Lavo Kingdom
648–1388
Map of mainland Southeast Asian politiesc. 1000–1100 CE Cyan: Lavo Kingdom Red:Khmer Empire Green:Haripuñjaya Light green:Srivijaya Yellow:Champa Blue:Đại Việt Pink:Pagan kingdom
Proposed locations of ancient kingdoms inMenam andMekong Valleys in the 7th century based on the details provided in the Chineseleishu,Cefu Yuangui, and others.
Capital	Lopburi (before 1080s) Ayodhya (after 1080s)
Common languages	Old Mon Old Malay Old Khmer Old Thai
Religion	Buddhism (Mahayana,Theravada)
Government	Mandala kingdom
Monarch
• 648–700 CE (first)	Kalavarnadisharaja
• 1052–1069	Chandrachota
• 1319–1351	Ramathibodi I
• 1351–1388 (last)	Ramesuan
Historical era	Post-classical era
• Fall ofTou Yuan	647
• Establishment	648
• Tambralinga vassal	927–946
• Fall ofAyodhyapura	946
• Destroyed byAngkor	1001
• Angkor vassal	946–1052
• Reclaimed bySuphannabhum/Haripuñjaya	1052
• Ayodhya as capital (Xiān)	1082–1351
• Lavapura ofChaliang	1106–1181
• Lavapura ofAngkor	1181–1218
• Lavapura ofPhraek Si Racha	1218–1351
• Formation ofAyutthaya	1351
Preceded by Succeeded by Syamapura Dvaravati Tou Yuan Duō Miè Sukhothai Ayutthaya Angkor Hariphunchai Chaliang Asadvarapura

TheLavo Kingdom (Thai:อาณาจักรละโว้) was a political entity (mandala) on the left bank of theChao Phraya River in the Upper Chao Phraya valley from the end ofDvaravati civilization, in the 7th century, until 1388. The original center of Lavo wasLavapura and was shifted to Ayodhya (Xiān) in the 1080s. However, since both Ayodhya orXiān and Lavo separately sent embassies to the Chinese court in the late 1200s, these two polities were potentially individual states.

Before the 9th century, Lavo, together with other supra-regional settlements, such asSi Thep,Sema [th],Phimai,Nakhon Pathom, and others were the centers of themandala-style polities ofDvaravati.^[1] Due to several circumstances, including climate changes and the invasions of the surrounding polities, severalDvaravati centers lost their prosperity, and the mandalas in theMenam Valley was then split into three groups:^[2]: 8 Lavo (modernLopburi) to the east, which was more often in touch with the Angkorean and pre-Angkorean worlds,^[2]: 8Suphannaphum (modernSuphanburi) to the west, which had more contact with the Mon and Malay worlds^{[2]: 8 [3]: 30} and the northern polities, which had more complexity in culture, ethnic, and linguistic than the aforementioned two polities.^[2]: 9 Meanwhile, theMun–Chi mandalas allied withKambudesha in theTonlé Sap basin.^[4]: 93

The area of Dvaravati (what is now Thailand) was first inhabited byMon people who had arrived and appeared centuries earlier. The foundations of Buddhism in central Southeast Asia were laid between the 6th and 9th centuries when aTheravada Buddhist culture linked to theMon people developed in central and northeastern Thailand. The Mon Buddhist kingdoms that rose in what are now parts of Laos and Central Plain of Thailand were collectively called Dvaravati.^[5]: 27

According to theNorthern Thai Chronicles, Lavo was founded byKalavarnadisharaja, who came from Takkasila in 648 CE,^[6][7] a year afterDvaravati madeTou Yuan its vassal.Kalavarnadisharaja was a son ofKakabhadra, king of Takkasila (it is assumed that the city wasNakhon Chai Si ofKamalanka)^{[8][9]: 29 [10]} who set the new era,Chula Sakarat in 638 CE. The era was used by the Siamese and the Burmese until the 19th century. His son, PhrayaKalavarnadisharaja founded the city a decade later.

