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itary faction of the People's Party, became prime minister, a position he held from 1938
to 1944 and again from 1948 to 1957.
Phibul's regime coincided with WWII and was characterised by strong nationalistic
tendencies centring on 'nation' and 'Thai-ness'. He collaborated with the Japanese and
allowed them to use Thailand as a staging ground for its invasion of other Southeast Asi-
an nations. By siding with the Japanese, the Phibul government hoped to gain interna-
tional leverage and reclaim historical territory lost during France's expansion of Indoch-
ina. Thailand intended to declare war on the US and Britain during WWII. But Seni
Pramoj, the Thai ambassador in Washington and a member of Seri Thai (the Thai Libera-
tion Movement), refused to deliver the formal declaration of war, and thus saved Thail-
and from bearing the consequences of defeated-nation status. Phibul was forced to resign
in 1944 and was tried for war crimes.
In an effort to suppress royalist sentiments, Ananda Mahidol, the nephew of the abdic-
ated king, was crowned Rama VIII in 1935, though he was only 10 years old and spent
much of his childhood studying abroad. After returning to Thailand, he was shot dead un-
der mysterious circumstances in his bedroom in 1946. In the same year, his brother, His
Majesty Bhumibol Adulyadej (pronounced poomípon adunyádèt ) was appointed as the
ninth king of the Chakri dynasty, going on to become the longest-reigning king in Thai
history, as well as the world's longest-reigning, living monarch.
For a brief period after the war, democracy flourished: full elections for the National
People Assembly were held, and the 1946 Constitution sought to reduce the role of the
military and provide more democratic rights. It lasted until the death of King Ananda, the
pretext the military used to return to power with Phibul at the helm.
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