Author:
Piyanoot Rattananukool
Photos: Broadcast Thai Television Co., Channel 3 Thailand
The stories of Love Destiny 1-2 occurred in the 17th Century of Ayutthaya Kingdom. The present-day palace buildings and other architectural components in the area are ruins. Like other ruined empires in Greece, Italy, and Cambodia, Ayutthaya, the former capital city of Thailand, is physically vague as well as mystically mysterious.
The Thai series, Love Destiny Seasons 1 & 2, bring the Thai ancient kingdom back to life. The impacts are not only the growth of tourists at the historical site, but also the inspiration for Thais and foreigners to study the background history. Ayutthaya's ruling culture underlines the strength of the state. The kings had absolute power. Political conflicts were extreme. Nobles were usually divided into sub-groups led by the king and competing persons, that is, the king’s sons, brothers, cousins, and capable nobles. Totally, the Ayutthaya Kingdom lasted 416 years ( 1351–1767 ), consisting of 33 kings ruling the kingdom consecutively. To access the entertainment experience and the value of the series, it’s important to understand the extent of historical notes which may not be 100% valid. A great deal of evidence was destroyed by time. However, historical study can reduce confusion. It also enhances excitement by contextual reality in the series.
In Season 1, the leading character returns to the reign of King Narai (1656–1688). In this period, international trades were thriving, westerners and Persians came to Ayutthaya and interacted with local people. The relations were based on commerce, religious dissemination, and political reason (pre-colonization).
Example characters in officially recorded Thai history are as follows:
Greek counselor of Ayutthaya, Constantine Phaulkon (Phraya Wichayen), the foreigner who became the key noble in Ayutthaya Palace. He served King Narai in diplomacy and commerce.
Phraya Visutsundhorn (Kosa Pan), the leader of Thai delegates dispatched by King Narai to establish a diplomatic relation with King Louis XIV of France, was later granted the title “Phraya Kosathipbordi (Parn)”. Some sources said that he is the ancestor of Chakri Dynasty—the great-grandfather of King Rama I who founded Rattanakosin Kingdom centered in Bangkok, 80 kg south of Ayuthaya, the present capital city of Thailand. However, no clear written evidence confirms this personal relationship.
Muen Sunthon Thewa, the main male character (Det), was a noble in foreign affairs during the reign of King Narai. He was a member of the official envoy delegation led by Phraya Visutsundhorn. They traveled to France as the representatives of Ayuthaya Kingdom to accomplish the diplomatic mission (accreditation protocol) assigned by King Narai, known as "the Siamese embassy in Versailles."
Marie Guimar, Phaulkon’s wife, is historically recognized as the lady who created many types of Thai traditional sweets by combination with Portuguese cuisine. It is another contribution of foreigners (her family) in Thai society.
Phraya Horathibodi, the main male character’s father, was the royal scholar who wrote the first course book for Thais.
Sri Pratch/Prat, the main male character’s older brother, was a royal poet. He was exiled from the palace due to wrongdoing. One of his poems which conveys unfair judgment is well-known up to present. Nobody knows whether he means injustice at the palace or in the remote town where he lived after leaving the palace.
The two historical figures characterized for the transition from Love Destiny 1 to 2 are Oc-Phra Pete-racha (other written names in historical information: "Phetracha", "Pateracha"), the subsequent king after the death of King Narai. He was the trusted councilor of King Narai in Season 1, and Oc-Luang Sorasak, his adopted son, became the crown prince or the successor in Season 2. This power transition is a historical fact.
According to a legend compiled from written sources and oral communication (unconfirmed history), Oc-Luang Sorasak is the secret son of King Narai. His mother is a woman from a northern town. King Narai gave his son to his trusted councilor, Thorng Kam (King Pate-racha's name at the young age), who subsequently seized the power from him.
A scholar revealed, “King Narai possibly granted a lady to the noble after he had a relationship, and he might not realize, the lady was pregnant.” This complex, dramatic point in history is portrayed in Love Destiny 1. Because of the inner pain caused by being unaccepted as the king’s son (prince) in the story, the actor who plays the role of Oc-Luang Sorasak expresses this hidden ambiguous, furious mood in association with political conflict with King Narai or his real father.
The relationship of King Narai and Oc-Phra Pate-racha was also interesting. It is said that Oc-Phra Pate-racha is the son of a royal nurse / wet nurse whose duties included breastfeeding and taking care of the future king). Therefore, King Narai regarded Oc-Phra Pate-racha as a close friend and trustable brother, since they were breastfed by the same woman and shared mother embraces in childhood. The connection with the royal family was stronger when Oc-Phra Pate-racha ’s sister was granted to King Narai and she was honorably appointed to be the first royal consort (the King’s top-ranked wife or the vice queen).
