-language documents, as well as chronicles of Thailand's neighbors.8 There are, as well, numerous single volumes of historical significance, including collections of documents on such subjects as the Brooke and Bowring missions of I850 and I855, the Hp invasions of Laos in the eighteen seventies and eighteen eighties, the Franco-Siamese crisis of I893 and the subsequent French occupation of Chanthaburi and Trat, the abortive revolution of and numerous other subjects.In addition, there are extensive publications of the I9I2, personal writings, correspondence, edicts, speeches, and literary and historical compositions of the great kings of the nineteenth century, Mongkut and Chulalongkorn. Such cremation volumes are, for the most part, primary source materials. Works of historical synthesis and analysis are a relatively more recent development, and are more frequently published commercially than privately. They have not yet achieved a place of prominence to compare with the cremation volumes, but they can often be quite useful. The Library's holdings of printed Thai books are of primary importance to the historian. The National Library has by far the largest and most complete collection of Thai books in any single location, and the major portion of these consists of cremation volumes which by their nature are out of print and are difficult to obtain elsewhere. Because the National Library and its predecessorswere established long before other libraries came into being in Thailand, it possessesthe only known copies

of a greatmanybookspublishedpriorto I9I0-I9I5. For the same reasons, and because of the Library's statutory right to copies of all mnaterialspublished in Thailand, its holdings of Thai periodical literature also are extensive. In addition to complete files of the Court Gazette (Ratchakitchanubeksa, I858, I874-I879, I888- ), the old literary and historical journal Wachirayan ),9 the and the Ministry of Interior's journal, Thetsaphiban (i906(I884-I905), Library also possesses runs of early Bangkok English-language newspapers and of the first public Thai-language newspapers. There are also important holdings of 7 For a partial bibliography and index of these cremation volumes, see the lists of books published from National Library texts and manuscripts in, Nai Yim Panthayangkun, comp., Saraban khon rr7ang -lm z [Index, Vol. 1] (Bangkok, 194I), covering the years I9OI-28, continued as supplements to the periodical Warasan Sinlapakpn, II:i-6 (1948-49) to cover books published between I929 and I949. Nai Yim, former Director of the National Archives, has in manuscript a continuation of this bibliography up to the present. 8 The Prachum Phongsawadan has been described in some detail in a recent article by Klaus Wenk, "Prachum Phongsawadan, Ein Beitrag zur Bibliographieder ThailIndischen historischen Quellen," Oriens Extremus, IX (I962), 232-257. The entire series is now being re-publishedboth by the ProgressBookstore (Samnakphim Kaona, 25 vols., I964) and by the Teachers' Institute (Khurusapha, I963- ). 9 All three of these are now on microfilm in the Wason Collection, Cornell University Library.

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nineteenth century Thai periodicals in the fields of religion, law, agriculture, commerce, and military and naval affairs.10Many of these, unfortunately, have been damaged by insects and climate, and some are incomplete and in poor condition. The researcher will find, however, an enormous number and variety of periodicals with which to work, many of which can be of significant value, especially for the latter part of the reign of King Chulalongkorn and for subsequent reigns. In a small room just within the entrance, the Library'svaluable collection of palm leaf manuscripts is located. Here one will find some of the chronicles and literary works which survived the sack of Ayudhya in I767, old Pali texts and treatises, and ancient manuscripts in the scripts of the North. Most of the national chronicles kept here, as well as many of the Ayudhyan documents and the early Northern chronicles, are already known in printed editions, to which Prince Damrong has provided an able introduction." Some of the local chronicles and histories, however, particularly those from the North, still await serious study.'2 Owing to the ravages of the wars of the eighteenth century, few materials from Central Thailand have survived, and it is the North and Laos which are better represented in the manuscript collection at the Library. The curatorshave compiled complete catalogs of the manuscripts in their custody, which makes research among them convenient. Scholars should be forewarned, however, that these manuscripts are written in a wide variety of often difficult Thai, Lao, and Khmer scripts. For a number of years the Library has suffered from inadequate space, and has been forced to store large portions of its holdings in temporary sheds behind the Library building and the National Museum. Shelf space within the Library itself has been in very short supply, and proper shelving and cataloging procedures have been difficult to maintain. Within the next year, however, this picture should be completely transformed. The National Library shortly will move into a new, modern, fully equipped building at the Vasukri Landing, a half-mile north of its present location. At the same time it is receiving substantial infusions of funds and trained personnel to strengthen its services. No higher compliment could be paid to the Library's able and conscientious staff or to the study of Thailand's heritage by a government pressed by many serious problems.

