ไทย

Home › Campaign routes › The capture of Chanthaburi: smashing the rice pots

The capture of Chanthaburi: smashing the rice pots

After the capital fell on 7 April 1767, the governor of Chanthaburi, who had promised to join in recovering the kingdom, turned against Phraya Tak instead. Phraya Tak marched from Rayong through Klaeng to Chanthaburi and took the town in a single night. According to the royal chronicle, before the attack he ordered the rice pots and curry pots smashed: the men would eat breakfast inside the town, or else die together. Chanthaburi became the shipyard for the fleet that sailed back to recover the capital.

Bang Kacha – ChanthaburiRayong ≈Thung Yai ≈Klaeng – Prasae estuaryAyutthayaBangkokChonburiNakhon NayokPrachin BuriChachoengsaoSamut PrakanSaraburiAng ThongThailandGulf of Thailand16
  • 1Stops, numbered as in the list below
  • 3Fighting with other forces
  • 1–3Several stops close together: tap to zoom in
  • ≈ approximate position

Press + to zoom in, then drag to move the map; on a phone you can pinch. Tap a number to read about that stop.

The ≈ sign marks an approximate location. Borders on the map are modern and shown for orientation only. Campaign routes are approximate lines drawn from the chronicles and modern studies, not the exact path taken. Dashed lines are enemy armies.

From Rayong to Chanthaburi

At the beginning of May 1767 Phraya Tak went to Chonburi and persuaded Nai Thong Yu Nok Lek to submit, then came back and marched from Rayong on 9 May to put down Khun Ram Muen Song at Klaeng. He camped at Wat Ratcha Banlang and fought a decisive battle, losing more than 400 Siamese and Chinese soldiers but winning the day. Khun Ram Muen Song fled to join the governor of Chanthaburi, who had changed his mind about helping to recover the kingdom.

On 18 May the force left the Prasae estuary and went by way of Takhian Thong, Phang Rat and Sanam Chai, taking five days to reach Bang Kacha. It arrived at Chanthaburi on 30 May and camped at Wat Kaeo, about two kilometres from the town wall.

The night the rice pots were smashed

The governor of Chanthaburi tried two ruses. First he sent men to guide the force round to the south of the town, so that it could be ambushed while crossing the river. Then he had monks come to invite Phraya Tak into the town, so that he could be seized. Phraya Tak saw through both. Early in the evening of 1 June 1767, after the soldiers had eaten, he ordered the leftover food thrown away and the rice pots and curry pots smashed. In the middle of the night, at about the third watch, they attacked and took the town. The governor fled by boat to Phutthaimat (Ha Tien).

On 8 June he went on to attack the fleet of Chinese junks belonging to a Chinese trader named Chiam at Thung Yai, in Trat territory, and took more than 50 junks. He then came back and built ships at the Ban Samet Ngam shipyard until he had more than 100 warships.

The route in 6 stops

  1. 1

    Rayong

    Rayong≈ approximate position12.680, 101.280

    The new ordination hall of Wat Lum Mahachai Chumphon, white walls under tiered orange roofs
    The new ordination hall of Wat Lum Mahachai Chumphon, Rayong · Photo: Panupong Chonswat · CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

    Wat Lum Mahachai Chumphon is in the centre of Rayong. In its grounds are a shrine to King Taksin the Great and a large satue tree to which, it is said, his war elephant was once tethered. The King Taksin the Great Learning Park is next door. The old town around Yomchinda Road is not far away, where you can walk among old wooden houses and visit the Rayong City Museum.

    Places to visit nearby

    Where to eat nearby

    Read more →Directions ↗

  2. 2

    Klaeng (Wat Ratcha Banlang)

    Rayong≈ approximate position12.780, 101.650

    Places to visit nearby

    Where to eat nearby

    Directions ↗

  3. 3

    Prasae estuary

    Rayong≈ approximate position12.700, 101.700

    Places to visit nearby

    Where to eat nearby

    Directions ↗

  4. 4

    Bang Kacha

    Chanthaburi≈ approximate position12.580, 102.060

    Places to visit nearby

    Where to eat nearby

    Directions ↗

  5. 5

    Chanthaburi

    Chanthaburi≈ approximate position12.610, 102.100

    Fighting (not the Burmese)
    Battle
    The capture of Chanthaburi
    Against
    The forces of the governor of Chanthaburi; not Burmese troops
    How
    Before the attack Phraya Tak ordered the rice pots and curry pots to be smashed: the men would eat breakfast inside the town. He then attacked the town by night.
    Outcome
    Took Chanthaburi in a single night, captured junks at Trat, and built more than 100 warships to sail back and recover the capital.
    Note
    Approximate position.

    Where to eat nearby

    Directions ↗

  6. 6

    Thung Yai (Trat)

    Trat≈ approximate position12.240, 102.510

    Approximately the area of Trat town

    Places to visit nearby

    Where to eat nearby

    Directions ↗

Travel guides for the provinces on this route

Things to do and where to eat in each province, from songkran.com, our sister travel site

Where historians still disagree

  • The date of the attack: Silpa Wattanatham's date calculation gives the night of 1 June 1767; some English-language works use 15 June.
  • Were the rice pots really smashed? The story comes from the royal chronicle and is used to show Phraya Tak's resolve. No other evidence confirms the details.

Frequently asked questions

What does "smashing the rice pots" mean?

The royal chronicle says that before attacking Chanthaburi, Phraya Tak ordered the rice pots and curry pots smashed: the men would eat breakfast inside the town, and if they failed to take it they would die together.

Where did King Taksin build his fleet?

At the Ban Samet Ngam shipyard, Chanthaburi, where more than 100 warships were built.

Sources
  1. From Ayutthaya to Thonburi: A chronology of key events in the life of King Taksin – Silpa Wattanatham (in Thai)
  2. Taksin - Wikipedia
  3. Titan of history rises from bones of an old shipyard - Bangkok Post

Last updated 13 November 2026