Sukhothai – a brief history
The early history of Sukhothai is rather obscured by the mists of time but the oldest vestiges visible today for visitors to the eponymous Historical Park date to the late 12th century when the settlement, along with nearby Si Satchanalai ancient city, came under the control of the Khmer king Jayavarman VII, (best known for his famous ‘carved faces’ Angkor temple of Bayon). For a brief period, Sukhothai formed a remote, albeit evidently important, outpost marking the northern limits of the Angkorian empire.
What passed for a border in the late 12th century would probably have lain some 50 kilometres north, with the twin towns of Si Satchanalai (Sajanalaya) and Chaliang, beyond whose walls and moats lay the powerful Mon city state of Haripunchai (modern-day Lamphun). While there are records of inevitable conflict between the Khmers and Haripunchai, there were also periods of flourishing trade. The twin towns of Si Satchanalai and Chaliang, with their strategic positions beside the Yom River, would have been well-placed to benefit.
The Yom River surrounds the ancient port of Chaliang on 3 sides Several of the most important monuments at Sukhothai, including Wat Mahathat, Wat Si Sawai and Wat Phra Pai Luang, were constructed atop earlier, preexisting Khmer Hindu temples while sites such as San Ta Pha Daeng and Wat Chao Chan at Si Satchanalai remain largely unaltered since the period of Angkorian administration. (The latter represents one of the famous arogyasalas or hospital chapels commissioned by Jayavarman VII.)
The late 12th-century sanctuary of Wat Chao Chan at Chaliang. The intact main tower is Khmer with the now-ruined entrance hall being a later addition. However, Khmer rule wasn’t to last long since by the mid-13th century (1238 according to Thai historians), the local population, probably consisting of a mixture of Mon and early Tai migrants, had successfully revolted and thrown off the yoke of their Khmer masters with their reportedly excessive tax demands. For various reasons, the early 13th century was to signal the beginning of the end for the mighty Angkor empire and its borders would have been fast contracting at every point of the compass.
With excellent timing, the newly independent Sukhothai kingdom corresponded precisely to the emergence of a post-Khmer power vacuum, as well as the beginning of significant Tai migration into what is today Thailand. The relationship between the region’s original Mon inhabitants and the newly arrived Tai migrants isn’t well studied, and is often skipped over by local historians, although mid-13th-century Sukhothai is generally considered to be the first capital of what was to become Thailand.
The old city walls and entrance causeway of Si Satchanalai Unfortunately, their fortuitous timing had a date limit as by the mid-14th Tai clans were flocking south into the region and creating new kingdoms left, right and centre at the expense of the disjointed, long-term resident Mons. (Thai cities such as Chiang Mai, Phayao and Nan were all founded around this period; all of which had at least intermittent autonomy.) One of these, the powerful Ayutthaya kingdom, conquered Sukhothai in 1438 and the rest, as they say, is history.
Sukhothai Historical Park
In 1991, UNESCO created the Historic Sukhothai Town and Associated Historic Towns listing, granting World Heritage status to Sukhothai. The somewhat unwieldy title grouped Sukhothai ancient city with its contemporary sites of Si Satchanalai to the north and Kamphaeng Phet to the west . (Sukhothai is also the name of the present-day province, while modern Sukhothai Town lies a short distance east of the Historical Park.)
Waterlily ponds create a photogenic foreground for the temple views As with other ancient city sites in the region, such as Angkor, Bagan, Ayutthaya etc, only religious structures were constructed out of non-perishable materials so all you can see today are the temples. (Somehow, city walls were exempt from this and both Sukhothai and Si Satchanalai still display sections of intact walls, gates and moat.) Nonetheless, Sukhothai houses myriad ruined sanctuaries with the Historical Park covering an impressive 70 square kilometres. The central, moated rectangular area contains the bulk of the sites but impressive temples such as Wat Si Chum and Wat Phra Pai Luang lie outside of the walls, while smaller, lesser-visited sanctuaries stretch into the hills to the west.
Waterlily ponds now create photogenic foregrounds for the stupas, spires and giant Buddha images.
Sunset view Our tour
We’d say the Park is at its most spectacular at sunrise and sunset so our typical tour takes in both. The former is an option for early risers, but bear in mind this is also the quietest – and coolest – time of day, so there are few other visitors around to detract from your pics. A Sukhothai tour, and two nights’ accommodation in the town feature on our off-the-beaten-track, Hidden Thailand, tour of the kingdom with an arrival by train from Bangkok, followed by an overland departure north to Lampang.
