The House of Bunnag ( th, บุนนาค; ) was a powerful Siamese noble family of Mon-

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

descent influential during the late

Ayutthaya kingdom The Ayutthaya Kingdom (; th, อยุธยา, , IAST: or , ) was a Siamese kingdom that existed in Southeast Asia from 1351 to 1767, centered around the city of Ayutthaya, in Siam, or present-day Thailand. The Ayutthaya Kingdom is conside ...

and early Rattanakosin period. Originally of Persian Islamic descent, they converted en masse to Buddhism. The family was favored by Chakri monarchs and monopolized high-ranking titles. By the nineteenth century, its power and influence reached its zenith. Three of the four '' Somdet Chao Phraya'' came from the Bunnag family — Dis, styled Somdet Chao Phraya Borom Maha

Prayurawongse ''Somdet Chao Phraya'' Borom Maha Prayurawongse ( th, สมเด็จเจ้าพระยาบรมมหาประยูรวงศ์; ; 1788 - 26 April 1855) or Dit Bunnag ( th, ดิศ บุนนาค; ) was a prominent polit ...

; his younger brother Tat, styled Somdet Chao Phraya Borom Maha Pichaiyat; the eldest son Chuang, styled Somdet Chao Phraya Borom

Si Suriyawongse Somdet Chaophraya Borom Maha Sri Suriwongse ( th, สมเด็จเจ้าพระยาบรมมหาศรีสุริยวงศ์, , ; also spelled ''Suriyawong'', etc.; 23 December 1808 – 19 January 1883), whose personal ...

. They played key roles in government and foreign relations until after the

Front Palace crisis The Front Palace Crisis or the Front Palace incident ( th, วิกฤตการณ์วังหน้า) (Wang Na crisis) was a political crisis that took place in the Kingdom of Siam from 28 December 1874 to 24 February 1875 (93 of the Ra ...

. As

Chulalongkorn Chulalongkorn ( th, จุฬาลงกรณ์, 20 September 1853 – 23 October 1910) was the fifth monarch of Siam under the House of Chakri, titled Rama V. He was known to the Siamese of his time as ''Phra Phuttha Chao Luang'' (พร� ...

sought to undo the power of the nobility and pursue centralization, the Bunnags gradually withdrew from prominent roles in Siamese politics but continued to fill important official ranks.

History

Sheikh Ahmad

Sheikh Ahmad, a

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

, along with his brother Muhamad Said and subordinates, settled in Siam around 1600. Sheikh Ahmad was a native of Qom in

Safavid Iran Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...

, south of

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

. He established himself as a rich merchant in

Ayutthaya Ayutthaya, Ayudhya, or Ayuthia may refer to: * Ayutthaya Kingdom, a Thai kingdom that existed from 1350 to 1767 ** Ayutthaya Historical Park, the ruins of the old capital city of the Ayutthaya Kingdom * Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province (locally ...

. There he entered the service of King

Songtham Songtham ( th, ทรงธรรม, ) or Intharacha III was the King of Ayutthaya from 1610/11 to 1628 of the House of Sukhothai. His reign marked the prosperity of the Ayutthaya kingdom after it regained independence from Toungoo Dynasty, and ...

(1611–1628) who appointed him as Chao

Kromma Tha Chatusadom or Catustambha ( th, จตุสดมภ์ , literally "Four Pillars" from Sanskrit ''Catur'' "Four" + ''Stambha'' "Pillars") was the Thai system of central executive governance during the Ayutthaya Kingdom, Thonburi Kingdom and Rat ...

Khwa KHWA (102.3 FM broadcasting, FM) is a radio station based in Mount Shasta, California (city of license is Weed, California), owned by Southern Oregon University and operated by Jefferson Public Radio, which also owned KSYC-FM in Yreka, California, ...

(; Lord of the Right Pier) to supervise traders from the West, i.e.

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

ns,

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

ns and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

ans. He was also appointed ''

Chularatchamontri Islam is a minority faith in Thailand, with statistics suggesting 4.9 percent of the population are Muslim.จุฬาราชมนตรี; Minister of Islamic affairs) to oversee all

Shiites Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, most n ...

in Siam. After subjugating a Japanese revolt under

Yamada Nagamasa was a Japanese adventurer who gained considerable influence in the Ayutthaya Kingdom at the beginning of the 17th century and became the governor of Nakhon Si Thammarat province, which is on the Malay Peninsula in present-day Southern Thailand. ...

in 1611, Sheikh Ahmad became '' Samuha Nayok'' (First Prime Minister). Descendants of Sheikh Ahmad exerted control over Siamese politics, trade and foreign affairs. Many of them became ''Samuha Nayok''. They also monopolized the post of Chularachamontri.

Settlement in Thonburi

A man called Bunnag was a Buddhist descendant of Sheikh Ahmad. Bunnag married to Nuan, a daughter of wealthy Mon family from Bang Chan, situated near the mouth of Maeklong River. Her sister

Nak In data networking, telecommunications, and computer buses, an acknowledgment (ACK) is a signal that is passed between communicating processes, computers, or devices to signify acknowledgment, or receipt of message, as part of a communicatio ...

was the wife of Thong Duang. He was then kinsmen to Thong Duang. Though Thong Duang emerged as a powerful noble in Thonburi, Bunnag stayed far from the bureaucracy due to his childhood conflicts with

Taksin King Taksin the Great ( th, สมเด็จพระเจ้าตากสินมหาราช, , ) or the King of Thonburi ( th, สมเด็จพระเจ้ากรุงธนบุรี, ; ; Teochew dialect, Teochew: Dên ...