Evidence from stone inscriptions found in ancient Mon script in Northern and Central Thailand confirms that the main population of Lavo andHaripuñjaya mandalas is likely to be the same ethnic group, the "Mon people", or any ethnic group that uses theAustroasiatic languages. Due to the royal blood relations, these two states maintained a good relationship for the first 300 years.^[11]

The only native language found during early Lavo times is theMon language. However, there is debate whether Mon was the sole ethnicity of Lavo. Some historians point out that Lavo was composed of mixed Mon andLawa people (aPalaungic-speaking people),^[12][13] with the Mons forming the ruling class. It is also hypothesized that the migration ofTai peoples into Chao Phraya valley occurred during the time of the Lavo kingdom.

Theravada Buddhism remained a major belief in Lavo althoughHinduism andMahayana Buddhism from theKhmer Empire wielded considerable influence.^[14] Around the late 7th century, Lavo expanded to the north. In the Northern Thai Chronicles, including theCāmadevivaṃsa,Camadevi, the first ruler of the Mon kingdom ofHaripuñjaya, was said to be a daughter of a Lavo king.

Few records are found concerning the nature of the Lavo kingdom. Most of what we know about Lavo is from archaeological evidence.Tang dynasty chronicles records that the Lavo kingdom sent tributes to Tang as Tou-ho-lo (堕和罗国). In his diary, the monkXuanzang referred to Dvaravati-Lavo as Tou-lo-po-ti, which seems to echo the name Dvaravati, as a state between Chenla and thePagan kingdom. By theSong dynasty, Lavo was known asLuówō (羅渦).^[15]

Via royal relations,Isanavarman I (r. 616–637) of theChenla kingdom expanded Khmer influence to theMenam valley during the Mon dominance through his campaigns around the 7th century, but did not exercise political control over the region.

During theSui period (581–618), two sister kingdoms,Zhū Jiāng, which has been identified as one of theDvaravati-influenced polity,^[16] andCān Bàn, maderoyal intermarriages with Zhenla. They then fought several wars against DvaravatiTou Yuan to the northwest.^[17] Tou Yuan later became a vassal ofDvaravati in 647,^{[18]: 269 [19]: 15–16} and known as Lavo in 648. The warfare between Chenla and Dvaravati continued into theTang period with the involvement of several kingdoms, including the three brother states ofQiān Zhī Fú,Xiū Luó Fēn, andGān Bì, who collectively fielded over 50,000 elite soldiers.^{[20]: 54–5} Certain battles may have been associated with the wars between Lavo and its northern sisterMonic kingdom,Haripuñjaya, occurring in the early 10th century.^{[20]: 36–7}

In addition to Lavo, Zhenla also encounteredLínyì to the northeast.^[17] Through royal connections,Cān Bàn thereafter became a complete vassal ofChenla,^{[21]: 27, 35} until the disintegration in the late 7th century,^{[18]: 123 [20]: 40} when it instead was underWen Dan.^[20]: 40 The Chenla power struggle that led to the kingdom's dissolution also diminished its power in theMenam Valley.^[22]

Some scholar suggests that the son ofSi Thep king namedBhavavarman mentioned in the Ban Wang Pai Inscription (K. 978) founded in thePhetchabun Province of Thailand was probablyBhavavarman II instead ofBhavavarman I (r.580–598) due to the inscription styles that potentially inscribed after 627.^[23]: 20

In the earlyDvaravati period, the westernChao Phraya Valley was probably centered inAyodhyapura (Si Thep) as mentioned in thePali chronicles,Ratanabimbavamsa [th] andJinakalamali.^[24][25] Lavo at that time was speculated to be the southern fortress ofAyodhyapura.^[24] After Ayodhyapura declined in the mid 10th century, the city-states incentral Thailand then merged into two mandalas – Lavo (modern Lopburi) to the east andSuphannabhum (modernSuphan Buri) to the west.^[3]

