The English Governess at the Siamese Court

"The English Governess at the Siamese Court being Recollections of Six Years in the Royal Palace at Bangkok" by Anna Harriette Leonowens. With Ilustrations, from photographs presented to the author by the King of Siam. (1870)

After leaving Siam in 1867, Anna first went to England where she dropped off Louis in a boarding school and picked up her daughter Avis. They then set sail for America. Her experiences in Siam were first published as a series of magazine articles before being fleshed out to become a book in 1870.

The book contains 30 chapters and 16 illustrations. A list of these can be found further down this page. It would be fair to say that less than half of the book contains personal accounts of the time Anna spent in Siam. The remainder is a kind of social history of the kingdom intermixed almost randomly within the narrative. It is not clear how much Anna actually wrote herself. In her preface she thanks Dr. J.W. Palmer for his literary help and also M. Henri Mouhot and Dr. A Bastian for their account of the ruins of Cambodia.

A letter from the private secretary of the King of Siam to a London newspaper in 1873, said that Mrs. Leonowens in her books "has supplied by her invention that which is deficient in her memory".

Anna has been accused by historians of not only writing untruths of her experiences, but also of lifting whole sections from other books written by contemporary authors. Certainly, after our first reading, we were left puzzled by not only the style and content but also some of the obvious contradictions.

The first two glaring mistakes are in the title. Namely, the words "governess" and "six years". Anna was employed by King Mongkut as an English school mistress and nothing more. The students had Thai teachers for their other subjects. The second mistake is more clumsy. By her own account, Anna arrived in Siam on March 15, 1862. She then left on 5th July, 1867. You don't need to be a mathematician to work out she was there for a little over 5 years.

The following contemporary review was published in Overland Monthly and Out West Magazine, vol. 6, no. 3, March 1871, pp. 293ff.

Who would have thought, years ago, when we read of the mysterious, gilded, jeweled palaces of Bangkok, the royal train of white elephants, the awe-inspiring paraphernalia of P'hra parawendt Maha Mongkut -- who would have thought that all these splendors would be uncovered for us, just as a new Asmodeus might take the roofs off the gilded temples and harems, and expose all the wretched contents? But this has been done, and Mrs. Leonowens, in her fresh, lively way, tells us of all she saw. And the sight is not satisfactory. Human nature in a pagan palace, burdened though it may be with a royal ceremonial and covered with jewels and silk attire, is a few shades weaker than elsewhere. The swelling domes, crusted with barbaric pearl and gold, worshiped at a distance by the awe-struck subjects of the mighty ruler, cover as much lying, hypocrisy, vice and tyranny as may have been found in the palaces of Le Grande Monarque in the days of the Montespans, the Maintenons, and the Cardinals Mazarin and De Retz. Poor humanity does not vary much, after all, whether we find it in a hovel or castle; and it is edifying to have the truism so often and abundantly fortified by evidence from the four corners of the globe.

The English governess at the Court of Siam had marvelous opportunities for seeing the whole domestic and interior life of royalty in Siam. An instructor of the King's children, she came to be on familiar terms with the august tyrant who holds the lives of a great nation in his hand. A woman, she was permitted to penetrate into the secret recesses of the harem, and could tell all that was fit to tell of the life of the multitudinous wives of the oriental despot. So we have all the minutia of the Siamese Court, not tediously drawn out, but graphically sketched by an observant woman, and charming from its novelty, if nothing more. There is, too, a touch of sadness in all she says of the poor women who languish out their lives in this splendid misery. The poor child-wife of the King, who sang a scrap of "There is a Happy Land, far, far away;" the concubine, beaten on the mouth with a slipper -- these, and all others like them, are the sombre shadows of the interior life of the royal abode. We close the book, heartily glad that we are not subjects of his Golden-Footed Majesty of Siam.

Full review at about.com

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Chapters in the Book

Our main reason for analysing the first book, is to find out what exactly was added by Margaret Landon in 1943 and then by the film-makers in the three major movies. People have been so critical of Anna that we thought it was time to see where the blame should be laid. So, we have gone through the book chapter by chapter detailing what was said. Several reprints of this book are available in Thailand. The second book is not so easily attained.

1. On the Threshold. (March 15 1862) Arrival at Paknam, the river mouth of the mighty Meinam (Chao Phraya River). Travelling upriver to the first sights of Bangkok. The meeting with the "half naked" Prime Minister. A visit to a "catchpenny" show and the first night at the home of Captain B.

