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The Elephant Duel of 1593: How Thai and Burmese Chronicles and European Accounts Tell It Differently

The elephant duel at Nong Sarai is the most famous event in the life of King Naresuan. The evidence from every side agrees that the Burmese Crown Prince of Hanthawaddy died in this battle and that the Hanthawaddy army had to withdraw, but how he died is told so differently from one version to another that the comparison is fascinating.

What each version says

Sources	What it says (summary)
Luang Prasoet Chronicle	Monday, the 2nd day of the waning moon of the 2nd month, CS 954, at a not very auspicious moment: Naresuan, riding the elephant Phraya Chaiyanuphap, fought the Crown Prince at Nong Sarai. He was slightly wounded in the right arm; the Crown Prince's helmet came off and he died on his elephant's neck. There is no challenge to an elephant duel.
Somdet Phra Phonnarat version (Bradley's printed text)	Gives the year as 941. The royal elephants chased the enemy into the middle of their army; Naresuan called on the Crown Prince to come out and fight an elephant duel, tilted his helmet to avoid the ngao, then struck the Crown Prince on the right shoulder and killed him. Ekathotsarot cut down Mang Cha Charo.
Burmese chronicles (Maha Yazawin / Hmannan Yazawin)	No duel. A Burmese commander's elephant in musth charged the Crown Prince's elephant, and then Naresuan fired a gun at close range, gravely wounding the Crown Prince. Dated 8 January 1593; says the Burmese withdrew of their own accord.
Van Vliet's account	No duel. The royal elephant took fright until Naresuan prayed and sprinkled it with consecrated water; it then charged, and he struck the Crown Prince with his elephant goad and speared him. Another, shorter recension says he speared him and captured his elephant.
Portuguese and Spanish records	The accounts vary. Jacques de Coutre says Naresuan was hit by a bullet in the arm and the Crown Prince was speared in the neck; Pimenta's letter says the Crown Prince was shot; Bocarro says there was a challenge and that Portuguese soldiers fired the shot.

What every side agrees on

At the end of BE 2135 by the old count, or early 1593, the Burmese Crown Prince (Mingyi Swa), son of King Nanda Bayin, led a large army against Ayutthaya. The two armies clashed to the west of the capital, the Crown Prince died on elephant-back, and the Hanthawaddy army withdrew. This was the last time King Nanda Bayin sent a large army to attack Ayutthaya.

The evidence disagrees on three points: whether there was a formal challenge to fight on elephant-back, what weapon killed the Crown Prince, and on what day the battle took place.

The Luang Prasoet Chronicle: an astrologer's record

The Luang Prasoet Chronicle records that on Monday, the 2nd day of the waning moon of the 2nd month, CS 954, King Naresuan rode his elephant Phraya Chaiyanuphap into battle against the Crown Prince at Nong Sarai, and it also notes that the astrological timing of that moment was not very favourable. Some scholars think its author was probably a court astrologer, which is why it pays such close attention to dates, times and auspicious moments.

In the fighting, Naresuan was slightly wounded in the right arm, while the Crown Prince's helmet came off; he managed to put it back on, and then died on his elephant's neck. After the battle, the royal elephant was given a new name, Chao Phraya Prap Hongsa (Conqueror of Hanthawaddy). This version has no speech challenging the Crown Prince to an elephant duel.

The Rattanakosin-period versions: the challenge to an elephant duel

The chronicles revised in the Rattanakosin period expand the story into a grand scene. The text printed by Bradley says that the war elephants of Naresuan and Ekathotsarot chased the enemy until they were in the middle of the enemy army. Naresuan then called out to the Crown Prince, who was sheltering in the shade of a tree: “Come out and let us fight an elephant duel together.”

When the two elephants clashed, the Crown Prince struck with his ngao (long-handled glaive), but Naresuan tilted his helmet to take the blow, so it did not touch him. Naresuan then struck the Crown Prince on the right shoulder, and he slumped over his elephant's neck. Ekathotsarot, meanwhile, cut down Mang Cha Charo, who died on his elephant's neck. This version dates the battle to the year 941, a full 13 years different from the Luang Prasoet Chronicle.

The Burmese chronicles: an elephant in musth and the sound of gunfire

U Kala's Burmese chronicle and the Hmannan Yazawin have no challenge to single combat. They say that a Burmese commander was riding an elephant in musth; when its blindfold was removed, the elephant charged the Crown Prince's elephant and injured it. Naresuan then fired a gun at close range and gravely wounded the Crown Prince.

The man seated behind the Crown Prince held him upright, so the Siamese thought their attack had failed and did not press on. The Burmese chronicles date the battle to 8 January 1593 and say that the Burmese side decided of its own accord to withdraw.

Van Vliet and the European accounts

Van Vliet, writing around 1640, also has no challenge to an elephant duel. He says Naresuan's war elephant took fright and would not go into battle; Naresuan prayed and sprinkled it with consecrated water, and only then did the elephant charge. Naresuan struck the Crown Prince with his elephant goad and ran him through with a spear.

Most other European records are hearsay. Some say the Crown Prince was hit by a bullet, others that he was speared. Jacques de Coutre, who came to Siam in 1595, says that Naresuan himself was hit by a bullet in the arm, while António Bocarro says there was a challenge and that Portuguese soldiers fired the shot.

What historians conclude

Barend Jan Terwiel (2013) compared about ten sources and concluded that the formal challenge to a duel is probably legend, while the most credible element is the use of firearms, which the Thai sources rarely mention. He suggests that Naresuan's war elephant may have carried him close to the Crown Prince without his intending it.

Even so, almost every source agrees that Naresuan reached the opposing commander at close quarters. The chronicles also tell that after the battle, Somdet Phra Phonnarat, the senior monk of Wat Pa Kaeo, asked the king to pardon the commanders who had failed to keep up with him, a story that remains tied to Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon to this day.

Where historians still disagree

Was there a formal challenge to an elephant duel? The versions revised in the Rattanakosin period say Naresuan called out a challenge, but the Luang Prasoet Chronicle, the Burmese chronicles and Van Vliet do not. Terwiel thinks the Burmese side would hardly have accepted a duel, since doing so would have meant accepting the two as equals in rank.
The weapon that killed the Crown Prince: the later Thai versions say a ngao, Van Vliet says a spear, and the Burmese chronicles and several European records say a gun.
The date: the Luang Prasoet Chronicle gives the 2nd day of the waning moon of the 2nd month, CS 954. This was first calculated as 25 January and later recalculated as 18 January 1593, while the Burmese chronicles say 8 January 1593.
The place: officially, Nong Sarai is held to be at Don Chedi in Suphan Buri Province. Other locations have been proposed, such as an area in Kanchanaburi Province, while some European records describe the battle as taking place not far from Ayutthaya.

See this event’s campaign route on the map

Frequently asked questions

Was the Crown Prince killed by a ngao or by a gun?

The Rattanakosin-period Thai chronicles say Naresuan cut him down with a ngao, while the Burmese chronicles and several European records say he was shot. Some historians, such as Terwiel, consider the gun account more credible.

Why is Royal Thai Armed Forces Day on 18 January?

Because the date given in the Luang Prasoet Chronicle has been calculated to correspond to 18 January 1593. In 2006 the Cabinet therefore resolved to move it from 25 January, the date used before.

Was there really a challenge to an elephant duel?

The scene in which Naresuan calls on the Crown Prince to fight appears in the chronicles revised in the Rattanakosin period, but it is not found in the Luang Prasoet Chronicle, the Burmese chronicles or Van Vliet's account, so it remains a matter of debate.

Sources

Last updated 10 November 2026