. Thong Duang then became Phutthayotfa Chulalok (Rama I), the first king of the Chakri dynasty in 1782. During the Nine Armies' Wars, Bunnag led the Siamese forces against the Burmese. He was then promoted and eventually became the ''Samuha

Kalahom Chatusadom or Catustambha ( th, จตุสดมภ์ , literally "Four Pillars" from Sanskrit ''Catur'' "Four" + ''Stambha'' "Pillars") was the Thai system of central executive governance during the Ayutthaya Kingdom, Thonburi Kingdom and Rat ...

'' as ''Chao Phraya'' Akkaramahasaena.

Rise of Prayurawongse

Chao Phraya Akkaramahasaena was the primogenitor of the House of Bunnag. He sent his sons, including

Tish ''TISH'' was a Canadian poetry newsletter founded by student-poets at the University of British Columbia in 1961. The publication was edited by a number of Vancouver poets until 1969. The newsletter's poetics were built on those of writers associa ...

and That, into the palace as the royal pages of Phutthayotfa Chulalok to gain an entrance into Siamese bureaucracy. Tish quickly rose to higher official ranks as

Buddha Loetla Nabhalai Phra Phutthaloetla Naphalai ( th, พระพุทธเลิศหล้านภาลัย, 24 February 1767 – 21 July 1824), personal name Chim ( th, ฉิม), also styled as Rama II, was the second monarch of Siam under the Chakri ...

favored the nobles from the Bunnag family and Tish's maternal family, the Bangchang. Tish then became the minister of ''

'', supervising trade and foreign affairs under King

Nangklao Nangklao ( th, พระบาทสมเด็จพระนั่งเกล้าเจ้าอยู่หัว, ; 31 March 1788 – 2 April 1851), birth name Thap ( th, ทับ), also styled Rama III, was the third king of Siam ...

. He was offered the position of ''Samuha Kalahom'' (Second Prime Minister) by the king, but Tish declined, saying that prime ministers died early. He then became Samuha Kalahom instead. During the

Siamese–Vietnamese Wars The Siamese–Vietnamese wars were a series of armed conflicts between the Siamese Ayutthaya Kingdom and Rattanakosin Kingdom and the various dynasties of Vietnam mainly during the 18th and 19th centuries. Several of the wars took place in moder ...

, Tish led the Siamese forces to Vietnam and imposed a naval blockade on Saigon. The campaigns were successful, however, and the war ended in 1845. With the death of Bodindecha in 1849, Tish remained the only powerful noble in the court. Tish played a key role in the ascension of

Mongkut Mongkut ( th, มงกุฏ; 18 October 18041 October 1868) was the fourth monarch of Siam (Thailand) under the House of Chakri, titled Rama IV. He ruled from 1851 to 1868. His full title in Thai was ''Phra Bat Somdet Phra Menthora Ramathibod ...

, whether or not Nangklao intended to give the throne to his half-brother. The legend is that Nangklao wanted his son, Prince Annop, to succeed him, even giving Annop the bracelet passed down from his grandfather Phutthayotfa Chulalok. However, Dis switched the bracelet for a forged one, so the genuine one was not passed to Prince Annop. Tish lobbied for Mongkut, a monk of 27 years, to succeed the throne. In 1851, when Mongkut had succeeded the throne, he made Tish '' Somdet Chao Phraya'' Borom Maha

and regent in the kingdom. Prayurawongse's brother, That, became Somdet Chao Phraya Borom Maha Pichaiyat and regent in Bangkok. The Somdet Chao Phraya title was the highest noble title, rivaling royalty. The first to hold the title, Maha Kshatriyaseuk, had become the first monarch of Chakri dynasty. Mongkut gave much of his power to the regents he appointed. Prayurawongse was also competent in trade and foreign affairs and crucial to negotiating the

Bowring Treaty The Bowring Treaty was a treaty signed between the British Empire and the Kingdom of Siam on 18 April 1855. The treaty had the primary effect of liberalizing foreign trade in Siam, and was signed by five Siamese plenipotentiaries (among them Wo ...

Sri Suriyawongse

Somdet Chao Phraya Borom Maha Sri Suriyawongse (Thai: สมเด็จเจ้าพระยาบรมมหาศรีสุริยวงศ์; Chuang Bunnag) was a prominent 19th-century Thai figure and served as the regent during the early years of the reign of King Chulalongkorn. The eldest son of Tish Bunnag (

, สมเด็จเจ้าพระยาบรมมหาประยูรวงศ์) and than phu ying Chan, Chuang, was well educated. King Mongkut made him Samuha

, one of the two prime ministers of Old Siam. After the death of King Mongkut in 1868, his young son Prince

became the new monarch. However, as the new king was underage, Sri Suriyawongse was named as regent, a post he held until 1873. The Front Palace Crisis of 1874-5 changed the power dynamic in Siam, after which both Bunnag and noble influence waned. Sri Suriyawongse died in 1883 in Ratchaburi. He was also the first Thai to have a life insurance policy after Chulalongkorn granted foreign companies permission to extend their insurance business into Siam. His son Won Bunnag succeeded him as Samuha Kalahom and also held the title Chao Phraya Surawong Waiyawat.

References

{{reflist Converts to Buddhism from Islam Thai people of Iranian descent Thai people of Mon descent