Ayodhyapura potentially began to decline in the mid-10th century as the Khmer inscription dating to 946 mentioned the Angkorian kingRajendravarman II won overRāmaññadesa (country of theMon) andChampa.^[26] He later assigned his lineage, Vap Upendra, as the governor of Rāmaññadesa in 949.^[27]: 3546 Moreover, theRatanabimbavamsa [th] mentions a battle between Ayodhyapura led by Adītaraj andYaśodharapura over theEmerald Buddha in the late 9th or early 10th centuries.^[28]: 51 But the conflict between these two polities may exist long before, asWoodward statedJayavarman II, who establishedKambujadesa and relocated the capital northward toYaśodharapura in the mid 9th century,^[4]: 87 formed an ally with the city-states in theMun–Chi river basin, includingWen Dan, to counter Ayodhyapura's strength in thePa Sak River basin to the west.^[4]: 93

Ayodhyapura was left abandoned around the 13th century.^[29] Many Thai scholars believe that climatic change and epidemics contributed to Ayodhyapura's downfall.^[1] The inhabitants subsequently sought refuge inLavapura andAyodhya (Xiān),^[24] both of which later merged into theAyutthaya Kingdom in the 14th century.^[30]

During the 10th–11th centuries, Lavo was overrun by neighbors from all directions; several battles with the northern neighborHaripuñjaya happened in the early 900s, which caused the kingdom to be annexed byTambralinga from the south in 928. Then, it was devastated by theAngkor from the east in 946 and 1001, raided by theChola in 1030,^[31]: 143 and later invaded byPagan from the west in 1058 and 1087, as detailed below.

In the early 10th century, several battles between two sister mandalas—Lavo andHaripuñjaya—from 925 to 927 were recorded.^[11] According to the O Smach Inscription, after two years of the enthronement, King Rathasatkara or Trapaka (Thai:อัตราสตกะราช/ตราพกะ) ofHaripuñjaya moved south, aiming to seize Lavo. The Lavo king, Uchitthaka Chakkawat or Ucchitta Emperor (อุฉิฎฐกะจักรวรรดิ/อุจฉิตตจักรพรรดิ), moved northward to defend. However, the war between these two sister states spread to the southern kingdom ofTambralinga, King Jivaka or Suchitra (พระเจ้าชีวก/พระเจ้าสุชิตราช), took this advantage to occupy Lavo.^[32] After losing Lavo, both Mon's kings rallied up north to holdHaripuñjaya city, but King Rathasatkara defeated and lost the hometown to Lavo's king. After failing to retake Haripuñjaya, King Rathasatkara moved south to settle inPhraek Si Racha (present-daySankhaburi district).^[11] The battle is mentioned in several chronicles such as theJinakalamali andCāmadevivaṃsa.^[32]

After Jivaka took Lavo's capital, Lavapura (ลวปุระ), he appointed his son, Kampoch (กัมโพช), as a new ruler and enthroned the ex-Lavo queen as his consort.^[33]Following the conquering of Lavo, Javaka also seizedSuphannabhum in the next few years. Princes ofSuphannabhum—Thamikaraj andChandrachota—fled toHaripuñjaya.^[34]: 191Tambralinga's prince King Kampoch, unsuccessfully annexedHaripuñjaya the following year.^[33] He attempted to seize another northern city, Nakaburi (นาคบุรี), but also failed. Several battles betweenHaripuñjaya and Lavo happened since then.^[33]

Following Angkorian 9-year civil wars,Tambralinga lost Lavo toAngkor'sSuryavarman I, who marched the troops to destroy several polities in upperMun Valley and Lavo, where his predecessorJayavarman V fled.^[35] It is expected that following the capture of Lavapura, the populace was subjected to exorbitant taxes, perhaps prompting their exodus from the city and Lavapura was then left abandoned.^[36] It was retrieved by Sri Lakshmi Pativarman, who was appointed bySuryavarman I as Lavo governor in 1006.^[37][32] This marked Lavo officially merging with theAngkor. Lavo at that time was governed by a Cambodian prince, as a part of Angkor'svassal state.^[5]: 29 Angkor attempted to exercise political power over Dvaravati's Lavo since the reign ofRajendravarman II, who once won the battle againstRāmaññadesa in 946, as mentioned in the K.872 Prasat Boeng Vien Inscription.^[36]

