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On my way back from the Nan area where I went trying to find caves and collect info on communist activities in the past, I made a stop in Phrae. I had traveled several times through Phrae on my way to other destinations and had seen the sign for the Seri Thai museum but never had taken the time to visit the place. So this time on my way back I had plenty of time to have a look at the Seri Thai Museum on the as well as at the Seri Thai Cave on Rd 4009 (Phrae Rural Road) on the way to Lampang. By the way, the Museum is located at the hotel parking area behind the Paradon Hotel (N18.14768 E100.14883 at Yantrakit Koson Road).
The Seri Thai Logo
The Seri Thai Museum. Initially there was only a statue of Khun Thong Kanthatham being the leader of the Free Thai movement in Phrae. Later statues of two brothers of Thong Kanthatham (Khun Uthai and Khun Som) were added.
The Seri Thai or Free Thai Movement was established in the aftermath of the Japanese invasion of Thailand on 7/8 December 1941. On 25 January 1942 the Prime Minister of Thailand Plaek Pibulsonggram (Phibun) declared war on Britain and the United States. The Thai Ambassador to Great Brittain delivered the declaration of war but M.L. Seni Pramoj who was the Thai ambassador in Washington, refused to deliver the declaration of war to the United States government and accordingly, the United States refrained from declaring war on Thailand. Seni, a conservative aristocrat whose anti-Japanese credentials were well established, started the Free Thai Movement with American assistance by recruiting Thai students in the United States to work with the United States Office of Strategic Services (OSS). The OSS trained Thai personnel for underground activities, and by the end of the war, more than 50,000 Thai had been trained and armed to resist the Japanese. The Seri Thai movement in Thailand was active in collecting information and intelligence like the location of Japanese strategic places (bridges, power stations, factories and army bases, etc.) for the Allies. This information was then relayed by radio to the British in India and Sri Lanka.
Phibun's alliance with Japan during the early years of war was initially popular. The Thai army joined Japan's Burma Campaign with the goal of recovering part of the Shan states previously given over to Britain by the Treaty of Yandabo. They gained the return of the four northern-most Malay states lost in the Anglo-Siamese Treaty of 1909, and with Japanese mediation in the Franco–Thai war they also recovered territory lost in the Franco-Siamese War of 1893. But Japan stationed 150,000 troops on Thai soil. As the war dragged on, the Japanese increasingly dealt with Thailand as a conquered territory rather than as an ally. Though the United States had not officially declared war, on 26 December 1942, the US Air Force bombers based in India launched the first major bombing raid that damaged Bangkok and other targets and caused several thousand casualties. Public opinion and, even more important, the sympathies of the civilian political elite, moved perceptibly against Phibun's alliance with Japan. In June 1944, Phibun was forced out of his office and replaced by the first predominantly civilian government since the 1932 coup. Bombing raids continued, a B-29 raid on Bangkok destroying two key power plants on 14 April 1945 and although some bombers were shot down by the Japanese, the Seri Thai network was effective in the rescue of some of the downed allied airmen.
The new government was headed by Khuang Aphaiwong, a civilian linked politically with conservatives such as Seni. The most influential figure in the regime, however, was Pridi Phanomyong, whose anti-Japanese views were increasingly attractive to the Thai. In the last year of the war, Allied agents were tacitly given free access by Bangkok. As the war came to an end, Thailand repudiated its wartime agreements with Japan but the civilian leaders, however, were unable to achieve unity. After a falling-out with Pridi, Khuang was replaced as prime minister by the regent's nominee, Seni, who had returned to Thailand from his post as leader of the Free Thai movement in Washington. Postwar accommodations with the Allies also weakened the civilian government. As a result of the contributions made to the Allied war efforts by the Free Thai Movement, the United States, which unlike the other Allies had never officially been at war with Thailand, refrained from dealing with Thailand as an enemy country in postwar peace negotiations. Before signing a peace treaty, however, Britain demanded war reparations in the form of rice for shipment to Malaya, and France refused to permit admission of Thailand to the United Nations (UN) until Indochinese territories annexed during the war were returned.
The Seri Thai movement had several operational centers like in Bangkok, Rayong, Kanchanaburi, Phu Khieo, Petchabun, Prachinburi, Sakhon Nakhon (led by Tiang Sirikhanth, the MP for Sakhon Nakhon), Phrae, etc. The Phrae Free Thai group which had about 500 members, was established by Thong Kanthatham, at the time an MP for Phrae and who was a good friend of Dr. Pridi Banomyong (one of the founders of the Seri Thai Movement - see also Pridi Banomyong ? the father of Thai democracy for info on Dr. Pridi). The Phrae group had its head quarters in Ban Mueang Khai (north of Phrae) but they used a cave (coordinates N18.27876 E100.05785) in the mountains near Ban Paen as their radio transmission center as well as for storage of weapons, etc.