Manuscriptsand InscriptionsSection,NationalLibraryDivision National Museum Grounds, Na Phra That Road, Bangkok Section Head: Nai Bunnak Payakhadet A large cheerful building within the precincts of the National Museum, once part of the palace of the Second King, houses the National Library's collection of Royal Institute has published a complete bibliography of all newspapers and periodicals pubIDThe lished in Thailand to I930: Rainam nangsuphim khao su'ng 2k pen raya nai prathet sayam [List of Newspapers and Periodicalswhich have been Issued in Siam] (Bangkok, 193I). "1Prince Damrong Rajanubhab, "The Story of the Records of Siamese History," JSS, XI:2 (I915); reprinted in Selected Articles, I, 79-98. 12 For a partial listing of the Library's holdings of the Northern chronicles, see G. Coedes, "Docuand Bangkok, National Library, comp., Banchi khamphi phasa bali lac phasa ments," pp. I72-173; sansakrit an mi chabap nai hpphrasamutwachirayansamrap phra nakhqn mIa pi wpk ph.s. 2463 [List of Pali and Sanskrit Works in the WachirayanLibraryfor Bangkok in B.E. 2463] (Bangkok, I92I), pp. 39-42, 8o-8i, and 102-103. A number of these manuscripts are on microfilm in the Wason Collection, Cornell University Library.

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stone inscriptions, rubbings, and manuscripts. The famous Rama Kham Haeng inscription and many others are kept here. Large lacquered bookcases with gilt Thai or Chinese decorations contain numerous palm leaf and khgi manuscripts. Specimens of the different types of manuscripts, including some illuminated ones, are on display in glass cases, as the building is open to the general public as a part of the National Museum. The historical documents discussed here are the nangsu'khpi.These unique documents are superb examples of Thai craftsmanship. In making the paper for these volumes, the bark is stripped from the khgi tree, beaten, soaked in a lime solution, and spread out in flat sheets to dry in the sun. The product of this process is a soft, tan-colored paper, which may be used in this condition with a piece of charcoal serving as a pencil. Usually, however, the paper is coated with lacquer or a charcoal paste, which makes it stiff, heavy, and black. It can then be written upon with chalk, a yellow ink made from gambodge, or, in rare instances, gold. The coated paper is then bent back and forth, accordion fashion, into large pleats for storage, and the resulting "book" can then be unfolded for reading. The average page size is approximately five inches high by sixteen inches wide, while the unfolded manuscript may be anywhere from ten to thirty feet in length. Unless damaged by water, fire, or insects, these documents remain in their original condition: the climate does not appear to affect them. There are few manuscripts which antedate the middle of the Third Reign, I836 marking the turning point. Until the middle of the Fifth Reign, the records tend to be of a fragmented and miscellaneous nature. Although the quantity of material is considerable, it is very difficult to assemble a complete, coherent series of documents for a given chronological period or on a given subject. A good knowledge of the Thai language is essential in making use of these documents. While important ceremonial and legal documents were written with great care in an even, clear hand, other, more ordinary records of administrative actions present problems in reading which call for the skills of paleographers. In addition, the spelling of Thai was not standardized until the Fifth Reign. The vocabulary of the Court language has not changed significantly in the past century and a half, but the spelling very definitely has. Handwritten catalogs listing the manuscripts by the year of their composition exist, but the materials have yet to be grouped by subject matter. The classifications given below are purely arbitrary,and are in no way related to the completely random grouping of volumes in the Library. The numbers given after each subheading are rough approximations of the number of volumes relating to the subject of the subheading, and no attempt has been made to account for duplication or overlap. These figures are offered here, not as an accurate quantitative index, but rather as an indication of the relative proportions of volumes in each broad group concerning a specific subject. Records of the Ayudhya Period, I350-I767. 39 volumes. History: Chronicle of Ayudhya, Luang Prasoet Version (2 copies). Printed. The coming of Taksin to Thonburi after the destruction of Ayudhya. Version of i8io. Vol. I only.

