THAILAND

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 64, Issue 4536, 13 February 1942, Page 6

THAILAND

JAPAN ONE AMONG MANY INVADERS LONG STORY OF CONQUESTS (By S.K.) We have heard much about the present situation inThailand, but hardly anything. ahoutjier past, which provides one of the most fascinating stories of the Pacific. Her story relates a constant struggle against invaders. . The original inhabitants of Siam were the Lawa, a tribe most probably belonging to the Mon-Khmer family, who were crushed and almost absorbed by the Burmese. Then Indian immigrants started to infiltrate into the Menam Valley and take leadership by force and peaceful penetration, bringing with them Buddhist and Hindu religions and Indian customs.

In due course they built a number of cities, among which were Ayudhya, Rajaburi and Chandaburie. Later on, the Mons ana Khmers challenged and defeated the Indian inhabitants, and the land was conquered partly by the Mons and partly by the Khmers. The Khmers made the eastern basin of Menam a province of their powerful realm. But all this was only the prelude to the history of Thailand. In the twelfth century a mighty nation ruled in the Yangtse Valley, in the empire of Nan-Chao. They called themselves Thai. Those who were repressed and put to flight by a mighty Chinese army from the Hoang Ho basin. This free and proud people could not tolerate the yoke of the conqueror, and in the middle of the 13th century they migrated to the plains of the Menam and Mekong, and became independent once more. A NATIONAL HERO The first national hero of the Siamese became Rama Khamheng, who conquered the whole of the Menam. Valley and the Malay Peninsula. His

dynasty reigned at Sukhodai over Sawankole on the Upper Menam Yom for almost a century. By extending its power over the Malay Peninsula it actually paved the way for the formation of the Kingdom of Siam. In 1350, Phra Chao U-Don, or Rama Dhibodi, a former prince of U-Don, became the head of the Sukhodai dynasty, and by further conquests brought Siam to the peak of her might. He transferred the capital from Sukhodai to Ayudhya, which remained the capital of Siam for four centuries. Rama Dhibodi, by defeating the Cambodian invaders, who attempted several times to penetrate into Siam, extended his frontiers toward the east. Then a new era opened in the history of Siam, during the reign of Phra Nareswara Maharaja, the second national hero. DEFEATED BY BURMA For almost a century Siam was living in the belief of her invincibility. In 1863 Burma declared war against her neighbour and invaded the country. The Burmese army quickly made its advance and arrived under the bastion of Ayudhya, “the incomparable,” as the Siamese called their foremost stronghold. The siege of the town lasted for more than three years. The Siamese resisted stubbornly, but starvation and treachery helped the Burmese to achieve their final victory in 1767. The Burmese overran the city, and destroyed it, not even sparing the sacred Buddha images in the magnificent temples, despite the fact that they were of the same religion as their enemies. The Siamese, however, did not give up the fight. The army which flew before the Burmese assembled once more, under the leadership of Phyra Chao Tak Sin, a Siamese of Chinese origin, who proclaimed himself King of Siam, and then, with his united armies, drove out the invaders. Phyra Chao Tak Sin established his capital in Dhonburi, on the western bank of the Menam River, opposite the present Bangkok. He was a successful statesman and an able soldier, but he was seized by a religious mania which became acute, and the power of the State fell into the hands of the priests. Siam was then at war with Cambodia, and the military leaders of the country regarded with jealousy the priests’ activities. Therefore Chao Phya Chakri, one of the King’s genehals, in 1682, after a successful campaign in Cambodia, seized power, dethroned the

ruler and proclaimed himself king. When crowned, as customary, he took the name of King Phra Buddha Yod Fa Chulalok, or Rama I. He was the founder of the Chakri dynasty, and he established his capital where Bangkok now stands. THE DOUBLE KINGSHIP Rama 1., to consolidate his dynasty, established a “double Kingship,” So that if one of the rulers was killed the other could carry on. The lord of the kingdom was naturally the first king. Nevertheless, his “double,” who as a rule was the younger brother, or some very close relative of King No. 1, and his own court and ministers, and his duty was to lead the army against the enemies of Siam. The first Wang-na King, to commemorate his great victories against the Burmese, erected the Wat Janasongkram, the “Temple of Victory in War,” where even now the yellow clothed Buddhist priests murmur their prayer that danger shall pass over “the free Thai nation.” This peculiar temple in Bangkok is situated between the Menam River and the Rajadamnoon Avenue, one of the centres of the city. The window shutters are gilt on the outside. Inside there is a large table ornamented with a host of gilt figures of flying angels, set on a carved and glass-encrusted background. MODERN RECORD The founder of the Chakri dynasty was succeeded by his son, who came to the throne under the name of Rama 11. This young ruler and his successor, Rama 111., started to rebuild , the destroyed, temples, mementoes of numerous. wars and invasions. Then came Rama IV. and . a new “invasion” began. It came through the King himself, who had been a Buddhist monk for 27 years, spoke Latin and English, and was one of the best astronomers of his country. Rama IV. opened Siam 'to foreign trade, and brought the administration into line with the needs of the advancing times. Chulalongkorn, who came to the throne in 1868, followed his father’s policy. Under his rule telegraph services were erected and railways constructed. A period of comparative peace followed Siam’s history, though in 1907, through pressure, the Cambodian provinces had to be ceded, including Angkor Wat and the ruins of Nakom Thom, to France. Two years later the suzerainty, over the Malay States of Trengganu, Kelantan, Kedah and Perlis was transferred to Great Britain. King Chulalongkorn abolished the “Second King,”’ and to-day the walled enclosure of his former palace is used as the National Museum. King Chulalongkorn died in 1910. His successor was Phra Mongkut Klao, or Rama VI. In 1917 Siam declared war against Germany, and a year later a small military expedition left for Europe, but it did not take part in any actual fighting. Rama VI. died in 1925, and was succeeded by King Prajadhipok. I END OF AN ERA. In 1932 there was a further forward move in Siam, now Thailand. The “People’s Party,” then led ■ by. army and navy officers, demanded and obtained the King’s signature to a new constitution providing for a Senate, equal franchise and compulsory elementary education. In this way Thailand, last of the absolute monarchies in Asia, became a constitutional kingdom. A year later the relatives of the King, who were ousted through the bloodless and progressive revolution from their high offices and salaries, made an attempt to capture the Rayol family and the Government under the leadership of Prince Bovaradej, but the armed forces remained loyal to the monarch, and the rebellion failed. In 1936 the King abdicated, and his nephew, Ananda Mahidol, then 11 years old, was proclaimed King under a regency council. In the meantime Japanese penetration in every possible way went on. Japan encouraged Thailand in her miniature war against Indo-China with the same methods that Nazi Germany used in Europe, playing one small nation out against the other. In Bangkok Japan maintained naval, military 'and air attaches to her legation. Thailand students have been going to Japan to study for years. Nippon became the “protector” of Thailand, but each of her favours was nothing but a trap. Then finally, when Japan treacherously attacked the Democracies, Thailand, after a few hours of mock fighting, surrendered to the enemy. She is under the heel of a ruthless invader again.