To the north,Suphannabhum prince Thamikaraj enthroned the King ofHaripuñjaya. He, with the assistance ofSuphannabhum, marched to the south and successfully took over Lavo in 1052;^[34]: 532 his younger brotherChandrachota was appointed Lavo king.^{[34]: 532 [38]}

Only six years afterChandrachota acceded to the throne, Lavo faced another challenge in 1058 whenP{agan led byAnawrahta invaded theMenam Valley and aimed to annex Lavo,^[39] to avoid the second devastationChandrachota instead established royal relations with Pagan by having his queen consort's older sister married to the king of Pagan. Two polities then became allies.Chandrachota's son,Narai I, became his successor who then moved Lavo capital toAyodhya in the 1080s.^[40] During Narai's reign, Lavo experienced another invasion by Pagan in 1087 but the conflict ended with the negotiation.^{[41]: 40–42} Narai died with no heir in 1087. This caused a 2-year Ayodhya civil war among the nobles, in which Phra Chao Luang won.^[42]

Modern Thai historians think theTai peoples originated in northern Vietnam andGuangxi province in China.^[43] The origin of the Tai peoples were living in northern Southeast Asia by the 8th century.^[44] Five linguistic groups emerged: the northern Tai in China (ancestors ofZhuang); the upland Tai people in northernVietnam (ancestors of theBlack,White andRed Tai); the Tais in northeastern Laos and bordering Vietnam (ancestors of the Tai of Siang Khwang and theSiamese inAyutthaya); the Tai in northern Laos; and the Tai west ofLuang Prabang,northern Thailand and in the adjoining parts of Laos,Yunnan andBurma.^[5]: 26

The Tai were anticipated to commence their settlement in the present day Thailand as early as the 7th to 8th century along the trans-Mekong trade route, migrating from northernChampa to the west, where they encounteredDvaravati in theMenam Valley.^{[20]: 38, 49–50} Several petty kingdoms were formed, such asGān Bì inMukdahan–Savannakhet area,^{[20]: 53–4}Wen Dan in theChi River basin,^{[20]: 38–9, 53}Cān Bàn in the upperPa Sak valley,^{[20]: 41, 45} andXiū Luó Fēn to the west of Chenla.^[20]: 40 Their existence were also in the inlandChampa kingdom ofZhān Bó as well asWen Yang (文陽) district,Changzhou Prefecture [zh] (長州 or裳州) of theTang dynasty in modernSakon Nakhon,Nakhon Phanom,Bueng Kan provinces of Thailand, andKhammouane province of modern Laos.^{[20]: 49–51} TheWen Yang district is identified as the present-dayThakhek in Laos.^[20]: 50 Given their substantial troop strength—30,000 for Xiū Luó Fēn, 20,000 for Gē Luó Shě Fēn, 5,000 for Gān Bì—they likely participated in the conflicts betweenChenla andDvaravati in the early 7th century, aligning with the faction that offered the greatest advantage.^{[20]: 54–5} Following the decline in power of the Mon Dvaravati atKamalanka in the 8th century,^[45]: 60 the Daic-speaking people atQiān Zhī Fú leisurely assimilated the remaining Dvaravati principalities in the western Menam Valley, and this polity was referred to by the Chinese asGē Luó Shě Fēn, which is the corrupted term ofJiā Luó Shě Fú orCanasapura centered atSi Thep.^{[20]: 38–9} Meanwhile, the eastern valley at Lavo remained under the Dvaravati monarchs until they fell underTambralinga andAngkor in the 10th and 11th centuries, respectively.