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Government and Administration: Duties of Major and Minor Officials. Sakdina of Ayudhyan Officials (typescript copy). Relations with Asian Countries: China: Relations between Thailand and China from Ancient Times to Thailand and China, Ancient Times to I295.

Thailandand China,I295,

I370,

I292.

I652-I78I.

(All printed in Collected Chronicles,Pt. 5) Relations with the West: Denmark: Permission for Danish Merchantsto Trade at Ayudhya, I62I (Several copies; printed, WarasanSinlapakgn, VI:7) France: French Embassy of i685 (Printed, Collected Chronicles, Pt. I2) Three Documents on Relations with France, I688 Vatican: Thai Embassy to Rome, I688 (Printed) Religioni Thai Embassy goes to Worship at Phra Malai Chedi in Pegu, I682 Copy of Inscription from Monastery in Phatthalung, I699 (printed, Warasan Sinlapakpn, VII)

Thai Embassiesto Ceylon, I740 and SubsequentYears (printed,I9I4, Directory of Ecclesiastical Officials (printed, Customs:

I914,

I960)

I934).

Cremationin Ayudhya,I735 (printed,I9I6) Coronation in Ayudhya Cremation of King B9rommakot at Wat Phutthaisawan, I735 Art and Architecture: Records of the Construction of Monasteries and Stupas During the Ayudhya Period, I353-I747 Buddha Images (3 vols.) Plans of and Commentary on the Gates in the Old Wall Around Ayudhya Miscellaneous: Copy of an Inscription Concerning the Ordination of King B9rommatrailokanat at Wat -hulamani (Phitsanulok), I464 Copy of an Inscription on the Base of the Lord Buddha's Bed at Wat Pa Mok, Reign of King Thai Sra, I728 Records of the Court Astrologers, I7i6-I8I5 Treatise on Elephantry from the Reign of King Narai Records of the Thonburi Period, I767-I782. I7 vols. Administration: Corvee, Raising Troops, I773 (printed, Collected Chronicles,Pt. 65) Raising Troops to Attack Chiangmai (printed, ibid.) Army Records, I78I Directory of Officials Appointment of Chaophraya NakhQn as Ruler of NakhQn Si Thammarat

111

THAI HISTORICAL MATERIALS IN BANGKOK (printed, Collected Chronicles,Pt. 2) Relations with Asian Countries: China: Royal Letter to China (printed, Collected Chronicles, Pt. 73)

Vientiane:Correspondence, I770,

I77I, I774, I775

(printed,I904)

Religion: The Monkhood Grants Blessings for the Increase of the Fortune of Chao Krung Thonburi (King Taksin) Customs: Customs Observed on Royal Journeys (printed, Latthithamniam tangtang [Various Customs], Pt. io) Miscellaneous: Lists of Elephants (printed, Collected Chronicles, Pt. 65) Nakh9n Si Thammarat (printed, Collected Chronicles,Pt. 2)

Recordsof the FirstReign,I782-I809.

I38

vols.

Administration, 64 vols.: Records of the Mahatthai and Kalahom Departments containing correspondence with the Northern and Southern provinces, respectively, with reference to (a) official appointments, (b) taxes, (c) biawat (allowances paid to officials and nobles), (d) sak lek (marking of the people for labor service), (e) requests for corvee labor, and (f) announcements of annual religious ceremonies. Ceremony and Religion, 24 vols.: (a) coronation, (b) funerals and cremations, (c) royal attendance at religious ceremonies in the monasteries, (d) gifts to monasteries, and (e) the casting of Buddha images. Relations with Asian Countries, 45 vols.: China (ii vols.), Burma (20), Chiang-

tung (Keng Tung,

i),

Vietnam (6), Cambodia (2),

Lao States (Luang

Phrabang, Vientiane, and Champasak,4), and Ceylon (i). Miscellaneous, 5 vols.: white elepliants and other subjects.

