Lampang

Geography

Lampang city is in the valley of the Wang River, bordered by the Khun Tan Range on the west and the Phi Pan Nam Range on the east. The river, a major tributary of the Chao Phraya, flows through the city. The city lies mainly on the south side of Wang River, although the old parts of the city had been originally developed in the north side of it. Nowadays, downtown Lampang has grown in the southeast of the river along Bunyawat and Pahon Yothin Roads.

Lampang, also called Nakhon Lampang the third largest town in northern Thailand. Traditional names for Lampang include Wiang Lakon and Khelang Nakhon. The city is a trading and transportation center. Lampang lies 601 km north of Bangkok and 101 km southeast of Chiang Mai.

History

Lampang was a major city in the Lanna kingdom. However, its historical prominence is largely overshadowed by Chiang Mai or Chiang Rai which were the traditional seats of government, and whose histories were well recorded in chronicles. Following decades of warfare with both the Ava Burmese and Ayudhya during the 17th-18th century, the region was in decline, severely depopulated, and subject to Burmese control. In the late-18th century, the famed marksman and Lampang native Nan Thip Chang assassinated the local Burmese leader in Wat Phra That Lampang Luang, and led an uprising which led to a rollback of Burmese rule over Lanna. Allied with Bangkok, the descendants of Nan Thip Chang, known as Chao Ched Ton (the seven princes), became the vassal rulers of the various Lanna cities until the annexation of Lanna into Siam (Thailand) proper under King Chulalongkorn (Rama V).