A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z

LEXICON

 

 

Pom Thung Setthi (ป้อมทุ่งเศรษฐี)

Thai. ‘Millionaire's Field Fortress’. Name of an archaeological site in Kamphaeng Phet featuring an old laterite fort. It is situated on the west side of the Ping river, and together with the river in the past formed a first line of defence against attacks from the west, namely from Hansawati, i.e. the former Mon kingdom in Burma and the historical archenemy of Siam during the Ayutthaya period. It thus protected the old city of Kamphaeng Phet, which once was an important outpost of Sukhothai, and a buffer against attacks from Burma. The city of Kamphaeng Phet is located on the east side of the river and its name means ‘Diamond Wall’, i.e. a ‘wall (kamphaeng) as hard as a diamond (phet)’, built to prevent the enemy to go beyond it. The fortress is built as an European style star fort, a bastion with a square floor plan and arrow-shaped bulwarks, i.e. angular structures projecting outward from the curtain walls of the fortification, positioned at each of the four corners, which allowed for fire from the flanks and a offers a better defence of the curtain walls. The walls are approximately 6 metres high and whereas the distance between the tip of the bulwarks is circa 82 metres, the curtain walls measure around 52 metres and at the base have a thickness of about 3.5 metres. The battlement is topped with a crenellated parapet that consist of merlons called bai sema, which at the base each have a horizontal loophole or embrasure. At the bottom, the thick inner walls have large, deep bunker-like niches in the form of a house-shaped pentagon, some of which have a single window of the same shape in the outer wall. On all four sides, in the middle of each curtain wall, is a large gate. Thung Setthi Fortress was reportedly built by the Portuguese, who since 1518 AD, in the reign of King Ramathibodi II (1491—1529 AD), already supplied the Siamese of Portuguese guns and ammunition. In addition, this king established a Portuguese training corps and hired Portuguese mercenaries to fight on his side. The fortress is believed to date from approximately the 21st—22nd century BE, which corresponds roughly to anywhere from the early 16th to mid 17th century AD. See MAP.