Recordsof the SecondReign,I809-i824.

243

vols.

Administration, I98 vols.: As for the First Reign, with the addition of (g) requests for soldiers and military supplies, and (h) reports on local farming. Ceremony and Religion, iI vols.: As for First Reign. Relations with Asian Countries, 68 vols.: China (I2 vols.), Burma (I5), Chiangtung and Chiangrung (2), Vietnam (I3), Cambodia (8), Lao States (4), Malay Tributary States (9), Ceylon (4), and Calcutta (East India Co., i). Chinese in Thailand, 8 vols. Miscellaneous, 5 vols.: White elephants, Dika (direct legal petitions to the King), and others.

Recordsof the Third Reign, I824-I85I.

3,006

vols.

Administration, 230I vols.: As above, with the addition of (i) reports on local political conditions. Ceremony and Religion, 49 vols.: As above, with the addition of (f) appointments of abbots. Relations with Asian Countries, 46I vols.: China (32 vols.), Burma (34), Chiangtung and Chiangrung(26), Vietnam (I32), Cambodia(I44), Lao States(54), Chiangmai (4), Malay Tributary States (27, 24 of which are for the year I839/40), and Ceylon (8, all for i843/44). Relations with the West, 40 vols.: Great Britain (3I, dealing with the Burney

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Treaty of I826 and British activities in Burma), United States (7), and France (2, one referring to the French in China, the other to Vietnam). Chinese in Thailand, 96 vols. Miscellaneous, 74 vols.: Edicts (2 vols.), Dika (6), and other (66, including 54 undated volumes). Records of the Fourth Reign, I85I-I868. 3,100 vols. (The analysis given below does not include about 6oo torn or missing volumes.) Administration, 1200 vols.: Records of the Mahatthai Department only,13 containing correspondencewith the Northern and Eastern provinces with reference to (a) appointments of officials and tax farmers, (b) taxes, (c) biawat, (d)

saklek,(e) requestsfor corveelabor,(f) reportson localfarmingconditions,

of annualre(g) reportson local politicalconditions,(h) announcements for royaltripsoutsidethe capital. and (i) arrangements ligiousceremonies, Ceremonyand Religion,55 vols.: (a) stateceremonies,(b) ceremonyof the (c) funeralsandcremations, cuttingof the topknotof PrinceChulalongkorn, (e) gifts to in the monasteries, at religiousceremonies (d) royalattendance of Phra (f) castingof Buddhaimages,and (g) reconstruction monasteries, PathomChedi. Relations with Asian Countries,2I4 vols.: China (6 vols.), Chiangtung and Chiangrung(36), Cambodia(I52), andLaos (20).

with visitingembassies, Relationswith the West,260 vols.: (a) correspondence with Frenchofficialsconcern(b) Thai copiesof treaties,(c) correspondence with foreignconsulsin Bangkok,(e) aping Cambodia,(d) correspondence of Thai consulsabroad,(f) specialreportson the activitiesof the pointments on the from foreignnewspapers Britishin Burma,(g) Thai translations reactivitiesof Europeansin Chinaand Vietnam,and (h) correspondence in Thailand. gardingforeigners 85 vols.:(a) foreignaffairs(the greater betweenThai Officials, Correspondence part),and (b) domesticmatters. lettersto foreignheadsof I27 vols.:(a) official King Mongkut,Correspondence, state,(b) lettersto visitingembassies,(c) lettersto Thai officials,and (d) lettersto familyandfriends. personal King Mongkut,EdictsandRoyalOrders,400vols.:(a) Thaicustoms,(b) legal cases,(c) taxes,(d) Dika, (e) gamblingandopiumsmoking,(f) association and(g) Thaigrammar. of Thaiandforeigners, KingMongkut,Essays,26 vols. I65 vols.: (a) textsin Pali and otherlanguages,(b) whiteeleMiscellaneous, andlegalcases,andother. phants,(c) inheritance of theFifthReign,I868-I9I0. About350 vols. Records Thesecovertheperiodonlyup to aboutI890. Nearlyfortypercentof theprevious in a firewhichguttedthe old NationalTheater totalof 550 vols.weredestroyed five yearsago. Lost completelywere documentsgroupedunderthe following classifications: RoyalPagesCorps,corveerecords,slaves,police,the H9 invasionsandLaos, CamLampang,the Easternprovinces, Chiangsaen, Chiangtung, Chiangmai, 'SFor the records of the Kalahom Department, which are stored in the National Archives, see below.