Another group,Tai Yuan or Tai Chiang Sean (ไทเชียงแสน) from the north, which later evolved intoLan Na, began to settle in the lowerMenam Valley around 861, increased in influence in Lavo,^[46]: 39 and began to resist theAngkorian control in the mid-11th century.^[5]: 28 Lavo was said to be seized bySiamese from the western Menam Valley in the early 11th century^[47] and byTai's kingPhrom ofYonok in 1106, according to the local chronicles.^[48] Sending tribute to China in 1115 during the reign of Sri Thammasokkarat signified that Lavo was an independent polity at that time.^[46]: 39

After theAngkor lost Lavo toSuphannabhum princes in 1052, the younger princeChandrachota claimed the throne. His son,Narai I, moved Lavo's seat toAyodhya in the 1080s. This resulted in the throne of Lavo's Lavaburi being vacant from 1087 to 1106 (or ruled by unknown kings),Si Satchanalai king,Kesariraja who is ofMon'sChaliang andTai'sChiang Saen lineages, took over the seat. An attempt to re-expand influence to Lavo by the Angkor occurred in 1181 whenJayavarman VII appointed his lineage Narupatidnavarman to govern Lavapura.^[49] Due to this political pressure, a Tai ruler Sri Thammasokkarat(ศรีธรรมโศกราช), who was also from Si Satchanalai, fled toNakhon Si Thammarat.^{[46]: 38–39} Sri Thammasokkarat married to princess of Dhanyapura (Dong Mae Nang Mueang in the present-dayNakhon Sawan province), and their descendants ruledTambralinga until the late 13th century.^{[50]: 290–2}The Customs of Cambodia ofZhou Daguan, as an official delegation sent by theYuan dynasty toAngkor from 1296 to 1297, says the Siamese people exerted significant influence over Lavo'sLavapura and appeared in huge numbers in the Angkorian capital ofYaśodharapura.^[51][52]

Prang Sam Yot was built during this period.^[53]: 170 However, Lavapura was probably taken back by aTai royal from Phraek Si Racha (แพรกศรีราชา; present-daySankhaburi) in the 13th century.^[3]: 109 During this era, Angkor's power waned due to the weak rule and feuding began in the Angkor.^[54]: 120

All of the turmoil, as mentioned earlier, also led to the independence declaration of theSukhothai Kingdom in 1238.^[55]

Ayodhya, previously known as Mueang Wat Derm or Mueang Nong Son, was found in 934 by a monk from Mueang Bang Than (บางทาน) in present-dayKamphaeng Phet.^{[41]: 30 [a]} The majority of Ayodhya's inhabitants are supposed to have migrated fromAyodhyapura following its fall in 946 as well as residents fromLavapura who fled after the city was destroyed byAngkor in 1001.^[24] This large population, coupled with its location that controlled the trade routes of theChao Phraya River basin, led to the city's rapid growth^{[56]: 5–7} and was later designated as the new capital of Lavo in the 1080s.^[42] The termXiān (暹; or Siam) mentioned in several Chinese andĐại Việt texts from 1149 until the official establishment of theAyutthaya Kingdom in 1351 was potentially Ayodhya instead ofSukhothai Kingdom,Suphannabhum, and other initial Siamese polities.^[57] There are many records of Xiān invasion ofChampa,^{[58]:line 148}Dān mǎ xī (單馬錫, identified as far as Tumasik, orSingapore),^[59]: 39 Xī lǐ (昔里),^[59]: 39 Ma-li-yü-êrh (Melayu),^[60]: 140 andSamudera Pasai Sultanate onSumatra^[61] before the formation of Ayutthaya Kingdom. From about the same period there is also a well-known bas relief panel ofAngkor Wat showing mercenaries of the Khmer army, who are identified assyam-kuk, perhaps "of the land of Siam." One cannot be certain what ethnolinguistic group these mercenaries belonged to, but many scholars have thought them to beSiam people.^[62]: 70

After two centuries of being devastated, the region entered the conflict-free era in the 12th century, artifacts and ruins dating back to the 12th–13th centuries found in the area indicate that there was a migration of people from surrounding regions, such as theKhmer from the east, theMon from the west, and theTai–Mon from the north. Several modern mandalas then emerged, such asSuphannabhum,Phrip Phri,Sukhothai, andAyutthaya.^{[63]: 272–3}

