Pra Poa Noome Thele Seri

Phra Phanom Thale Seri (Thai: พระพนมทะเลศรี), also Pra Poa Noome Thele Seri or Mahesvastidrādhirājakṣatriya^[3]: 12 is documented as the 23rd monarch of Siam and the 12th king of Tasoo Nacora Louang (ธาตุนครหลวง) in the French work Du Royaume de Siam,^[4] or Yassouttora Nacoora Louang in the Instructions Given to the Siamese Envoys Sent to Portugal (1684).^[5]: 127 He was a progenitor of the Phetchaburi–Viang Chaiprakarn clan, a royal family that later became the Uthong or Lavo dynasty of the Ayutthaya Kingdom.

Phra Phanom Thale Seri and his lineage were instrumental in consolidating the polities of the lower Menam Valley and in establishing political and diplomatic relations with the Peninsula kingdom of Tambralinga. These developments laid the groundwork for the eventual formation of the Ayutthaya Kingdom in the mid-14th century.

According to the Ayutthaya Testimonies, Phra Phanom Thale Seri —identified in the source as Indrarāja (อินทราชา)—was born to Queen Indrasujādevī (อินทสุชาเทวี), the principal consort of King Anuraja of Phraek Si Racha (Xiū Luó Fēn),^[1]: 44 whose royal seat was situated at Sing Buri.^[1]: 43

According to Du Royaume de Siam and the Instructions Given to the Siamese Envoys Sent to Portugal (1684), Phra Phanom Thale Seri relocated the political center from Tasoo Nacora Louang northward to Soucouttae/Locontàï circa the 1150s. Shortly thereafter, he, together with his younger brother, Uthong I (also known as Soi La, สร้อยหล้า), and approximately 50,000 attendants, moved southward into the western Menam valleys, where they reestablished Phrip Phri. The year of this relocation is variably reported as 1155;^[4] however, some sources suggest 1188, which appears more plausible given that he is described as having ruled at either Singburi or Jayasimhapuri before the move to Phrip Phri.^[1]: 46 In the ensuing years, Uthong I is described as consolidating authority by claiming the throne of Suphannabhum in 1163, according to the Northern Chronicle.^[3]: 61 Later, in 1225, Phra Phanom Thale Seri is reported to have expanded his realm by annexing Chen Li Fu, as recorded in the southern Nakhon Si Thammarat Chronicle.^[3]: 21 Before that, in 1205, his son, Uthong II, is said to have asserted dynastic authority by claiming the throne of Xiān's Ayodhya.^[6]: 41

The Ayutthaya Testimonies present an account of an early Siamese monarch, Intharacha (อินทราชา), whose narrative exhibits striking parallels with that of Phra Phanom Thale Seri, ruler of Phrip Phri. According to the text, Intharacha succeeded his relative, Jatiraja (ชาติราชา), as ruler of either Mueang Phraek's Singburi (lit. 'the city of Singha') or Jayasimhapuri (lit. 'the glorious city of Singha'), before relocating southward to establish his authority at Phetchaburi. His reign is described as extending over thirty-five years. The text further identifies his brother, Uthong, as having assumed rulership of Singburi following Intharacha’s departure, while his son—also named Uthong—later ascended the throne of Ayodhya in 1205.^{[1]: 45–7} Based on these accounts, his reign at Singburi may be situated between 1169 and 1224/25, at which point it concluded at Phetchaburi. The text further states that he died at the age of fifty-five, suggesting a birth date of approximately 1170/1171. This chronology, however, presents inconsistencies, as other sources, the Du Royaume de Siam, and the Instructions Given to the Siamese Envoys Sent to Portugal (1684), attribute to him an earlier rule at Tasoo Nacora Louang prior to his movement northward in the 1150s, a sequence of events that does not accord with the calculated birth year.

Phra Phanom Thale Seri’s territorial expansion in 1196 brought him into conflict with the southern polity of Tambralinga. According to the Nakhon Si Thammarat Chronicle, the hostilities were resolved through negotiation, resulting in an alliance between the two dynasties.^[6]: 41 This alliance proved significant during the mid-13th century, when Tambralinga experienced destabilization due to the Javanese Singhasari invasion and a concurrent outbreak of plague, dated approximately between the 1260s and 1270s.^{[6]: 42–3} In response, Phanomwang (พระพนมวัง), a prince of the Phetchaburi–Ayodhya lineage, together with his wife Sadieng Thong (สะเดียงทอง) and their son Sri Racha (เจ้าศรีราชา), was appointed by the king of Phetchaburi to restore Nakhon Si Thammarat, the former capital of Tambralinga.^[7]: 81 This undertaking resulted in the establishment of the Sri Thammasokaraj dynasty and facilitated the southward expansion of Siam influence across the Kra Isthmus. While succession in this polity remained patrilineal, the confirmation of a ruler required formal appointment from Ayodhya, reflecting the continuing political linkage between the northern and southern domains.^{[7]: 81–2}