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bodia, Vietnam, the Malay Tributary States, China, miscellaneous Royal letters, education, and draft decrees and orders. Documents which escaped the fire and are currently available for use are classified under the following headings: Foreign relations, ceremonies, temples and the monkhood, Royal travels, palaces and lands; posts, roads, and canals; the Royal Family, the Privy Council and Council of State, finance, justice, Chinese secret societies (esp. the Ang Yi society), laws, administration, honors and decorations, pensions and salaries, and part of the records of the Kalahom Department. Mairapsang, Collected Royal Notices Only a few volumes in this collection remain for the First, Second, and Third Reigns. There are 685 volumes for the Fourth Reign, but half these are partially or completely missing. The rest are badly damaged by water and insects. For the Fifth Reign, there were some 269 volumes, covering the period I868-i898, but these were destroyed in the fire. A charred typescript copy of them, however, was rescued. The typescript catalog of the mairapsang is a partial, selected list of items in this series. Each volume contains between twenty and forty short accounts of the events of the month, including the deaths of officials and nobles, cremations, royal visits to temples, appointments of officials sent on special missions, and the arrival of tributary or foreign embassies. The Government Committee for the Publication of Historical, Cultural, and Archeological Records has expressed its intention to publish at least selections from the mairapsang.These may well prove to be an excellent historical source. The National Archives National Library Building, Na Phra That Road, Bangkok Director: Nai Thawat Sumawong Over the course of the past twenty-five years, the Government Secretariat (Krom Lekhathikan Khana Ratthamontri) periodically has reorganized the official files which it took over in I932 from its predecessor, the Royal Secretariat (Krom Ratchalekhathikan). Between I936 and I940, it handed over to the National Library some I3,000 old documents, covering the period up into the eighteen eighties, as well as almost 300 palm leaf manuscripts and numerous maps and photographs. These now form the nucleus of the manuscript collections of the National Library, discussed in the two preceding sections. Then, in I945, it gave over into the custody of the Department of Fine Arts all the remaining documents relating to the Fifth (King

Chulalongkorn,i868-i910)

and Sixth (King Vajiravudh,I9I0-25)

Reigns. These

were followed in I956 by 440 files of documents relating to the Seventh Reign (King Prajadhipok, I92s5-35).1 These latter two groups gave occasion to the founding of the National Archives, a division of the Department of Fine Arts. The documents in its custody are open to qualified researchersfor the period up to the end of the Sixth Reign on all but a few subjects. 14 Thailand, Office of the Prime Minister, Committee for the Publication of Historical, Cultural, and Archeological Records, comp., Prachum phraratchahatlekha phrabat somdet phra cYhunlacJhemklao cihaoyuhua thi song bprihan ratchakan phaendin phak z [Collected Administrative Correspondenceof H. M. King Chulalongkorn,Part I] (Bangkok, I964), p. V.

