Thread: Memory Lane (In my own language)

Pra Samut Chedee is a remarkably white pagoda built in the area of a Wat that shares the same name. The place is located on a small island that almost 200 years ago was in the middle of the Chao Praya River.

The island was partly natural caused by the accumulation of sand brought down by the flood waters. Over the years the river has silted up even more causing the island to become part of the west bank.

Because originally it was on an island hence it has another name Pra Chedee Klang Nam ('pagoda in the middle of the water') which is a more popular name than the official name.

King Putta Lerdla Napalai (King Rama II) was the first to have the idea of a temple in the middle of the river. He noticed a natural sandbank in the river at Paknam, Samut Prakarn Province and thought it would make the ideal location for a temple.

However, he died before his dream could materialize. The task, then, was taken over by his son, King Nung Klao (King Rama III) who started work on October 1827 and was completed seven months later at the cost of 1,864 baht. Inside the top of the Chedee, King Nung Klao put 4 Buddha’s relics but not long after, they were stolen.

The Chedee was improved some 30 years later by King Mongkut (King Rama IV), King Rama III’s brother. He renovated the Chedee by covering the old one with a new and much higher one. He also brought 12 Buddha’s relics from the Royal Grand Palace in Bangkok and put them inside the top of the Chedee expecting that with this much new height, it was quite difficult for thieves to climb up to steal them.




Further down to the mouth of the Chao Phraya River is The Chulachomklao Fort, built in 1819 and came into use only once during the Paknam crisis in the same year. Close by is The HTMS Maeklong, the oldest ship of the Royal Thai Navy, another attraction in the park.

https://mgronline.com/travel/detail/9620000040474