Bangkok
“The research focus of our city, Bangkok, is to explore its nationalism after years of self-colonization through the urban form’s development. It is interesting to re-capture the traces of European influences on Bangkok, a city that had never been formally colonized, yet with the monarchic elites and rich welcoming and developing the city’s fate in the footsteps of Western models. Since the era of Rama IV (1851), the city of water began to transform into a fragmented nation of different urban languages, directing the city’s growth from its environmental aquatic settlement to the first permanent land transformation… The lost of translation from water to land settlement became a problematic joint to the urban form of the city development… and after years of refilling the canal with permanent state of concrete construction, the origin of Bangkok’s image could hardly be interpreted in developing sequence and pace of the present.”
– Clara K.Y. Fung, “Schism in Water and Land-based Settlements,” 2014
Narratives
Bangkok (1932-1942) / 2.3 Abortion of the 1937 Previous Scheme
WANG Xuelu
To establish a new constitutional government in Thailand, the People’s Party started its revolution from below and seemingly gained a huge success after the coup in 1932 together with effective political policies afterwards to prevent Thailand from being colonized1. However, at the beginning the new government was, in fact, hybrid of both middle-class elites who ...
Bangkok (1932-1942) /3.3 The Transformation of Ratchadamnoen Boulevard in 1939-1941 Led by the State
WANG Xuelu
With the rising power of Phibun (his regime from 1938-1944), who intended to destroy monarchy completely, the tendency to reduce the authority of the monarchy directly influenced the architecture and urban planning afterwards. Modern architecture was used as to turn against the monarchy to throw out ornaments and motif. For People’s Party, architecture without ornaments ...
Bangkok (1932-1942) / 1.2 Pre-1932 Ratchadamnoen Boulevard—An Example of Modernization in Bangkok
WANG Xuelu
Located in the heart of the city, Ratchadamnoen Boulevard has always been the focus of major urban development in Bangkok especially during the Fifth Reign (1868-1910). After King Chulalongkorn (see post 1.1 for details) finished his first official visit to Europe in 1897, he started a new urban renewal project in Bangkok attempting to transform ...
(1932-1942) Power Making – episode 4 (educational)
TSE YU YING SCARLETT
The University The 1932 People’s Party Revolution was also known as Siamese coup d’état of 1932. A revolution born in Paris nurtured in Bangkok. The People’s Party was a group middle-class intelligentsia who studied overseas and pro-democracy, aimed to seize power from the monarchy government. Beside their ambitious plan to modernize and reform the Ratchadamnoen Avenue, they also ...
(1932-1942) Power Making – episode 4 (social / commercial)
TSE YU YING SCARLETT
Urban Development The Ratchadamnoen Avenue was the symbol of the “old Siam” and the People’s Party aimed to introduce the “new Siam” into the historical fabric by reforming both public and commercial architectures. In this episode, we will focus on the commercial and social aspect. Starting from in 1935, the People’s Party government completely reformed the landscape ...
(1932-1942) Power Making – episode 3 (the supreme court)
TSE YU YING SCARLETT
The Supreme Court Complex There was no such a thing as the Supreme Court in the old Thai monarch society. In 1891, an official department called ‘Ministry of Justice’ was set up in the Palace in the era of King Rama V. The Judicator Act of 1909 established the Supreme Court as the highest court in ...
Bangkok (1932-1942) / 4 Building up Siamese Identity
MOK Man Wing
National identity is a sense of a nation as a cohesive whole, as represented by distinctive traditions, culture, and language. Each country should have its own characteristics and be acknowledged by their local citizens. A nation consists of a group of people belonging to the same biological race whinin the same cultural life. The development ...
Bangkok (1932-1942) / 1.3 Shaping of Public Space by the Monarch
MOK Man Wing
In previous posts, the political system in Siam and the development of the Ratchadamnoen Avenue before 1932 were detailedly discussed, which this post would further explain the relationship between the two. The main issue would be how the western influence and the absolute monarchy contributed to the urban development in Siam, with Siam being the ...
Bangkok (1932-1942) / 3.1 Moving Forward by the State
MOK Man Wing
People’s Party (known as Khana Ratsadon in Thai) was the key organization, which drove the emergence of Siamese Revolution 1932 and the flowing in of ideas of democracy in political system. It consisted young, foreign-educated military officials and civil servants. The group was founded in 1927 by 7 Siamese students studying abroad, including Lieutenant Prayoon ...
Bangkok (1932-1942) / 3.2 The Reality of Ratchadamnoen Boulevard in 1937-1941 and Debates afterwards
WANG Xuelu
The morning of 24 June 1940 witnessed the opening of the Democracy Monument at the heart of Ratchadamnoen Boulevard marking the inauguration of Thailand as Constitutional Regime1. Ten multi-story apartment building blocks and modern buildings were planned to be built to replace all the existing properties on the Central Ratchadamnoen Boulevard, from Phan Bibhob-lila Bridge ...
Bangkok (1932-1942) / 2.2 The 1937 Previous Scheme of Ratchadamnoen Boulevard
WANG Xuelu
With the emergence of the People’s Party, the establishment of a brand new constitutional government in Thailand and the events of World War II and its aftermath, the progressive nationalist policies steered by the People’s Party extended from politics to many aspects such as economic, culture and social life, among which the city’s development played ...
