Wat Song was located in the northeastern corner of the city island, more or less opposite Wat Mae Nang Pluem. At the beginning of the 16th century, the northeast corner of Ayutthaya’s city island was dry land, lying outside the city wall fortifications.
The monastery is first mentioned in the Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya, which record that in early 1549 CE, a herd of elephants entered a kraal at Song Monastery.
"About fifteen days later, the officials in Lopburi reported a male elephant, over six sòk and four niu high, whose ears and tail all bore the marks of its belonging to a herd. The chief ministers informed the King, who said, “We will go up to take it. In two days, we will set out, so we order that an official command be sent up to have the officials go ahead and catch it.” About seven days later, a herd of elephants, breaking out of the cover of the jungle, came in toward Mæ Nang Plüm Monastery and entered a corral at Sòng Monastery. The chief ministers informed the King who said, "Tomorrow we will go to catch them." [1]
It indicates that at that time the Lopburi River still ran in its old bed (present-day Khlong Hua Ro - Khlong Mueang), and the Pa Sak River ran a couple of kilometres east of the city. (1)
We can conclude from the above that, before the first fall of Ayutthaya in 1569 CE, elephants were chased down on the dry land east of the Lopburi River, in the present-day Phaniat area, right up to the kraal near Wat Song.
Tamnan Krung Kao, or the Legend of the Old City, records that as the city grew and expanded onto higher ground, an elephant enclosure was built between the Wang Chan Kasem area (2) and the areas that are now Wat Khun Saen and formerly Wat Song. [2]
Wat Song was thus located outside Ayutthaya's city walls before 1569 CE. After the first fall of Ayutthaya, King Maha Thammaracha (reign 1569-1590 CE) realised the city's poor defences and observed the Burmese attackers' use of the dry land in front of the city walls.
Maha Thammaracha began upgrading the city’s defences. He assessed that the eastern part of the city needed better protection. Hence, between 1577 and 1580 CE, he ordered the construction of a series of defensive structures, including the Chan Palace, extensions to the city wall, fortresses, and the widening of canals. The Lopburi River was connected to the Khu Khue Na, or Front moat, which was also deepened and enlarged. Wat Song thus came to be located within the city walls and behind the Maha Chai Fortress (near the former Krung Kao District Office in the last century).
Initially, it had an ordination hall, a vihara, a chedi, a bell tower, and a gate on the western side, but all were destroyed. It was a ruined temple at the beginning of the 20th century, with only the pagoda and the gate remaining as markers. The temple was a forest temple where people lived on the north side of the canal in Ban Mo, in the same area as Wat Mae Nang Pluem. [3]
Nantana Hengpujaroen wrote that, according to some old documents, the walls around the Chan Kasem Palace, or Front Palace, measured 50 Sen, or approximately 2000 m. The palace thus occupied an area roughly extending from the Unmilled Rice Fort (Pom Khao Phluak) and Wat Tha Sai towards the Maha Chai Fort, down to the Ho Rattanachai Gate, and back along the Ho Rattanachai canal towards the Unmilled Rice Gate. The palace area should have included at least eight monasteries, of which one of them was Wat Song. The issue of such a significant palace ground, as mentioned here, was heavily discussed by scholars and rejected. [4]
At present, nothing remains of the former monastery, whose location should have been more or less where the present Ayutthaya Thani Hotel is located.
There was a boat ferry between the landing at Wat Song and Wat Pa Khonthi. In the Ayutthaya era, there were twenty-two ferry routes between the mainland and the city island. In the northern area, the six other crossings were: Tha Nuea to Wat Khun Yuan, Tha Ma Ap Nam to Wat Choeng Tha, Tha Khan to Sala Trawen, Tha Sip Bia to Wat Pho, Wat Tha Sai to Wat Rong Khong and Tha Khun Nang to Wat Mae Nang Pluem. [5]
Wat Song on the maps:
Wat Song shows on a 19th-century map by an unknown surveyor. The temple stood near the Maha Chai Fortress. Wat Khun Saen was west, Wat Racha Phruek southwest. The map does not indicate a stupa.
Phraya Boran Ratchathanin's 1926 CE map names the temple Wat Chang. The monastery was northwest of the Krung Kao District's office. Talat Hua Ro was northeast. There was a pond between the monastery and the market, while a new road of earth was constructed in front of the market. Wat Khun Saen was southwest. Phraya Boran (1871-1936 CE) was the Superintendent Commissioner of Monthon Ayutthaya from 1925 to 1929 CE, but had held important positions in Monthon Ayutthaya since 1896 CE.
Based on a 2007 GIS Fine Arts Department map, Wat Song was located at the following coordinates: 14° 21' 57.97" N, 100° 34' 20.67" E.
Footnotes:
(1) Steve Van Beek, in his work “The Chao Phya River in Transition”, wrote: "The Pa Sak River flowed along the eastern perimeter of the city, a few kilometres east of its present course, and joined the main river south of Ayutthaya". (Van Beek, 1995) An older source, the Tamnan Krung Kao, states that the original Pa Sak River was thought to have flowed only as far as Ban Aranyik, then down towards Ban Phra Kaeo (in Phachi District) and out to Ban Pho (in Bang Pa-In District). Later, it was probably extended from Ban Aranyik (Nakhon Luang District) to Ban Sala Kwian (in Hantra District, present-day Ban Ko), and out to Khlong Pak Khao San (Ayutthaya City District) in front of the palace. (Tamnan Krung Kao,1907)
(2) Today, the location of the Chantharakasem National Museum.
References:
[1] Cushman, Richard D. & Wyatt, David K. (2006). The Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya. Bangkok: The Siam Society. p 24.
[2] Tamnan Krung Kao (1907). Aksorn Printing House.
[3] Ibid p.165.
[4] Hengpujaroen, Nantana (2003). The study of Chantharakasem Palace for developing the Management Plan. Bangkok: Silpakorn Fine Arts University.
[5] Ratchathanin, Phraya Boran. Athibai Phaenthi Phra Nakhon Sri Ayutthaya kap khamwinitjai khong Phraya Boran Rachathanin. Explanation of the map of the Capital of Ayutthaya with a ruling of Phraya Boran Ratchathanin - Revised 2nd edition and Geography of the Ayutthaya Kingdom. Ton Chabab print office. Nonthaburi (2007). p 92.
