Royal Siamese Army
|
Royal Armed Forces กองทัพหลวง Kongthap Luang |
|
|---|---|
| Active | 1238–1852 |
| Country |
.svg){kind=small} Kingdom of Siam
|
| Branch |
Palace Guards Capital Defense Corps Artillery Corps Elephantry Corps Cavalry Corps Infantry Regiments Navy |
| Type | Army, Navy |
| Role | Military force |
| Engagements |
Burmese–Siamese wars Siamese-Vietnamese wars |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
Ramkhamhaeng, Naresuan, Taksin, Bodindecha |
The Royal Siamese Armed Forces (Thai: กองทัพหลวง) were the armed forces of the Thai monarchy from the 12th to 19th centuries. The term refers to the military forces of the Sukhothai Kingdom, the Ayutthaya Kingdom, the Thonburi Kingdom and the Early Rattanakosin Kingdom in chronological order. The army was one of the major military forces of Southeast Asia. With a reform into a new Western-style army in 1852, the Royal Siamese Army became a new European-trained military force.
The Royal Thai Armed Forces are the contemporary military of Thailand.
The Royal Siamese Army was organized into three general tiers: the Palace Guards, the Capital Defense Corps, and the field levies. Only the first two were the standing military. They protected the sovereign and the capital region, and formed the nucleus of the armed forces in wartime. The third, the field levies or conscripts, were usually raised just prior to or during wartime, and provided manpower to resist attacks and project power beyond the boundaries of the empire. Most of the field levy served in the infantry but the men for the elephantry, cavalry, artillery and naval corps were drawn from specific hereditary villages that specialized in respective military skills.
The infantry was the backbone of the wartime Siamese army, and was supported by special branches—the elephantry, cavalry, artillery, and naval corps. These special branches were formed by the men from certain hereditary villages that provided the men with specialized skills. In a typical Ayutthaya or Rattanakosin formation, a 1000-strong infantry regiment was supported by 100 horses and 10 war elephants.
The main use of war elephants was to charge the enemy, trampling them and breaking their ranks. Although the elephantry units made up only about one percent of the overall strength, they were a major component of Siamese war strategy throughout the imperial era. The army on the march would bring expert catchers of wild elephants.
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