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M. WILSON

The National Archives is divided into two sections. The first, headed by Nai Charat Kamphlasiri, is in charge of the historical records, their organization and preservation.Over the past decade they have succeeded in compiling complete indices for the bulk of the records and documents, aids of great value to the scholar. The National Diary Section, headed by Nai Praphat Trinarong, is charged with the collection and organization of current materials for national records and future scholarly research.These include newspaper clippings, photographs, transcriptsof radio broadcasts, and the like, to which will be added at an appropriate date in the future files from the government ministries and offices. Although the collection of historical documents in the custody of the National Archives has since been expanded slightly by the addition of other documents from ministries and individuals, it is essentially the working files of the Royal Secretariat; the files of correspondence received and replies sent, arranged by ministry, subject, and, to some extent, date. In some cases, scattered files on individual subjects have been consolidated by the Archives staff. In general, the collections are well maintained, conveniently organized, and easy to work with. Although the handwriting of some of the earlier documents is often exceedingly difficult to read, most of the documents from about i895 are typewritten. The National Archives also contain what appears to be a complete set of the records of the Kalahom (Defense) Department for the Fourth Reign. These Fifth Reign copies of the original nangsu' khpi were written in large leather-bound ledgers imported from England, and were kept in King Chulalongkorn's personal library. Two sets of these exist for the Fourth Reign, totaling 4I volumes. The two sets are not exact duplicates, as the documents covered in each set vary slightly. Volumes I-36 are the records of the Kalahom Department concerning the southern provinces and Malay tributary states. Volume 37 belongs to the first year of the Fifth Reign. Volume 38 contains the records of the Krom Tha on the administration of the southeastern provinces for the year I867, and volumes 39-4I include correspondenceon the bombardment of Trengganu by an English warship. The series also continues on into the Fifth Reign for more than thirty additional volumes. These administrative records, which are much more complete than those of the Mahatthai (Interior) Department in the National Museum, cover the following subjects:

Appointmentsof officialsand tax farmers,taxes, biawat,sak lek, suai (Chinese capitation tax), appointments of collectors of the rice land tax (kha na), requests for corvee labor, reports on local farming conditions, announcements of annual religious ceremonies, orders for accused persons to come to Bangkok for trial, tribute received from the Malay tributary states, and correspondence with the Malay tributary states. The collections in the Archives begin to be detailed and comprehensive from about the middle of the Fifth Reign (ca. i888); and it is from this date that significant research can be accomplished with some assuranceof completeness in documentation. The collections include documents from every ministry on every conceivable subject (except the internal affairs of the Royal Family) from this period, insofar as such matters were subjects of government concern. The documents in the Archives relating to the Fifth Reign are divided into i5

THAI HISTORICAL MATERIALS IN BANGKOK

115

groups, each corresponding to a ministerial division of responsibility current during the period, and designated by the initials of the ministry concerned. For the purposes of this note, the following description is intended to provide a fairly detailed description of the sorts and types of subjects covered by the archival materials of the Fifth Reign, but it may also be taken as representativeof the documentation available for the study of the Sixth and Seventh Reigns. Records of the Fifth Reign, I868-i9I0. 9,835 files in 269 series (excluding unclassified documents) M. Ministry of Interior (Mahatthai). I308 files in 47 series. Central Office, I63 files: General correspondence (23); personnel, training, appointments, honors and decorations, promotions, resignations (140). Provincial Administration, 289 files: Organizing the administrative system (39), social conditions (i6), inspection tours (io8), internal passports (2), reports

from provincialofficials(I22),

villageofficials(2).

Legal Administration, i58 files: Crime and banditry (33), law and the courts (iii),

disputes(I4).

Financial Administration, I60 files: Ministry finances (36), taxation (I24). Social Services, 7 files: Hospitals (5), public health (2). Forestry Department, 7I files. Survey Department, 46 files: General correspondence (34), demarcation of frontiers (I2). Public Works, Roads, and Canals, 17 files. Harbormaster'sDepartment, 25 files. Tributary States, I39 files: Lao (io), Cambodian (29), Chiangmai and the North (ioo). Specific Incidents, 74 files: French occupation of Chanthaburi and Trat (4I), Pts. 75 and I902 Shan Rebellion (33, some published in CollectedChronicles, 78). Demographic, 26 files: Censuses (9), internal migration (2), immigration (I5). Other, I33 files: Royal Pages Corps (2), "miscellaneous"(I3I). Y. Ministry of Justice (Yutthitham). 686 files in 9 series. Central Office, 75 files: General correspondence (70), appointments (5). Legal Cases, 609 files: Appeals (145), inheritance (I02), embezzlement (34), cases tried (274), decisions (48), capital and provincial cases (6). Miscellaneous, 2 files: Royal Pages (beginnings of Law School, I9I0). S. Ministry of Public Instruction (Sutksathikan). iii6 files in 20 series. Educational Affairs, 207 files: General correspondence (57), schools (II4), extension of education in the provinces (36). Religious Affairs, gog files: Buddhist monkhood, deaths (48), appointments (6), ordinations (2), resignations (i), discipline (i), and examinations (4); monasteries (745), religious lands (I3), Sacred Relics (28), Buddha images and other holy objects (3I), Kathin ceremonies (5), the Tripitaka(21), and miscellaneous(4). Kh. Ministry of Finance (Phrakhlang). 634 files in I5 series. Central Office, 52 files: Office affairs, general correspondence, and miscellaneous. Annual Budgets, iii files.