After Phra Chao Luang (พระเจ้าหลวง) won the 1087–1088 Ayodhya civil war, he was enthroned as the king. However, since he had no male heir, he had his only daughter marry Sai Nam Peung (สายน้ำผึ้ง),^{[3]: 103–4} son ofKesariraja who was ofMon'sChaliang andTai'sChiang Saen lineages and served as theLavapura king at that time.^{[41]: 21, 23} Their descendants, later known as the Uthong (Lavo) dynasty, continued to rule Ayodhya until theAyutthaya Kingdom formation in 1351.^[65] According toThe Customs of Cambodia written byZhou Daguan as an official delegation sent by theYuan dynasty toAngkor from 1296 to 1297, the Siamese people exerted significant influence over Lavo'sLavapura and appeared in huge numbers in the Angkorian city ofYaśodharapura.^[51][52]

In the 12th century, wars betweenHaripuñjaya and Lavo's Lopburi, which was ruled by aMon–Tai clan fromChaliang, still existed as Lavo marched north to attack Haripuñjaya several times but failed.^[2]: 13 At the end of this century, Lavo's Lopburi was again fell under the Angkorian.^{[2]: 19–20}

The Kingdom of Lavo, Lo-hu, joinedNy Wang in sending embassy to China in 1289^[60]: 144 then only from Lavo in 1299.^{[66]: 221–222} In 1349 Xiān people become united with the people of Lo-hu, the new kingdom named Xiānluó (暹羅) by the Chinese.^[67]: 102 However,Xiān might refer to theSuphannaphum Kingdom ofSuphanburi Province.^[68]

In 1350,Uthong andBorommarachathirat I ofSuphannabhum (modernSuphan Buri) co-foundedAyutthaya Kingdom on an island located on the intersection of three rivers;Chao Phraya River,Lopburi River andPa Sak River, and Uthong became the king of the city. But Borommarachathirat I took Ayutthaya from Uthong's sonRamesuan in 1370, and then Ramesuan retreated to Lavo. In 1388, Ramesuan took revenge by taking Ayutthaya back from Borommarachathirat I's son,Thong Lan. Borommarachathirat I's nephewIntharachathirat took Ayutthaya back for the Suphannaphum dynasty in 1408. The Uthong dynasty was then purged and became a mere noble family of Ayutthaya until the 16th century.

There are many theories about Uthong's origin. According to HRH PrinceChula Chakrabongse, he was thought to have been a descendant ofMangrai.^[69]: 28Van Vliet's chronicles, a seventeenth-century work, stated that King Uthong was a Chinese merchant who established himself atPhetchaburi before moving to Ayutthaya.Tamnan Mulla Satsana, a sixteenth-centuryLanna literature, stated that King Uthong was from the Lavo Kingdom.

After the foundation of the Ayutthaya Kingdom in the 14th century, Lavo was incorporated into a major stronghold of the Ayutthaya Kingdom. Following the merging, according to theInstructions Given to the Siamese Envoys Sent to Portugal composed in 1684, Lavapuri orLopburi was abandoned around the 15th century.^{[70]: 127–8} It was retrieved and became the kingdom's capital during the reign of KingNarai in the mid-17th century, and the king resided there for about eight months a year.

Following the annexation ofFunan in 627,Chenla,Cān Bàn, andZhū Jiāng allied via royal intermarriage. They then waged several wars againstTou Yuan to the northwest andLínyì to the northeast.^[17] However, in 647,Tou Yuan instead became a vassal ofDvaravati,^{[18]: 269 [19]: 15–16} and was then re-established as the Lavo Kingdom the following year.^[6][7]

This epoch is recognized as the Pre-Ayutthaya period, also known as the Ayodhya period. The polity centered in Ayodhya was referred to asXiān in Chinese andĐại Việt texts, whereas the polity located in Lopburi continued to be referred to as Lavo.

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