When King Pate-racha went to the throne, he appointed King Narai’s queen as his queen, King Narai’s sister as his right queen, and King Narai’s daughter as his left queen. By this way, it was a belief that the connection with the royal power would be clear and socially accepted since King Pate-racha’s background was nobility, not a successor from the royal family. Oc-Luang Sorasak was appointed to be the king’s successor (later known as King Tiger). This part was presented in history and the series, Season 2.
Historically, the reign of King Pate-racha was not stable. There were challenging groups, especially nobles who still viewed that the pro-West policy would lead to more benefits (King Narai’s followers).
One of the groups supported Prince Khwan, the real son of King Pate-racha and Krom Laung Yothathep, King Narai’s daughter. The successor considered and judged them as rebellion, he, thus, executed (killed) Prince Khwan and his followers. Also, it was revealed that King Pateracha favored Prince Khwan, his real son who was born after he took the power, while the adopted son was more stubborn, strong, and out of control. If it is historically confirmed that King Tiger killed Prince Khwan, predictably, King Pate-racha must feel very sad, as his adopted son killed his real son to secure his future power. Somehow, it can be considered as a custom or the culture of Ayutthaya kingdom--if someone seized power (jumping the queue), he had to kill people ahead of him in the order of successors.
King Pateracha also killed King Narai’s brothers, the official successors, to legitimize his power by suppressing public questioning about who the next king was. As shown in the drama, Phra Pi was executed, as he was King Narai’s adopted son / possible successor. He was considered as a part of King Narai’s party. King Narai previously did the same. He first assisted his uncle to seize the power from his older brother (different mothers), who was the legitimate heir(official successor). Then he killed his uncle 2 months after ascending to the throne. A source reveals, he was upset by his uncle about the way to take his younger sister as another queen (probably, forcing her by using the new king's power). Accordingly, he seized the power from the king or his uncle and crowned himself. Besides personal ambition, seizing the power, sometimes, was necessary for saving the kingdom from the hands of a weak king. It is a method to change the policy and administration as suggested by nobles/advisors in the absolute monarchy.
Politically, the nobles in the reign of King Narai were polarized: Pro-Westen = King Narai’s party, and Anti-Western = Oc-Phra Pate-racha’s secret party ( to be obviously against the king was unaccepted, so this group formed a rebellion party.). Oc-Phra Pate-racha and Oc-Luang Sorasak were the leaders of the anti-West group. They disagreed to King Narai’s pro-West policy. The pro-Western group was interested in innovation, commerce, and Christianity, whereas the anti-Western group viewed that Ayutthaya could be controlled by the Western power if the relationship continued, as shown in the series, the Greek noble did not sincerely work for the Siamese monarchy.
Considering the inner conflict, it is possible that Oc-Luang Sorasak deeply disliked his real father, as he was not publicly accepted by King Narai as a son/prince or a member of the royal family. Assisting his adoptive father who is just a noble, to seize the power of King Narai, his real father who ignored him, was justified in the way that it was done to save the kingdom from the Western power. (In the art of drama, the character also conveys deep grief and his hidden aim for revenge because he was the abandoned son who received neither caring love nor acknowledgment from his real father, King Narai, in parallel.)
After the death of King Phetracha, the young crown prince later became King Sanpet VIII, known as King Tiger (Phra Chao Suea). It was rumored that he was fierce and cruel. He loved drinking and fighting in the manner of masculine leadership. According to the historical record, his reign lasted only 6 years.
Season 2 mainly conveyed the story in the era of King Thai Sa (Prince Petch) and King Borommakot (Prince Porn), both were King Tiger’s sons. Evidence shows that King Tiger gave the throne to his second son due to an unknown conflict with his first son. Some sources say that the second son was more conformist, so King Tiger trusted in his ability to stabilize the Kingdom, while his first son enjoyed fishing, hunting, and tended to be a fun lover. However, Prince Porn granted the power to his older brother, so that Prince Petch succeeded the throne before him. Furthermore, as for the foreign policy in the context of Season 2, King Pate-racha expelled Europeans from the kingdom and welcomed the Chinese. As a result, Ayutthaya had a close relationship with the Chinese Empire.
Subsequently, the Chinese population in Ayutthaya was growing, China increasingly imported rice from Siam (the old name of Thailand). The Chinese played a crucial role in Ayutthaya's economy and also served the kings of Ayuthaya in diplomacy, trades, and finance.
Overall, the historical context can clarify the Thai drama series about the relationships of the historical characters in the dramas. The context of history functions like a bridge for international audiences to a more enjoyable realm, though some of the historical notes are unconfirmed, unknown, and untold. It should be noted that the period, romantic-comedy TV dramas, adapted from novel art, are not documentaries. The historical fiction is created by applying the ingredients of historical matters. They are not created to confirm any facts in the past, but to inspire and entertain us.
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