Multimedia

In 1856, just months after Britain and Siam had finalized the historic Bowring trade treaty that would prevent the country’s colonization, the violent death of a Siamese official at the new British consulate threatened to scuttle the deal and lead to war. This lecture will explore the UK and Thai archives to reveal the twists, turns, and tensions of this little-known episode that pitted Thailand’s renowned King Mongkut, Rama IV, against the first British consul, Charles Hillier. The crisis was resolved without war, but now without cost for the participants who suffered unintended tragic outcomes. This lecture will also reveal how this incident has continued to shape official Thai attitudes towards foreigner ownership of land up to today.