Siam Becomes Thailand: A Story of Intrigue

by Judith A. Stowe

Since the end of the absolute monarchy in Siam in 1932, the country has seemed to lurch from one military coup to another despite the democratic ideals proclaimed by the men who established the first constitutional government. Just how the military came to play such a dominant role in Thai politics is the main theme of this book. But it also looks at the nebulous period during World war II when Thailand fought a little-known war against the French in Indo-China and then aligned itself with Japan, declaring war on Britain and the United States. In researching this book the author has made extensive use of official and press archives in Britain, the United States and France as well as many first-hand accounts written in Thai.

394 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

Reviews

[Shad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid academic work, if (understandably) biased toward Britain