The Elephant Statue and Chulalongkorn
As a student of International Relations and History, I take an interest in the reasons and manners by which nations become allies. We take it as a given that the iconic friendships between states across the world, like Australia & New Zealand for example, has and will always stand. But every friendship begins with two strangers finding a mutual connection and exploring their similarities further, this of course being no different between countries.
A number of markers across Singapore are symbols of the continued friendship the country shares with contemporary states, taking the forms of busts of leaders, statues of shared experience or, as in the case of today’s post, gifts. Extended from one country to another, a gift is a tremendous beacon of appreciation and mutual respect, and tells the story of how countries solidify their connections and provide a constant reminder that they will endeavour to maintain cordial, respectful and cooperative relations.
Today’s piece of public history tells the story of the relationship between Singapore and Thailand, both south-east Asian nations geographically separated by Malaysia, who have experienced a comprehensive friendship since Singapore’s establishment as an independent state in 1965. Our gift in question dates back nearly 100 years prior to Singapore’s independence, to 1871 when this city was still a part of the Straits Settlements under British rule and Thailand was known to the world as the Kingdom of Siam.
Outside Singapore’s Old Parliament House stands a small but proud black Elephant, commemorating the arrival of Chulalongkorn of Siam, also known as King Rama V. To westerners, Chulalongkorn may be best known as the eldest son of the Siamese royal family in the Rogers and Hammerstein musical ‘The King and I’. But in the context of Thai history, Rama V is one of the most significant monarchs to have ruled. His far-stretching governmental and social reforms allowed for Siam to modernise alongside other prosperous Asian kingdoms in the late nineteenth century, and his delicate balancing of British and French colonial interests secured formal recognition for Siam as an independent nation and crucial buffer state between the British Raj and French Indochina.
Chulalongkorn’s ideas for modernisation were born from his internationalist mindset and his desire to see Siam stand on its own as a nation rather than become just one of many colonies in the great European Empires. Recognising that the only way Siam could gain independence would be to demonstrate itself as a sophisticated operational nation, the young King sought to shape Siamese politics off the models of European governance, an operational form he knew the British and French would both respect. In order to implement these structures however, it would be essential for Chulalongkorn to observe them in practise, thus leading to the Elephant statue in question.
In 1871, Chulalongkorn visited Singapore and Java, an island part of modern day Indonesia that was at the time part of the Dutch East Indies. An international visit like this was the first to be undertaken by a Siamese monarch, none of whom had made diplomatic trips to neighbouring nations. Given the significance of this voyage, as well as the stature of Chulalongkorn’s authority as the Head of State of a Kingdom, Rama V was given the full demonstrations of respect expected for one of his position.
Arriving on March 15, 1871 aboard his yacht ‘the Regent’, the King was welcomed by a naval gun salute undertaken by ships docked especially for the gesture. The King stayed at Government House, holding audiences with significant figures in the structure of Singapore’s imperial governance, learning from the legal and operational structure present within the Straits Settlements, and even sending a telegraph to Queen Victoria herself from the Eastern Telegraph Office. He would leave for Java on the 23rd, his trip to Singapore lasting only for a week but undoubtedly making a significant impact upon the young Monarch, whose subsequent rule would turn his observations and experiences into practical policy.
King Rama V would establish the ‘Auditory Office’ an authority responsible for taxation, placing this responsibility in the hands of the government rather than local nobility. He would form the ‘Council of State’ in 1874, a group based upon the British Privy Council whose responsibility was to advise the monarch on matters of government and policy. The ‘Royal Military Academy’ was formed in 1887 to train soldiers and defence force personal to a governmental united standard who could serve their nation at the King’s will. His further restructure of Siam’s government in 1892 to base it’s operations around ministries put the nation’s governance in line with European Parliaments, many of whom hosted and educated Chulalongkorn’s sons in an attempt to make his princes politically literate.
The impact that Chulalongkorn’s reign had upon Siam cannot be overstated, and it is important to note that many of the ideas he implemented to centralise his government came from what he heard and observed during his visit to Singapore. As a token of appreciation for the hospitality the King was shown during his voyage, Rama V gifted Singapore the Elephant Statue which was placed outside the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall on June 25 1872, before being moved to it’s current location in 1919. The black polished Elephant is a three dimensional model of the same Elephant shown on the Flag of the Kingdom of Siam, cast in bronze and created in Bangkok. It stands nobly as a gesture of appreciation from Rama V to the people of Singapore for their warm hospitality and willingness to share ideas and collaborate for a stronger Asian future, and the King’s desire for this cooperative spirit to continue.
Chulalongkorn would make a second visit to Singapore in 1890, before passing away on October 23, 1910, adorned with the moniker Phra Piya Maharat (the Great Beloved King). Siam is now Thailand, and Singapore is no longer a member of the Straits Settlements, but both of these nations have continued to maintain a close alliance throughout the twentieth century and into the modern day, with Chulalongkorn’s statue being a constant and relevant reminder of the historical strength of Thai-Singaporean relations. For these reasons, the mighty black Elephant remains a crucial piece of Singapore’s public history, containing a story of cooperation in the past and the spirit of friendship which lasts into the present.
Sources:
https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_30_2004-12-13.html
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