2. A Siamese Premiere at Home. Moving to the palace of the Prime Minister and his frank interrogation. Settling into her apartment in the palace and meeting the women of the palace. Moonshee trespasses into the inner sanctuary of the harem.

3. A Sketch of Siamese History. A look at Thai people and the history of the country from the time of Ayutthaya (mid 1300's) to the present reign of King Mongkut.

4. His Excellency's Harem and Helpmeet. The Prime Minister's bitterness at not becoming the king. A detailed look at the women of his harem and his head wife, Koon Ying Phan.

5. The temple of the sleeping and the emerald idols. The first visit upriver to the Grand Palace, stopping first at Wat Pho to see the "sleeping idol" and then Wat Phra Kaew to see the "emerald idol".

6. The King and the Governess. (April 1862) The early life of King Mongkut and how he eventually became king after the second try. Anna's first meeting with the king and the cross-questioning starting with "How old shall you be?" The meeting with the Royal wives and children. An unhappy encounter with a chain-gang. The second meeting with the king. Anna's ultimatum that she didn't want a house within the walls of the palace.

7. Marble Halls and Fish-Stalls Anna asks the Prime Minister to interscede on her behalf for a proper home. A few days later she is escorted to a "squalid" house with no bathroom or kitchen in the fish-market. Anna is so shocked that she falls ill for a week. Several months pass and she still finds herself living under the roof of the Prime Minister.

8. Our Home in Bangkok. The second home offered to them is more favourable and Anna sets about making it habitable. The next morning she is summoned to the palace to start her duties as a teacher.

9. Our School in the Palace. A brief look at Thai language and literature. The opening of the school and the presentation of the students.

10. Moonshee and the Angel Gabriel. Moonshee goes treasure hunting in the garden.

11. The Ways of the Palace. An introduction to the palace. The people within the walls and the harem. The king's daily life from raising at 5 a.m. to give food to the monks to the secret councils at midnight.

12. Shadows and Whispers of the Harem. An account of the wretched life of the women and children of the harem, a life in a prison of "golden bars". The episode of "Hidden-Perfume" who was cast into the dungeon due to a misunderstanding. And the sad tale of Wanne whose mother had fallen out of favour due to her gambling debts.

13. Fa-ying, the King's Darling. The sad tale of Somdetch Chow Fa-ying, the favourite of the king and Anna. During an oubreak of cholera in the palace, she was struck down and died at the age of eight.

14. An Outrage and a Warning. Moonshee receives a beating from the half-brother of the Prime Minister for not bowing down in his prescence. After Anna complains to the Prime Minister, she is attacked one night in her own home by a man in the shadows. Moonshee decides to return alone to Singapore and the Prime Minister is forced to sign a proclamation that anyone found molesting members of Anna's household will be severely punished.

15. The City of Bangkok. A description of the river approach to Bangkok and the city itself. The Grand Palace and nearby temples. The people, houses, roads, prisons and foreign community.

16. The White Elephant. Thai people consider white elephants a diety and worship them accordingly.

17. The Ceremonies of Coronation. A description of the coronation of King Mongkut in April 1851.

18. The Queen Consort. The first wife of the King and a description of the marriage ceremony

19. The Heir-Apparent. - Royal Hair Cutting. A description of Prince Somdetch Chowfa Chulalongkorn and the ceremony for the cutting of his top knot.

20. Amusements of the Court. Descriptions of everyday entertainments and activities which include: plays, puppet shows, board games, kite flying, fairs, music, athletics, wrestling, boxing, discus throwing, foot shuttlecock, horse races and croquet on horseback.

21. Siamese Literature and Art. Writers, theatre and murial paintings.

22. Buddhist Doctrine, Priests and Worship. An account of a visit to Wat Phra Kaew, the building of Wat Bah dit Sang and the death of Chow Khoon Sah, the High Priest of Siam.

23. Cremation. Six months after the death of Fa-ying, the cremation of her body.

24. Certain Superstitions. An account of six men who were sacrificed and then buried in the foundation of a new gate to the city in order to provide the citizens protection.

27. The Subordinate King. The story of Somdetch Phra Pawarendr Ramesr Mahiswarer, the younger brother of King Mongkut and known as the Second King.

