Western Architecture in Phetchaburi

Abstract

During the reign of King Mongkut, King Chulalongkorn and King Vajiravudh, Petchaburi province was one the most important areas in Siam. This is reflected in the construction of royal residences in the province. The royal palace and residence built in Petchaburi is based on western architecture and were built during the same timeframe as the establishment of western architecture in Bangkok. As “Western” was considered moving toward modernization, the Siamese King’s intention to build the architecture with western influence in Thailand marks one of the most significant transitions of the Thai world outlook from conventional perspective to a modern world perspective. This transition of ideas affected the courtiers and people’s concept of building houses.

Consequently, it became popular to build houses with western influenced architecture among courtiers, nobles, wealthy merchants and citizens in Petchaburi province. The building consisted of either wooden or brick houses in a western influenced style. This building style also incorporated either a hip roof, gable roof or trimmed gable roof. This architectural style reflected the acceptance of new ideas which were becoming popular and were considered modern at the time. The reason for the popularity of this building style in Phetchaburi province came from both inside and outside of the province. The change from a conventional to a western modern perspective and changes to the construction of royal residences are the two main external factors. The main internal factor was the readiness of Phetchaburi province in terms of available area, which is the reason why the province was chosen by the King. Material and skilled craftsman in the province also played an important role in the popularity of this building style.