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Rattanakosin - A Historical Novel by Paul Adirex Rattanakosin - The birth of Bangkok On November 3, 2003, Christopher Milton, First Secretary at the American Embassy in Bangkok, decides on the spur of the moment to visit the National Museum, which is celebrating the bicentennial of Krom Pra Ratchawang Bovorn Maha Surasinghanart, younger brother and Front Palace of King Rama I. Milton stops to observe the laying of wreaths at the bronze monument of Krom Pra Ratchawang Bovorn near the museum, and learns more about this national hero who had served two kings and fought in more than twenty-five battles against the enemies. At the museum, Milton finds himself in the strange company of a Buddhist monk, and for some unknown reason, feels immediately at ease with the monk as if they have met before. The monk recounts vividly and sometimes passionately, the story of the siege by the Burmese of Ayutthaya, capital for 417 years of the Thai kingdom; the escape of Praya Taksin and his troops, as well as that of Bunma and his friends on the eve of the fall of the capital; the relationship between Bunma, his brother Thongduang, and Praya Taksin whose fate and karma were closely interlinked; the fifteen years of tough battles that those three national heroes had to fight together before the successful reunification of the kingdom and the establishment of Thonburi with Praya Taksin as King; the jealousies and intrigues of the officials within the court circles; the indulgence in meditation by King Taksin leading to his dubitable end, and the rise of King Rama Thibodi (Thongduang) who founded Rattanakosin with the intention of reviving at this new capital the physical and spiritual glory of Ayutthaya; and finally Bunma's own rise to the rank of the Front Palace of Rattanakosin, his tragic flaws and his tragic end. Paperback
Bangkok 2004
Aries Books
534 Pages
ISBN 974926066X Click here for more books by Paul Adirex
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