Phra Phanom Thale Seri had two queen consorts: Mani Mala (มณีมาลา), as mentioned in the Ayutthaya Testimonies,^[1]: 46 and Chandradevi (จันทรเทวีศรีบาทราชบุตรีศรีทองสมุทร), recorded in the Nakhon Si Thammarat Chronicle as the daughter of the Chinese emperor and the Cham princess Chandramouli.^{[8]: 15–16}

Thai scholars once posited that the brothers Uthong I and Phra Phanom Thale Seri were princes of Chaiyasiri, identified with a monarch of Singhanavati in the northern region who may have migrated to Nakhon Thai during the 11th century. However, this hypothesis, which also underpins the outdated claim that Ramathibodi I—the first sovereign of the Ayutthaya Kingdom and a supposed descendant ofPhra Phanom Thale Seri —originated from Mueang Uthong, has been refuted by subsequent scholarly inquiry.^{[9]: 1, 10} The Ayutthaya Testimonies presents an alternative account, stating that Uthong I and Phra Phanom Thale Seri were the sons of Anuraja (อนุราชา), whose lineage purportedly succeeded the Padumasuriyavaṃśa^[e] (ปทุมสุริยงศ์) dynasty in the polities of Mueang Phreak, Chai Nat, and Sing Buri.^{[1]: 37–46} Nevertheless, the narratives concerning Sing Buri and Jayasimhapuri, as conveyed in the text, appear to have been interwoven or conflated.

The following account outlines the genealogy of Phra Phanom Thale Seri as preserved in the Ayutthaya Testimonies, while additional information regarding his descendants is provided in the Northern Chronicle and the Nakhon Si Thammarat Chronicle. Note that all were within the same kingdom, but the royal capital was constantly shifting between monarchs, as usually happened in the princedom-style polity.

The precise identification of Tasoo Nacora Louang or Yassouttora Nacoora Louang remains a matter of scholarly debate.^[10] It is unclear whether this political center corresponds to Lavapura of Lavo or to Yaśodharapura of Angkor. However, polities bearing names closely resembling Tasoo Nacora Louang or Yassouttora Nacoora Louang are attested in Thai sources such as the Legend of Mueang Nakhon Chai Si (ตำนานเมืองนครไชยศรี) and the Legend of Phra Prathon Chedi (ตำนานพระประโทนเจดีย์). These narratives, which are traditionally dated to 679 CE, recount that Nakhon Luang (นครหลวง) and Yassodhon (ยศโสธร) constituted distinct polities, though they were situated adjacent to one another.^{[11]: 4–5} The same sources further record that Balidhiraja of Sukhothai, who was the son of Kalavarnadisharaja (king of Lavo), was originally from Nakhon Luang.^[11]: 4 This tradition lends support to the presupposition that Tasoo Nacora Louang corresponds to Lavapura, the principal city of Lavo, and Yassodhon is likely distinct from Yaśodharapura of Angkor, as it situated too far from Lavapura and is instead identified as Indapatthanagara (อินทปัตย์นคร) in most Thai chronicles and legendary accounts.

The Ayutthaya Testimonies references a monarch named Visnuraja (พิษณุราชา), whose name may have been derived from the polity of Phitsanulok, which he is presumed to have ruled. He is described as a descendant of Phatumsuriyawong,^[1]: 37 who may correspond to Pra Poat honne Sourittep pennaratui sonanne bopitra, the earliest Siamese ruler mentioned in the Du Royaume de Siam. Thus, since Tasoo Nacora Louang is identified with Lavapura of Lavo, Yassodhon or Yassouttora Nacoora Louang may have been associated with Phitsanulok or some cities under the authority of Phra Phanom Thale Seri's lineage in the Phraek Si Racha region, which is situated near Lavapura—this region is mentioned as Xiū Luó Fēn in several Chinese sources. Moreover, the reign of its first monarch, Visnuraja, was contemporaneous with the fall of Si Thep in 946 and the relocation of Si Thep's last monarch Ipoia Sanne Thora Thesma Teperat around the 970s.