(1932- 1942) Power Making – episode 2 (typology)
TSE YU YING SCARLETT
The Prototype Let’s take a step back in this episode and look into the making of the ‘new style’. In another word, the architectural language and structure of powers on the built artifacts by The People’s Party. Ratchadamnoen Avenue to symbolize the old Siam, which was all about Royal. The People’s Party wanted to build for the ...
Bangkok (1932-1942) / 1.1 Bangkok & Modernization
MOK Man Wing
Looking back at the history of Thailand, the political system had been going through significant transformations in different stages of time. Due to the occurrence of key historical events, new ideas were brought in and the government had been greatly reformed by the ruler. In the chosen historical period, King Chulalongkorn had been a key ...
Bangkok (1932-1942) / 2.1 Thai Nationalism ‘From Below’
MOK Man Wing
Due to the reign of King Chulalongkorn, he had brought in a lot of western administrative and education ideas into Siam. Also, he encouraged Siamese to study abroad in England and the United States etc. As a result, the exchange of knowledge allowed the people in the higher social class to have a more critical ...
(1932- 1942) Power Making – episode 1 (monumental)
TSE YU YING SCARLETT
Introduction The absolute monarchy of Thailand was overthrown by The People’s Party from 1932 to 1957. This is the Siamese Revolution. The People’s Party regarded their era as the new beginning of time and they sought distinguishment from the monarchy through built artifacts. In this series, we will be looking into significant artifacts and explore through the ...
Historical Documents
Bangkok (1932-1942)/ The 1937 Unimplemented Plan for Retchadamnoen Boulevard
WANG Xuelu
Bangkok (1932-1942)/ Ratchadamnoen Boulevard in 1941
WANG Xuelu
Bangkok (1932-1942)/ Ratchadamnoen Boulevard before 1932
WANG Xuelu
Democracy Monument 1940s
TSE YU YING SCARLETT
Bangkok (1932-1942) / Siamese Revolution 1932
MOK Man Wing
Bangkok (1932-1942) / The Leaders of Thailand
MOK Man Wing
Bangkok (1990-2009) Transportation System and Urban Planning
Lincoln Lau
BANGKOK (1999-2009)/BTS group history
Wu Ho Ting
Bangkok (1890-1910)/ Major Road Construction in Sampeng Area
Lanqing Hu
Bangkok (1890-1910)/ The Ratchadamnoen Avenue
Xiaoou Chen
Bangkok (1890-1910)/ Emerging Urban Quarters
Naixin Jiang
BANGKOK/Administrative Center Development in 1900s
Xiaoou Chen
Bangkok/ Urban Development in the 1900s
Lanqing Hu
Bangkok/ Ratchadamnoen Avenue (1899-1903)
Lanqing Hu
Bangkok / Morphology of Canals,Streets and Urban Settlements
Xiliu Yang
Bangkok(1960-1970) / Morphology of Land and Water Based Network 1935-1975
Xiliu Yang
Bangkok / Schism in Water and Land Based Settlements
Clara K.Y. Fung
Bibliography
Bangkok (1932-1942)/ Construction of Thai Nationalism
WANG Xuelu
Bangkok (1932-1942)/ Searching for Identity during Modernization
WANG Xuelu
BANGKOK (1932-1942) / A Study of Urban Renewal on Ratchadamnoen Boulevard in 1932-1957
WANG Xuelu
Bangkok (1932-1942) / Parallel modernization and self-colonization: Urban evolution and practices in Bangkok and Tehran
MOK Man Wing
Bangkok (1932-1942) / The Setting of the Siamese Revolution
MOK Man Wing
Bangkok (1932-1942) / Memory, Democracy and Urban Space: Bangkok’s ‘Path to Democracy’
MOK Man Wing
Bangkok (1932-1942) / War, Trade and Desire: Urban Design and the Counter Public Spheres of Bangkok
MOK Man Wing
Bangkok (1932-1942) / Absolute Monarchy and the Development of Bangkok’s Urban Spaces
MOK Man Wing
Bangkok (1932-1942) / A study of the emergence and development of nation and nationalism in Thailand
MOK Man Wing
Bangkok (1999-2009) socio-economic development under BTS skytrain
Lincoln Lau
BANGKOK (1999-2009)/BTS Skytrain
Wu Ho Ting
Bangkok (1890-1910)/ Overview of Road Construction in Bangkok
Lanqing Hu
BANGKOK (1890-1910)/ Theoretical Framework
Naixin Jiang
Bangkok(1890-1910)/ From sacred city to National capital
Xiaoou Chen
Bangkok(-1900)/ The sacred city
Xiaoou Chen
Bangkok (1890-1910)/ Historical Background
Naixin Jiang
Bangkok (1890-1910)/ Road as Both the Cause and Effect in the Process of Westernization
Lanqing Hu
Bangkok (1890-1910)/ Road Construction: the Forming of the Amphibian City
Lanqing Hu
Bangkok (1960-1970) / Bibliography
Xiliu Yang
Bangkok/ Bibliography2
Zheng Nian Chan
Bangkok/ Bibliography
Clara K.Y. Fung