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DAVID K. WYATT

AND CONSTANCE

M. WILSON

Revenues, 32 files: Suai (7), opium and other tax farms (25). Expenditures, 276 files: General records (i77), salaries (6i) and biawat (38). Operations, i63 files: Paper Currency Department (I2), shortages (I28), foreign exchange (i5), funds owing between ministries (77), and audit (i). W. Ministry of the Palace (Wang). 48 files in 4 series. Miscellaneous, 48 files: Royal Pages Corps (13), regular inspection reports (23), Chulalongkorn Buddhist College at Wat Mahathat (i), and other ii. A. Department of the Royal Scribes (Krom Phra Alak). 65 files in 6 series. Miscellaneous, 65 files: Establishing Legislative Council (io), Council of Ministers (6), designation of commercial firms under Royal Patronage (36), government orders (6), and Crown Copyright (7). YT. Ministry of Public Works (Yothathikan). 266 files in 3 series. General Correspondence,36 files. Post and Telegraph Department, II7 files. Construction and Repairs, II3 files. YN. Department of the Army (Krom Yutthanathikan). I5I files in 5 series. Central Office, I5I files: General correspondence (48), military organization (37), appointments (i), military bases (2). K. Ministry of Defense (Kalahom). 239 files in 8 series. General Correspondence,50 files. Annual Reports, I2 files.

Naval Affairs,iii files. Royal Pages Corps, 8 files. Arms Traffic, 57 files. N. Ministry of the Capital (NakhQnban). 237 files in 8 series. General correspondence,237 files: Crime and banditry (70), Ang Yi and Chinese secret societies (23), slaughterhouse (2), police (50), accidents (5), and miscellaneous (87). RL. Royal Secretariat (KromRatchalekhathikan). i62 files in 7 series. General correspondence, i62 files: Royal ceremonies (76), drafts of official correspondence (2), decrees and regulations (5), royal letters (i5), and miscellaneous (64). SB. Ministry of Public Health (Sukhaphiban). 6o files in 3 series. General correspondence(42) and public water supply (i8). KS. Ministry of Agriculture (Kasettrathikan). 603 files in io series. General correspondence,603 files: Cutting of Canals (69), Department of Mines (243), Forestry Department (I39), opinions on commerce (22), Lands Department (57), and miscellaneous (73). T. Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kan Tangprathet). I727 files in 64 series. CentralOffice,I30 files: Officeaffairs(ii8), salaries(ii), appointments(i). General Conduct of Foreign Affairs, 590 files: Siamese diplomatic representation (ioo), foreign diplomats (34), royal correspondence with foreign heads of state (II3), births of foreign princes (ii), Post and Telegraph Department (58.), treaties (14), convention on abolition of war (25), attendance at conferences abroad (04), foreign commerce (i8), medals and decorations awarded foreigners (038), foreign loans (65). Relations with Individual Nations, 352 files: Russia (i8), Great Britain (55),

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THAI HISTORICAL MATERIALS IN BANGKOK

Netherlands (2I), Japan (32), United States (49), Denmark (9), India (7), France (56), Italy (22), China (27), Germany (46), Portugal (6), "England-

France"(2), Sweden(i), and Belgium(i). Relations with Individual Foreigners, 330 files: Foreigners coming to Bangkok (50), deaths of foreigners (54), gifts from foreigners (I67), debts owed foreigners by Thai royalty (I5), foreigners asking for royal patronage (I5), foreigners in the Siamese government service (9), marriages of foreigners (20). Individuals, 20 files: Strobel and Westengard (I5), Frederick Verney (3), and Rolin-Jaequemyns (2). Royal Travels Abroad, I36 files: European trip, I897 (93); King's trips to Java and Malaya (6); trip to Japan (by Crown Prince, 2); education and (I5)

travelsof sonsof King (ii),

other (9).

