In the past, "Sua Son Leb" was the name of the riverside fortress that was used to protect Thailand from the enemy ships that wanted to come to Bangkok from the Gulf of Thailand. It was built in 1880 in the reign of King Rama III. There were a lot of cannons in the fortress to attack and sink enemy ships.

In 1893, during the colonialism period, Siam fought with France because Siam denied the condition of France that they need the left-side territory of Khong river. So, France send a naval fleet to attack the capital of Siam, Bangkok. The Sua Son Leb fortress participated in this event. The Thai Navy was defeated because the fortress couldn't stop the enemy ships.

In 1906, after the Indo-China war, the Royal Thai Naval Academy (RTNA) settled at Thonburi Palace. In 1943, the RTNA was moved from Thonburi Palace to Kled Kaew district, Sattahip, Chonburi. After that, in 1952, the RTNA was moved again. This time RTNA moved to the location of the Sua Son Leb fortress. The fortress was replaced by the pier of the RTNA, named after it, “Sua Son Leb” pier.

The pier can contain only one big warship because it is quite a small pier. It is usually used for docking the warship for the Naval Cadet sea training, twice a year. The pier is always reserved for the flagship. (Flagship is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, a designation given on account of being either the largest, fastest, newest, most heavily armed or, for publicity purposes, the most well known. In military terms, it is a ship used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships. The term originates from the custom of the commanding officer to fly a distinguishing flag. )

There are also places for docking small engine boats for "training to control small boats" and the place for "leadline training" at Sua Son Leb pier.

Introduction. History of the Royal Thai Naval Academy. RTNA. October 2008. <http://www.rtna.ac.th/english/eng01.php>

French-Thai War. P. Klykoom. 3 November 2008. <http://www.geocities.com/thailandwwii/ftw.html>

The location of the fortress (from the map), the same as the RTNA

There is the place for training seamanship skill (controlling  a small boat) and leadline training) for naval cadets

Now, the fortress is replaced by the pier

The canon which was found while the fortress was restored and rebuild

We interviewed an old navy officer who has long-time experience in the RTNA, Sub-Lieutenant Noppa Reanbubbha of the Seamanship and Navigation Department, about the Sua Son Leb pier.

When did you start serving the RTNA the first time?

-I came here in 1988. It’s very long time ago.

Do you know why the RTNA pier was named Sua Son Leb?

-It was named after the fortress which was located at the same place as the pier.

How was the pier when you came to the RTNA at first ?

-It was already built. It was smaller than at present . There had been an accident at the pier, so the Commandant decided to increase the size of the pier.

Can you tell me what kind of the accident happened to the pier?

-One cargo ship crashed into the pier. The pier couldn’t be used for a period, it needed to be repaired and increased in size for supporting bigger training ships.

Have foreign naval cadet training ships ever docked at the Sua Son Leb pier?

-Yes. As I remember, it was only one time. The Spanish naval cadets came with a big training sailboat 6 years ago (2002).

Ok, that enough for us. Thank you very much.