Ministry of Defence Building, Bangkok

Ministry of Defence Building (29 August 2006)


Ministry of Defence Building is a handsome heritage building along Sanam Chai Road in Rattanakosin, Bangkok. It is located across the road from the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew.

The Ministry of Defence Building was built in 1882-1884.Originally, it was called Rong Thahan Na, meaning "Front Barracks". It stands on the site of three former royal palaces constructed by King Rama I (1782-1809), namely the Thanon Lak Muang Palace No.2 for his son Prince Thap, Thanon Lak Muang Palace No. 4 for Prince Khantharot, and Thanon Lak Muang Palace No. 6 for Prince Damrong Rachanuphap. During the reign of King Rama V, His Majesty ordered the construction of the Rong Thahan Na as residence of soldiers who guard the city. It also served as the warehouse for arms and other military provisions. It was officially opened on 18 July, 1884.

The Ministry of Defence Building was built in the late European architectural style which was popular in late 19th century Bangkok. It has a front portico supported by six columns. On the pediment is the crest of the Defence Ministry. On the compound in front of the building are ancient cannons from different periods of Thai history, symbols of power of the military.

Getting there

The Ministry of Defence Building is located along Sanam Chai Road, opposite the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. It is not a tourist sight of considerable interest, but if you are in the neighborhood, it is good to take a look at it.

List of Historic Buildings in Bangkok; list of Districts of Bangkok

 Latest updates on Penang Travel Tips

Map of Roads in Penang

Looking for information on Penang? Use this Map of Roads in Penang to zoom in on information about Penang, brought to you road by road.

About this website

Dear visitor, thank you so much for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye and my hobby is to find out about places, write about them and share the information with you on this website. I have been writing this site since 5 January 2003. Originally (from 2003 until 2009, the site was called AsiaExplorers. I changed the name to Penang Travel Tips in 2009, even though I describe more than just Penang but everywhere I go (I often need to tell people that "Penang Travel Tips" is not just information about Penang, but information written in Penang), especially places in Malaysia and Singapore, and in all the years since 2003, I have described over 20,000 places.

While I try my best to provide you information as accurate as I can get it to be, I do apologize for any errors and for outdated information which I am unaware. Nevertheless, I hope that what I have described here will be useful to you.