Nonthaburi Information guide
Nonthaburi is over 400 years old, dating back to when Ayutthaya was the
capital. The town was originally located at Tambon Ban Talat Khwan, a famous fruit
orchard where the Chao Phraya River and various canals pass through.
King Prasat Thong ordered the digging of a canal as a shortcut from the south
of Wat Thai Muang to Wat Khema because the old waterway flowed into Om River
to Bang Yai then to Bang Kruai Canal next to Wat Chalo before ending in front
of Wat Khema.
After the new shortcut was completed, the Chao Phraya River changed its flow
into the new route that remains today. In 1665, King Narai the Great noticed
that the new route gave enemies too much proximity to the capital. Therefore,
he ordered that a fortress be built at the mouth of Om River and relocated Nonthaburi
to this area. A city shrine still stands there.
Later during the reign of King Rama IV of the Rattanakosin period, he ordered
the town moved to the mouth of Bang Su Canal in Ban Talat Khwan. King Rama V
then had the provincial hall built there on the left bank of the Chao Phraya
River. In 1928, the hall was moved to Ratchawitthayalai, Ban Bang Khwan, Tambon
Bang Tanao Si. It is now the Training Division of the Ministry of Interior on
Pracha Rat 1 Road, Amphoe Muang, on the bank of the Chao Phraya River. The building
is of European architecture decorated with patterned woodwork. The Fine Arts
Department has registered it as an historical site. The provincial hall is now
on Rattanathibet Road.
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