26. The Supreme King: His Character and Administration. The life of King Mongkut.

27. My Retirement from the Palace. Anna describes how her life became increasingly more difficult as the king's demands on her increased. Sometimes she had to assist the King in writing and translating until late at night. By the summer of 1866 she fell ill and though she later partly recovered she decided to return to England. She left Siam for the last time on 5th July, 1867.

28. The Kingdon of Siam. A mixture of information about geography, climate, export lists, revenue, royal barge, army, navy, canals and bridges.

29. The Ruins of Cambodia. - An Excursion to the Naghkon Watt. An excursion to the temple ruins in neighbouring Cambodia.

30. The Legend of the Maha Naghkon. A Thai folktale.

Illustrations in the Book

1. The Supreme King
2. The Prime Minister
3. The Temple of the Sleeping Idol
4. The Beautiful Gate of the temple
5. A Pupil of the Royal School
6. Presentation of a Princess
7. Gateway of the Old Palace
8. A War Elephant
9. The Heir Apparent
10. Siamese Actor and Actress
11. Spire of the Temple Watt-Poh
12. Priests at Breakfast
13. The Princess of Chiang Mai
14. A Royal Barge
15. Ruins of the Naghkon Watt
16. Sculptures of the Nagkorn Watt

Click here to view all the illustrations.

Comments on the Book The following are some of our initial findings. We will add more as we continue our research. If you would like to add your own input, you can find a form at the bottom of this page. Please note, these are comments only after reading the first book.

If you watched any of the movies before reading this book, then you would be surprised and disappointed. There isn't much of a personal narrative as most of the book seems to be taken up with second hand accounts of the condition of life in Siam.
The sad story of Fa-ying, who was a favourite of Anna, is taken word by word from a circular written in English by King Mongkut.
There is no hint of any romance between Anna and the King. In fact, she seems to be more impressed with the Second King. So, no romantic dinners and certainly no dancing.
The telling of the story of the six men killed and buried in the foundations of a new gate (chapter 24) looks very similiar to a story in another book we have read published about 5 years before Anna's book. Other chapters detailing the social-history of the country look also like they were lifted from a variety of contemporary books.

The famous "How old shall you be?" interrogation by the King is in the first book.
Anna's son, Louis, is reffered to as "boy" throughout the book apart from one occassion where she calls him by his real name.
In chapter 29, Anna gives us the impression that she journeyed to the ruins of Angkor Wat in Cambodia. It is unlikely that she would have undertaken such an ardous journey. Particularly as the ruins had only just been re-discovered around the period of time she was in Siam.
Anna comments on more than one occassion how well she progressed with learning Thai. However, her transliterations of the language are often incomprehensible. Thai is a tonal language and is not easy for foreigners to speak and be understood. If her Thai wasn't as good as she claimed, then her understanding of some of the situations might not have been so accurate.

Some of the captions for the illustrations are clumsy and sometimes wrong. The most surprising is Plate no. VI "Presentation of a Princess" which can be found at the start of chapter 11, "Shadows and Whispers of the Harem". Either her eyes were failing her or she didn't really witness as much as she claimed. This picture should actually be in chapter 19, "The Heir Apparent - Royal Hair-cutting" because this is what it shows. The picture is of her favourite pupil Prince Chulalongkorn (certainly not a princess) being presented to King Mongkut during the ceremony for the cutting of his topknot. Admitedly, the illustrator has given the "princess" curly hair. However, if you look closely at the original photograph, which Anna had in her possesion, you can clearly see how the illustrator mistakenly took a part of the ceremonial hat as hair.

Visitor comments on "English Governess at the Siamese Court"

If you have read this first book, please send us your comments. At this moment, please do not use the form at the bottom of this page for any other books or comments on the movie.

"I read this book twice after watching the movie. It is a well written book in term of language but it is not a book for learning about Siam and Siamese. There are historical errors from beginning to the end. I may know Thai or Siamese history as a Thai but I found many obvious mistakes in the book. These obvious mistakes are not considered mistakes only on the historical ground but also on the cultural ground. In the latter part of the book where Anna presented the story of King Mongkut after the death of his Brother, the King Pinklao, is all absurd. Her work is profoundly disgustful and as the author of such a work, she is profoundly disgusting.

"I object this book on the ground that the book gives the totally wrong account of the history of my country and gives the bad and totally misinterpretation of my culture. There should be books which encounter, in order to oppose and to explain, the accounts given by Anna in her books and to give the right and rightful information about the old Siam and Siamese."

Sivinee, Thailand.

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