4. Sanam Luang
Oct 05, 2004
A flying crew pull their kite against an opposing team during a
kite competition in the old days at Sanam Luang.Sanam Luang
The vast public park called Sanam Luang Bangkok's wide open space
of royal pageantry, religious piety and breezy days of kiteflying
takes its name from the Thai words meaning "grand ground",
or "the ground that belongs to the King".
To the Siamese of the early Rattanakosin period, the field was
"Thoong Phra Meru" (literally, "the royal cremation
ground"), since this open space to the north of the Royal Grand
Palace was where the remains of monarchs and other highranking royalty
were cremated.
In the reign of King Rama III, Sanam Luang was a demonstration
rice field that underscored Siam's prosperity to foreign envoys.
The king also ordered a royal pavilion built there for the annual
royal ploughing and rainmaking ceremonies.
He had a crematorium built at nearby Wat Saket and tried to convince
members of royalty to hold their cremation ceremonies there alongside
those of ordinary people, but his pleas went unheeded.
When Rama IV came to the throne, he decided that Thoong Phra Meru
was an inauspicious name and changed it to Sanam Luang. Certainly
the grounds became more popular with the public in his time, for
Sanam Luang was soon hosting entertainment, including theatrical
performances, martialarts demonstrations and, yes, kiteflying.
Sanam Luang originally covered only a small portion of its present
southern half. The rest was occupied mostly by the Palace of the
Second King, the balance by mere floodplain.
Following his first visit to Europe in 1897, King Rama V wanted
to transform Sanam Luang so that it resembled the lovely parks he'd
seen in front of the grand buildings of European capitals. Having
abolished the position of the second king, he ordered the demolition
of the walls and forts of the palace to the east so that Sanam Luang
could be extended.
In 1902, when he had hoo kwang and mahogany trees planted along
Rajdamnoen Nok and Rajdamnoen Nai avenues, he also ordered 365 tamarind
trees planted to provide shade around Sanam Luang.
About the same time, the cremation ceremonies of highranking royalty
were moved to the official royal crematorium at Wat Thepsirin (in
the presentday Pomprab district).
The only time Sanam Luang served as a cremation place for ordinary
people was in 1973, after the popular uprising for democracy on
October 14. Victims of the violence were cremated in the north of
the grounds, separated from area used for the royal ceremonies to
the south.
Sanam Luang has been a multipurpose area ever since Bangkok was
founded, far beyond its grander uses as the venue for royal and
official ceremonies in every reign.
When Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram was prime minister, it
witnessed horseracing, beauty competitions and antigovernment protests.
It hosted the city's biggest weekend market until Chatuchak opened
in 1982.
Today, yearround, there are trade fairs and casual entertainment
and leisurely family strolls, although it is still used for such
large celebrations as New Year's Eve gatherings, Songkran in April
and the Royal Ploughing Ceremony in May.
And few Thais will forget the importance of Sanam Luang in the
country's proud march toward democracy. Proposals persist for an
annual commemoration to be held there of the 1973, 1976 and 1992
political clashes that took place in and around the grounds. The
blood spilled there on those grim days could only further sanctify
such a historic place.
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