Since re-imagining this Substack from being about the Geography Is Everything podcast to just being stuff I want to write about, I’ve been trying to figure out what to write about on a consistent basis. And while I’m sure this will evolve and change over time, one thing I’ve recently become very interested in is countries that were never formally colonized. This, of course, doesn’t mean they weren’t invaded or occupied at various times, but there is a distinct difference when we talk about colonization which broadly refers to countries that didn’t experience colonization at the hands of a European country during the period when the entire world was being colonized by them.
So with that, let’s start with the first country as part of this series: Thailand — of which you’ll find out there are a very finite amount of uncolonized countries. I recently became interested in Thailand because I have a whole video coming out next week all about how Thailand’s fortunes today contrast sharply with that of its neighbor Myanmar, which is currently embroiled in a horrifying civil war. And while I talk about it in the video, a large part of this difference can be traced back to the fact that Thailand wasn’t ever colonized and therefore not exploited in the same way as much of the rest of the world. So how did they manage to stay uncolonized when Myanmar was colonized by the British and Vietnam by the French? Some very shrewd maneuvering as it turns out! But let’s set the context of the region first!
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The gobbling up of Southeast Asia
During the 1800s, having colonized and subsequently largely lost the Americas, European powers were aggressively expanding their empires into Africa, Asia and Oceania. The wealth gained from the Americas was gone, and therefore these countries needed new places to extract resources, develop strategic territories, and open new markets. Myanmar was conquered by the British after a series of wars from 1824 to 1885, becoming a province of British India. Meanwhile, France established control over Vietnam through a series of conflicts and treaties between 1858 and 1887, incorporating it into French Indochina. French Indochina would also include the modern day countries of Laos and Cambodia.
Thailand, positioned in between the British territories to the west and French colonies to the east, was in a precarious situation. The British were interested in controlling the trade routes through Burma and the French sought to expand their influence in the region. Thailand’s survival as an independent state hinged on its ability to navigate this very complex and hostile geopolitical environment. But being in between these two competing European powers would actually prove to be their saving grace.
The power of the “buffer”
Thailand’s leaders, particularly King Mongkut (Rama IV) and his son King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), were very smart people. They recognized that the key to avoiding colonization was to play the British and French against each other while modernizing the country as fast as possible to present it as a “civilized,” sovereign country in the eyes of the European powers. During this time, of course, many Europeans believed that they were doing the civilizing and so if a country already looked and felt that way, there was less of an impetus to try and do it themselves.
King Mongkut, who reigned from 1851 to 1868, initiated the process of modernization by opening Siam to Western influence, signing treaties with European countries, and employing Western advisors. These moves were intended to demonstrate that Siam was capable of self-governance and didn’t need to be colonized. Mongkut’s diplomacy was successful in convincing the British and French that an independent Siam could serve as a buffer state between their respective colonies. Buffer states were all the rage back then as colonizers never wanted to be too close to each other.
King Chulalongkorn, who ruled from 1868 to 1910, continued his father’s policies with even greater vigor. He traveled to Europe, met with foreign leaders, and implemented reforms that modernized the Siamese military, legal system, and economy. By presenting Siam as a modern, progressive state, Chulalongkorn further solidified its position as a buffer state. The British and French, recognizing that an independent Siam served their mutual interests by preventing either from gaining dominance in the region, and ultimately agreed to respect its sovereignty.
They weren’t immune to colonization though
While Siam maintained its independence, it wasn’t without making significant territorial concessions. To appease the French and British and avoid outright colonization, Siam ceded territories to both powers. In 1893, after a confrontation with the French, Siam was forced to relinquish control of Laos to France. Later, in 1909, Siam ceded four Malay states to the British. These concessions were strategically calculated to ensure the survival of the core Siamese state.
These territorial losses, though painful, were a price Siam’s leaders had to pay to retain their independence. Unlike in Myanmar and Vietnam, where local resistance was met with overwhelming military force, Thailand’s leaders chose a path of compromise and diplomacy, ensuring that their nation remained free from direct colonial rule. Because, let’s be honest, during this period of time in the world, Siam would not have been able to stand up to the might of the British or French militaries.
And that’s broadly how Thailand — then Siam — managed to remain independent. Setting itself up as a buffer state and strategically conceding territories ended up working out very well for the country in this regard. But it’s also worth pointing out that there was a bit of luck involved as well. Had Britain or France decided they wanted Siam instead of either Myanmar or Vietnam respectively, they likely would have falled to colonization. In a way, the Burmese, Vietnamese, Laotians, and Cambodians all paid the price for Thailand’s independence.
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Thais are free to choose their own path, free to choose their future- meaning endless opportunity to improve. meanwhile Thailand s neighbors did not have that choice to choose their own path. The only path colonized nations could choose was the one benefitting the colonizers the most, not to the people living there.
Loved the article and the quick historical overview. It couldn't have come at a better time, I just came back from work travels to Thailand. This article helps understand why the citizens have deified their rulers. And the legacy of the dynasty continues, and is evident on the billboards, the naming of streets and localities, and the ambitious infrastructure projects.