Borommaracha IV.

Borommaracha IV. (Full name: Somdet Phra Borommarachathirat Thi Si , Thai : สมเด็จพระบรม ราชาธิราชที่ 4 , also: No Phutthangkun , Thai: หน่อ พุทธางกูร , *  1502 ; † 1533 ) was the twelfth king of the Siamese Empire of Ayutthaya from 1529 to 1533 . Other chroniclers put his reign in the years 1509 to 1514 ( CS 871 to 875).

Life

After his father Ramathibodi II made him heir to the throne ( Uparat ) , Prince Atityawong (Thai: พระ อาทิตย วงศ์ ) spent three years as governor in Phitsanulok before he was crowned king as Borommaracha IV in Wang Luang in Ayutthaya. He was king just long enough to be able to continue his father's defensive policy regarding the disturbances in the north. He sent envoys to Lan Na to negotiate a peace treaty. He died of smallpox in 1533 .

When Borommaracha IV died, his only son, Prince Ratsadathirat Kumar (Thai: พระ รั ษ ฎา ธิ ราช กุมาร ) was just five years old. Although he was crowned king, he held this office only five months before he was murdered by his father's half-brother Chairacha. The latter then had himself crowned king as Chairachathirat .

The chronicler Jeremias Van Vliet , VOC merchant who lived in Ayutthaya from 1633 to 1642, describes the king as follows:

“The son of King Ramathibodi II succeeded his father to the throne at the age of 27. He did not want to accept the title Phra , as in his opinion it was reserved only for monks and divine beings. He was therefore called No Phutthangkun . At the beginning of his reign the king was very compassionate until he found he was being taken advantage of by his mandarins . He then changed his character and ruled with a strict hand. He was a war-loving ruler of great wisdom. He was an enemy of bad judges and punished them with death. Therefore, it was very important to him that these positions should be filled with pious and sincere men. On the way to Pegu , where he was about to conquer a town called Choulok , he collapsed and died of smallpox after five years of reign. His life was generally burdened with problems and not a fruitful time. "

- van Vliet

literature

• Richard D. Cushman (David K. Wyatt Ed.): The Royal Chronicles Of Ayutthaya . The Siam Society, Bangkok 2000, ISBN 974-8298-48-5
• David K. Wyatt , Chris Baker , Dhiravat na Pombejra, Alfon van der Kraan: Van Vliet's Siam . Silkworm Books, Chiang Mai 2005, ISBN 974-9575-81-4

Individual evidence

1. ↑ The so-called “Royal Autograph” chronicle , edited by King Mongkut (Rama IV) , later revised by Prince Damrong Rajanubhab and published in 1912.
2. ↑ David K.Wyatt: Van Vliet's Siam , in The Short History of the Kings of Siam 1640 , pp 213-14