The Siamese culture is commonly known today as the Thai culture referring to the people and customs of Thailand. The capital of Siam, Ayudha, was founded in A.D. 1350 and remained the capital for more than four hundred years. Siam looks to India for many things, but mostly for cultural aspirations. This contact with India, commonly referred to as a superior civilization, and the cultural influences they adopted from India began to make the Siamese known to other people throughout the land. The Siamese government is run by a monarchy with a strong patriarchal nature. Even though the Siamese had a strong character of kingship developing, the old feudal system continued to survive until 1431. In 1431, the feudal system finally collapsed when King Paramaric II captured the Khmer capital, Ankor Thom, and made the Siamese society free. The first free Siamese kingdom society resembled a large family under the paternal rule of its king. This king, who was seen as the father of his people, combined all the issuses of the governement as functions of his position. This resulted in a growth of the feudal organization, inspired by the bond of territory overpowering the bond of kinship.
As a result of this combination of power, the Siamese administrative system evolved from it's previously primitive, undifferentiated feudal form held since the 13th century. The accompanying metamorphosis of the nobles into an official class and the highly complex system thus brought into being was characterized by the formation of many functionally differentiated government departments. The Siamese culture has social differentiation but it seems to stop at class. There are seven main classes in the Siamese culture; they are in descending order: the Royal Family, the Officials, the Freeman, the Monks, the Brahmans, the slaves and the foreigners. The Siamese culture is extremely religious, the main religion being Buddhism. Thus, a strong bond between church and state is supported. As Prince Damrong remarked long ago, “the outlook for the future of the Siamese should be bright, for they have three great national characteristics .” They are (1.) the Love of National Independence which has allowed them to weather the gravest political storms and maintain their autonomy alone among the nations of south-eastern Asia, (2.) Toleration of the religions and of the customs of the foreigners who have enjoyed the hospitality of their friendly land, and (3.) the Power of Assimilation which has led them in the earlier days to adopt those features of the Indian and Khmer cultures that better suited their needs.
Ancient Siamese Government and Administration, written by H.G. Quaritch Wales, M.A., Ph.D., Paragon Book Reprint Corp., New York, copyright 1965
Change and Persistence in Thai Society, edited by G. William Skinner and A. Thomas Kirsh, copyright 1975 by Cornell University
Written by: Jill Borth