Wat Ratchabophit is a royal temples of the highest rank. Its full name is Wat Rajabopitsathitmahasimaram. Located along Fuang Nakhon Road a short distance to the east of Wat Pho, Wat Ratchabophit was built by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), to continue the royal tradition of erecting and naming a royal temple to his reign. Construction of Wat Ratchabophit began in 1869, one year into the reign of Rama V. The architects of the temples are all relatives to the kings.
The name of the temple, Rajabopitsathitmahasimaram, means Temple under the Royal Construction with the Great Sacred Boundaries.The temple was intended to be the residence of the monks of Thamayutinikaya Sect.
Wat Ratchanaddaram (29 August 2006)
The most iconic structure at Wat Ratchabophit is its stupa, the Phra Chedi. It is in the form of a round bell with a slim spire. Inside relics of the Buddha is kept. Around the stupa are sixteen niches with images of Buddha in different poses.
One of the most interesting discoveries for me at Wat Ratchabophit is the amusing 'farang' door guards on the door of the temple. These "European" guards wear blue uniforms and are a surprising find in the temple.
Wat Ratchabophit is also an important Royal Mausoleum. The royal cemetery is located on the west side of the temple and houses the ashes of the various members of the royal family.
Wat Ratchanaddaram (29 August 2006)
Getting there
Wat Ratchabophit is located along Fuang Nakhon Road to the east, and bordered by Thanon Ratchabophit to the north and Thanon Atsadang to the west. From Wat Pho, walk east along Charoen Krung Road, cross the Khlong Lod canal until you reach Thanon Fuang Nakhon. Turn left and you arrive at Wat Ratchabophit to your right.
The easiest way to reach this part of Bangkok is by taxi. Otherwise, you can also take the BTS Skytrain to the Saphan Taksin Station (S6)) and then catch a ferryboat to Thien Pier (N8).
Note an inaccurary in Google Map where Wat Ratchabophit is inaccurately labelled too far to the east when you zoom in. To view the correct location, change to satellite view.
Let me take you to explore and discover Penang through my series of walking tours on YouTube. You may use these videos as your virtual tour guide. At the beginning of each video, I provide the starting point coordinates which you may key into your GPS, Google Maps or Waze, to be navigated to where I start the walk, and use the video as your virtual tour guide.
Disclaimer
Please use the information on this page as guidance only. The author endeavours to update the information on this page from time to time, but regrets any inaccuracies if there be any.
Hello and thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy and my hobby is in describing places so that I can share the information with the general public. My website has become the go to site for a lot of people including students, teachers, journalists, etc. whenever they seek information on places, particularly those in Malaysia and Singapore. I have been doing this since 5 January 2003, for over twenty years already. You can read about me at Discover Timothy. By now I have compiled information on thousands of places, mostly in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, and I continue to add more almost every day. My goal is to describe every street in every town in Malaysia and Singapore.