International Court, Legal Affairs, I58 files: Legal procedure (28), cases (I20), Bangkok, (io). Miscellaneous, ii files: Royal property abroad (4) and its maintenance (2), and other (5). B. Miscellaneous (Bettalet). 2583 files in 6o series, which eventually may be reclassified in terms of the preceding categories as follows:

Interior, 65 files: Chiangmai (23), Lao states (I9),

Cambodia (i),

NakhQn

Ratchasima (3), and internal administration (I9). Education, 89 files: Thai students abroad (33), and museum (56).

Finance:Banks (I0). Public Works: Railways (95)-.

Defense:Arms and munitions(I28). Capital, 64 files: Seven provinces of Bangkok Circle (I2), (36), tramways(ii), electricity(5). Public Health, 83 files: Hospitals (8i) and epidemics (2).

pardons to prisoners

Agriculture,658 files: Royal Land Grants (i), mills (i), lands (443), lands and homesites (I62), steam launch lines (I9), founding of commercial firms (29), land grants (3). Foreign Affairs, I9I files: Foreigners en route to Angkor (i), hiring of foreigners (94), gifts (6i), applications to enter government service (27), Pahang Rebellion (8).

Royal Secretariat,II99 files: Medals and decorations(233), appointmentsand dismissals(99), pensions(I94), royalcorveelabor (147), biawat(II4), founding of societies(I5), newspapers(40), SiameseRed Cross (9), officialsgoing abroad (io), deaths (go), borrowing of money from the Crown (48), national flag (I2), seals (8), prizes (i), miscellaneous (82).

Other, i file. Unclassified Documents (Incomplete Survey) In addition to documents which might be classified under headings employed above, there are also documents on the following subjects: Pattani; Wills, bequests, and legacies; the Royal Mint; railways; military commissions; Switzerland; the Russo-JapaneseWar; Kelantan and Trengganu; and disarmament. In general, the types of documents stored in the archives are seven in number: letters from ministries and departments to the Royal Secretariat requesting de(i)

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DAVID K. WYATT AND CONSTANCE M. WILSON

cisions on administrative matters; (2) documents submitted in support of such requests, including copies of correspondencebetween various units within the ministry, draft schemes, statistics, drawings, maps, etc.; (3) reports, regular, irregular, or special, on the work of the various governmental units; (4) precis of letters received, written for the convenience of the King; (5) letters from the King to his advisers requesting their comments, and the replies received; (6) notes in the King's or a secretary's hand directing the action to be taken or providing rough drafts of the letters to be sent in reply to correspondencereceived; and (7) drafts and sometimes originals of the replies sent.15 As may be seen from these extended lists, the variation in quality and quantity of the documentation from ministry to ministry is considerable. In some cases, as with the Ministry of the Palace, the Department of the Army, and the Ministry of Public Health, this is owing to the particular unit's short life or limited scope during the Fifth Reign. It should also be borne in mind that, as these files cover only matters which were called to the attention of the King, through the Royal Secretariat, much of the ordinary, day-to-day operations of the ministries are not covered in these records. These considerations aside, the Archives contain an enormous mass of valuable and useful documentation, strongest in those areas of most concern to future historians: internal administration and foreign affairs. One should have no illusions about the problems of making use of the documents of the Library and Archives. Their bulk alone demands considerable time and effort in research; and because they are primarily administrative, rather than political, in nature, they cannot be used well without a thorough understanding both of the political and administrative processes of which they are a product, and of the culture and society of which they provide a record. The Thai Government has done an exceedingly conscientious job of making these resources available and accessible.The rest is up to the scholar who would make use of them in seeking better to understand Thailand's past. 15 For good printed examples of such documents, see Collected Administrative Correspondenceof H. M. King Chulalongkorn,Part 1.