Guy Tachard (; 1651 – 1712), also known as Père Tachard, was a French

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

and

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...

of the 17th century, who was sent on two occasions to the Kingdom of Siam by

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

. He was born in Marthon, near

Angoulême Angoulême (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Engoulaeme''; ) is a small city in the southwestern French Departments of France, department of Charente, of which it is the Prefectures of France, prefecture. Located on a plateau overlooking a meander of ...

. In 1680, Tachard went to the

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(

Antilles The Antilles is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mexico to the northwest, and the Atlantic Ocean to the north and east. The Antillean islands are divided into two smaller groupings: the Greater An ...

) with

Jean II d'Estrées Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * J ...

. Tachard was involved in embassies to Siam, which came as responses to embassies sent by the Siamese King Narai to France in order to obtain an alliance against the Dutch.

First embassy to Siam (1685)

Tachard was sent in 1685 with five other Jesuits under Superior Jean de Fontaney, on a first French embassy to Siam led by Chevalier de Chaumont and

François-Timoléon de Choisy François-Timoléon de Choisy (; 16 August 1644 – 2 October 1724) was a French abbé, writer, and member of the Académie Française. He is known for his memoirs, historical and religious writings, and travel accounts. His posthumously publish ...

, and accompanied by Claude de Forbin. The objective of the Jesuits was to complete a scientific expedition to the Indies and China. Enticed by the Greek Constantine Phaulkon, he returned to France to suggest an alliance with the king of Siam

Narai King Narai the Great (, , ) or Ramathibodi III ( ) was the 27th monarch of Ayutthaya Kingdom, the 4th and last monarch of the Prasat Thong dynasty. He was the king of Ayutthaya Kingdom from 1656 to 1688 and arguably the most famous king of the ...

to Louis XIV. The five other Jesuits Fathers continued to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

where they arrived in February 1688: Jean de Fontaney (1643–1710), Joachim Bouvet (1656–1730), Jean-François Gerbillon (1654–1707), Louis Le Comte (1655–1728) and Claude de Visdelou (1656–1737). The two ships of the embassy returned to France with a Siamese embassy on board, led by the Siamese ambassador Kosa Pan, who was bringing a proposal for an eternal alliance between France and Siam. The embassy stayed in France from June 1686 to March 1687.

Second embassy to Siam (1687)

A second embassy to Siam was sent in March 1687. organized by Colbert, of which Tachard was part again. The embassy consisted in five warships, led by General Desfarges, and was bringing the Siamese embassy home. The mission was led by

Simon de la Loubère Simon de la Loubère (; 21 April 1642 – 26 March 1729) was a French diplomat to Siam (Thailand), writer, mathematician and poet. He is credited with bringing back a document which introduced Europe to Indian astronomy, the " Siamese method ...

and Claude Céberet du Boullay, director of the French East India Company. A young Jesuit had been brought by Tachard: the future composer André Cardinal Destouches. However, apart from the reaffirmation of the 1685 commercial treaty, the mission achieved little else. The disambarkment of French troops in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

and

Mergui Myeik (, or ; , ; , , ; formerly Mergui, ) is a rural city in Tanintharyi Region, Myanmar, located in the extreme south of the country on the coast off an island on the Andaman Sea. , the estimated population was over 209,000. ''World Gazett ...

led to strong nationalistic movements in Siam directed by Phra Petratcha and ultimately resulted in the 1688 Siamese revolution in which king Narai died, Phaulkon was executed, and Phra Petratcha became king. Desfarges negotiated to return with his men to

Pondicherry Pondicherry, officially known as Puducherry, is the Capital city, capital and most populous city of the Puducherry (union territory), Union Territory of Puducherry in India. The city is in the Puducherry district on the southeast coast of Indi ...

. In the later part of 1689, Desfarges captured the island of

Phuket Phuket (; , , or ''Tongkah'') is one of the Southern Thailand, southern Provinces of Thailand, provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. It consists of the island of Phuket, List of islands of Thailand, the country's largest island, and another 3 ...

in an attempt to restore French control. Innocent XI Dec 1688

Meanwhile, Tachard returned to France with the title of "Ambassador Extraordinary for the King of Siam", accompanied by Ok-khun Chamnan, and visited the Vatican in January 1688. He and his Siamese embassy met with

Pope Innocent XI Pope Innocent XI (; ; 16 May 1611 – 12 August 1689), born Benedetto Odescalchi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 21 September 1676 until his death on 12 August 1689. Political and religious tensions with ...

and translated Narai's letter to him.

Other travels

In 1690, when Tachard tried to return to Siam, a revolution had happened, King Narai was already dead and a new king was on the throne. Tachard had to stop at

and return to France without obtaining a permission to enter the country. In 1699, Tachard again went to Siam, and managed to enter the country this time. He met with Kosa Pan, now Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the new king Petracha, but the meeting remained purely formal and led to nothing.Smithies 2002, p.185 Tachard travelled a fifth time to Asia and died in Chandernagor in 1712.

Works

* Tachard, Guy (1688) ''A relation of the voyage to Siam : performed by six Jesuits sent by the French king, to the Indies and China in the year 1685'' (Google Books
originalEnglish translation
* Tachard, Guy (1689) ''Second Voyage''
Google Books
* Guy Tachard, Michael Smithies, Choisy,

(2000) ''A Siamese Embassy Lost in Africa 1686: The Odyssey of Ok-khun Chamnan'', Silkworm Books, Cape of Good Hope (South Africa),

Notes

References

* Colvin, Ian D. (2005) ''The Cape of Adventure: Strange and Notable Discoveries, Perils, Shipwrecks'', Kessinger Publishing * Gunn, Geoffrey C. (2003) ''First Globalization: The Eurasian Exchange, 1500–1800'' Rowman & Littlefield * Smithies, Michael (1999), ''A Siamese embassy lost in Africa 1686'', Silkworm Books, Bangkok, * Vongsurat Vat Ana, Raphael (1992): ''Un jésuite à la cour de Siam'', Paris, Ed. France-Empire, 1992, 330pp. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tachard, Guy 1651 births 1712 deaths 17th-century French Jesuits 17th-century French mathematicians 18th-century French Jesuits 18th-century French mathematicians People from Charente 17th-century French diplomats Christian missionaries in the Ayutthaya Kingdom Catholic clergy scientists Jesuit scientists

First embassy to Siam (1685)

Second embassy to Siam (1687)

Other travels

Works

See also

Notes

References