Thao Suranari : Brave Thai Woman
| Thao Suranari is a title given to a lady called Mo for her bravery in saving Thailand and its people from Laotian invasion. The meaning of Thao Suranari is “Brave woman”. |
In 1827, the Prince of Laos rebelled against Bangkok and captured Nakhon Ratchasima and Sara Buri. While doing that, he arrested many people as prisoners of war. Amongst them was the deputy governor and his wife, Mo. The prince wanted to take all the prisoners back to Laos. However, Mo had different plans in place. She collected all the women and made them entice the soldiers while encouraging them to drink and feast. The women asked the soldiers to hand over their swords to cut animals for the feast and the soldiers did this willingly without realizing that it was a ploy. The women fed the soldiers with rich food and wine which caused them to fall into deep sleep. When this happened, the women freed all the male prisoners who subsequently attacked the soldiers and killed them. The drunken soldiers were no match and were slain without mercy. On seeing his soldiers being killed, Prince of Laos escaped to Vietnam leaving all the prisoners behind.
Mo was honored by King Rama III for her bravery and intelligence. He conferred the title Thao Suranari on her for her act of bravery.
Even today the people of Thailand remember her bravery. In honor of her memory, every year in the month April, a fair of ten days is organized across Thailand which features competitions for women in body building, singing, dancing and many more.
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