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Thaitania: Difference between revisions
pre-SW history of Thaitania (canal, anglo-siamese alliance)
(Thaitania etymology) |
(pre-SW history of Thaitania (canal, anglo-siamese alliance)) |
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== History ==
The land which is now Thaitania (historically called Siam by foreigners) was historically ruled by multiple Thai states, including the Sukhothai Kingdom, Chiang Mai, Lan Na. However, Thaitania was most known to be historically ruled by the Ayutthaya Kingdom, which lasted since its formation in 1351 up until its dissolution in 1934 by the Siamese National Republican movement. As the Ayutthaya kingdom, Siam had fought multiple conflicts against the Khmers, the Burmese, and the Vietnamese.
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In 1849, the Burmese Empire annexed the Kingdom of Lannathai, which bordered Siam to the north. To deter further Burmese expansion into Thai territory, Siam sought an alliance with Great Britain. In 1953, Ramathibodi IV signed the Treaty of Alliance and Trade with Great Britain. In exchange, Great Britain is granted a 99-year lease on the Siamese port of Petbury. The latter half of the 19th century saw Siam's rise as a significant power in Indochina, eventually annexing the neighboring kingdom of Lan Xang in 1887.
===== Canal of Thaitania (1893) =====
The idea of a canal through the Kra Isthmus connecting the Andaman Sea to the Gulf of Thaitania was suggested as early as the 17th century. Numerous surveys had been done before the 19th century to assess the possibility of such a canal, but the idea was discarded as impractical with the technology at the time.
The idea resurfaced in the second half of the 19th century after the British took interest in the project. Such a canal would lead to ships completely bypassing the Strait of Malacca, which was dominated by their rival, the Netherlands, and would reduce the travel distance to the British holdings in China. The King of Siam allowed British engineers to survey the region, and the construction of the canal started in 1881. The Canal of Thaitania , finished in 1893, propelled Siam's status as a regional power, and diminished the strategic importance of the Strait of Malacca.
===== The Siamese Revolution (1932-1934) =====
==== National Republic of Thaitania ====
== Government and Politics ==
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