Kingdom of Thailand

The Kingdom of Thailand is a constitutional monarchy in the Greater Indochina region. It's a Constitutional monarchy established after the "Revolution" of 1946

## Palace Coups

In the leading up to the resume of the Indian War, reformist politics began to take hold in the country and demand a constitutional monarchy in the vein of other European countries and Japan, and Rama VII after his ascendance to the thrones were sympathetic to the modernising cause, however strong reaction came from the princes and old elites that now took over his court, a curious situation that happened due to the less absolutist nature of Rama VII, and the project never came to fruition, although many reforms did eventually happen, nothing fundamentally changed as the new commoner elites (educated bureaucrats and young military officers) have hoped. With the Indian War resumed and the new power in Calcutta invaded Burma on the ground of supporting its local revolutionaries. Siam fearing a hostile power on its border and with the backing of Germany entered the war in 1941 just briefly prior to the entry of Russia into the war in Europe. The prolonged war with the Indian dragged on until the German Empire collapsed in Europe and soon followed in East Asia, with the Republic restored in Beijing and the Indochinese Revolution later in 1946. Siam found itself on an unwinnable war that has dragged on too long for comfort and if the Indian Army, now triumphant over its southern enemies turn its full might on Siam, the country would be lost. Thus this was the pretext of the 1946 Revolution in which the nationalist young officers of the military, led by Brigadier General Plaek Phibunsongkhram and Major-General Luang Wichitwathakan overthrew the government of Prince Boworadet and pulled Siamese troops out of Burma and forced the young Rama VIII to establish a permanent Consitution.

### Japanese Factor

The briefly independent Cambodian Kingdom launched a futile and badly coordinated war with its poorly equipped troops that they seized from the German colonial forces to reclaim their Khmer majority land that the Siamese have taken after the First Great War. These efforts were meant to rally popular and nationalist support to the monarchy to stern the tide of the Vietnamese-backed nationalist movement that is spreading into Cambodia in the Indochinese Revolution. However, the catastrophe caused by the failed invasion of Siam led the Monarchy in an even worse position and led to the Glorious First of April coup and the establishment of a republic. During this crisis, however, the Japanese have landed in Malaya and Vietnam and they soon arrived in Siam. Originally the government led by the Triumvirate of Phinun, Witchit and Seriroengrit conceded to the arriving Japanese and soon they were welcomed. However, the Japanese began to interfere in Siamese politics, which they were convinced that Phibun and his allies in the civilian commoners that came to power in 1946 are unreliable and might be too sympathetic to normalisation with India and Serioengrit has no political opinions but were also against the resume of war on the ground of the war toil on the economy and the army. It was in this atmosphere that Japan found their greatest ally in the ultranationalist and Japanese friendly General Witchit to launch the 1947 Coup to oust both of his colleagues from power and pursuit an ardent irredentist and uncompromising stance toward Red imperialism of India.