The legendary tale of Thailand’s elephant battle.

This epic tale of bravery and valour remains the source of inspiration for Thai people to this day.

The legendary tale of valour and bravery is known all across Thailand when King Naresuan defeated the Burmese crown prince in single combat sitting atop an elephant. Elephants have been a very important part of warfare in Thailand, India, Sri Lanka and other South-Asian countries. So, what happened in this war, and why is the battle of Nong Sarai considered as a turning point in Thai history.

The battle between mighty powers.

During the 16th century, Thailand was made up of many small kingdoms which were constantly at war with each other and, most importantly, with neighbouring Burma. Modern-day Chiang Mai was known as Lan Na kingdom, and it was under Burmese rule. Now, they were eyeing the south of Thailand and attacking the Kingdom of Ayutthaya. Ayutthaya was ruled by great ruler King Naresuan who was planning to attack Cambodia, and most of his army was stationed there. Burmese found this to be a perfect time and attacked Ayutthaya. And thus, King Naresuan faced Burmese in the Battle of Nong Sarai.

Against all odds.

Seeing that they were severely outnumbered, King Naresuan knew that they would be defeated, so he devised a plan like a skilled statesman. He faked a retreat so that the Burmese would step forward and attack them. And by that time, the main army would take them by surprise and attack them. Though they managed to distress Burmese forces, but it still wasn’t enough to win. During this time, King Naresuan spotted the crown prince of Burma, MingyiSwa, resting, and he cleverly coaxed him for a combat duel. This is where Burmese lost this battle, and King Naresuan achieved legendary status.

The combat duel on an elephant.

Now, historian stresses that there is no one clear account of the incident as the accounts differ from Thai point of view and Burmese point of view. But Thai account is more spoken off in folktales, so that is considered as a fact. The two monarchs met for a duel on their elephants. Though the Burmese crown prince had a better elephant and was fitter and younger than his Thai opponent, Naresuan soon managed to kill him, and thus, the Burmese army was forced to retreat.

 The legacy of King Naresuan.

The battle enabled King Naresuan to free Thai from Burmese captivity and earned him the title of Naresuan the great. Even today, Thai talk about the great king with reverence and pride.