Kosa Pan

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Kosa Pan (French portrait from 1686)
Siamese legation at the French court 1686, painting by Jacques Vigouroux Duplessis (early 18th century)

Chaophraya Kosathibodi ( Thai :เจ้าพระยาโก ษา ธิ บ ดี , [t͡ɕâw pʰrájaː koːsǎːtʰíbɔːdiː] , "Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade", actually Pan (ปาน , [paːn] ) or with the surname Kosa Pan (โก ษา ปาน , [koːsǎː paːn] ); * before 1650; † 1700 in Ayutthaya ) was a Siamese diplomat and statesman . He is best known for his successful diplomatic mission from Siam to Europe in 1686.

relationship

Kosa Pan was the younger brother of Phraklang (Minister of Finance) Lek ( เหล็ก ) († 1683) and a nephew of King Ekathotsarot (ruled 1605 to 1610). It is believed that Kosa Pan and his brother had the same wet nurse as the future king, so they enjoyed special favors. One of his late descendants is the founder of the Chakri dynasty in Siam, King Rama I (r. 1782 to 1809).

Legation to France 1686

Siamese legation at the court of Versailles (1686)

In 1686 Kosa Pan, who at that time bore the feudal title Ok-Phra Wisut Sunthon, was sent to Europe by King Narai the Great (r. 1656 to 1688) with two other envoys (Ok-Luang Kanlaya Ratchamaitri and Ok-Khun Sisawan Wacha), to build up or deepen friendly relations with France . The Siamese accompanied Alexandre de Chaumont (1640 to 1710) and François-Timoléon de Choisy to France, who had come to Siam in 1685. In addition, the Jesuit Guy Tachard was on his way back to France. Kosa Pan and his company brought the offer of an eternal alliance between Siam and France. He stayed in Europe between June 1686 and March 1687.

The mission of Kosa Pan caused a sensation, not only in France, but throughout Europe. You landed in Brest and went on a journey to Versailles to see King Louis XIV.

Siamese revolution of 1688

After his return to Ayutthaya, Kosa Pan became one of the most important supporters of Phetracha , the opponent of King Narai. Phetracha eliminated Narai and expelled the French from the country. Kosa Pan became his Phraklang (Foreign and Trade Minister). In 1690 he met the German scholar Engelbert Kaempfer , who was on a long journey to Asia.

Next life

In 1699 Phetracha and Kosa Pan received the Jesuit father Guy Tachard, but a formal exchange remained. A short time later, Kosa Pan fell out of favor and died in June 1700 as a result of abuse . According to other sources, he killed himself.

literature

  • Dirk Van der Cruysse, Michael Smithies (Ed.): The Diary of Kosa Pan, Thai Ambassador to France June-July 1686 . Silkworm Books, Chiang Mai 2002. ISBN 974-7551-58-6 .
  • Geoffrey C. Gunn: First Globalization. The Eurasian exchange, 1500-1800 . Rowman & Littlefield, London 2003. ISBN 0742526623 .
  • Morgan Sportès: We are Siamese if You Please. In: The UNESCO Courier , Volume 47, 1994, pp. 48-49.
  • Morgan Sportès, Kanika Chansang: Kosapan face aux intrigues françaises. In: Journal of the Siam Society , Volume 83, 1995, pp. 79-91

Web links

Commons : Kosa Pan  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Smithies (2002), p. 3.
  2. ^ Smithies (2002), p. 4.
  3. ^ Smithies (2002), p. 25.
  4. ↑ Sportès: We are Siamese if You Please. 1994, p. 49.
personal data
SURNAME Kosa Pan
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Chaophraya Kosathibodi (Pan)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Thai diplomat and statesman
DATE OF BIRTH before 1650
DATE OF DEATH 1700
Place of death Ayutthaya