Letter from King Mongkut to President Buchanan (in Thai)

By the time the letter reached Washington, D.C., Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) was president of the United States, and the country had descended into civil war. In 1862, President Lincoln politely declined the king’s kind offer out of concern that the U.S. climate would not “favor the multiplication of the elephant,” though it is also possible that the ongoing conflict at home contributed to the decision.

Although the elephants never made the voyage around the world, the generosity of King Mongkut’s offer and the graciousness of President Lincoln’s reply nonetheless underscore the friendly spirit between both nations.