The privately owned Seri Thai Museum in Phrae was established by Khun Puchong Kanthatham, owner of the Paradon Hotel and who is a son of Thong Kanthatham. The museum is very quiet and although there are supposed to be people around to answer questions, during my visit I was the only person in the museum (admission is free).
Below are some pictures of the exhibits in the Museum. Most of the exhibits are in the form of posters so you will have to do quite a bit of reading and, as they seem to have added quite a few additional items and took out some of the furniture, some of the exhibits have become a bit cramped
Seri Thai Foot soldier keeping the hammock swinging for Master Sergeant Steven Sysko
Telepgraph operator in the cave
The Seri Thai Cave near Ban Paen
The view from the cave
Spirit house and small temple near the cave
Other Seri Thai Museums, Caves, etc.
Besides the cave in Ban Paen, there is also another Seri Thai Cave and a Statue of Tiang Sirikhanth who was the leader of the Seri Thai operations in Sakhon Nakon. The cave is located a bit west of Road 213 at these coordinates: N17.09649 E103.96985
Bangkok has its own Seri Thai Memorial Building which is located in the Seri-Thai Park (Bueng Kum Park), Seri Thai Rd. Soi 53, Bueng Kum (Open Tuesday to Friday and on Sunday from 10.00 am to 4.00 pm - http://www.sac.or.th/databases/museumdatabase/en/review_inside_image.php?id=124
Some additional information on the Seri Thai Movement
After World War II ended, a group of Seri Thai members received on 2 September 1945 the Medal of Freedom from the U.S. government. From left: Air Chief Marshall Tavee Julasup, Major General Boonmark Tesabutr, Commander Vimol Viriyavidh, Mr. Piset Pattaphongs, M.C. Yuthisatien Sawadivatana, M.L. Ekachai Kumpoo, Mr. Anond Srivardhana, Dr. Sala Tsanond, Air Marshal Sith Savetsila, Mr. Umnuay Poonpipatana, Mr. Udomsak Pasavanij, Mr. Kusa Punyarchun, Mr. Somjit Yos-sunthorn.
Sources of information on the Free Thai Movement: Free Thai Movement - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Thailand and the Japanese Presence, 1941-45", By Thamsook Numnonda https://bookshop.iseas.edu.sg/publication/1438#contents
"Free Thai. Personal Recollections and Official Documents" by Wimon Wiriyawit - Free Thai. Personal Recollections and Official Documents: Wimon Wiriyawit: 9789748496900: Amazon.com: Books
"Thailand's Secret War: OSS, SOE and the Free Thai Underground During World War II" (Cambridge Military Histories) by E. Bruce Reynolds - Amazon.com: Thailand's Secret War: OSS, SOE and the Free Thai Underground During World War II (Cambridge Military Histories) (9780521836012): E. Bruce Reynolds: Books or read/download it here: http://www.e-reading.ws/bookreader....ee_Thai,_OSS,_and_SOE_during_World_War_II.pdf
The Office of Strategic Services in Worldwar II in Thailand see page 339 - 350 of "The Secrets War" which can be downloaded here http://www.znaci.net/00001/294.pdf
For more info on the Japanese invasion and occupation of Thailand see:
Japanese invasion of Thailand - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thailand in World War II - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Seri Thai Logo
The Seri Thai Museum. Initially there was only a statue of Khun Thong Kanthatham being the leader of the Free Thai movement in Phrae. Later statues of two brothers of Thong Kanthatham (Khun Uthai and Khun Som) were added.
The Seri Thai or Free Thai Movement was established in the aftermath of the Japanese invasion of Thailand on 7/8 December 1941. On 25 January 1942 the Prime Minister of Thailand Plaek Pibulsonggram (Phibun) declared war on Britain and the United States. The Thai Ambassador to Great Brittain delivered the declaration of war but M.L. Seni Pramoj who was the Thai ambassador in Washington, refused to deliver the declaration of war to the United States government and accordingly, the United States refrained from declaring war on Thailand. Seni, a conservative aristocrat whose anti-Japanese credentials were well established, started the Free Thai Movement with American assistance by recruiting Thai students in the United States to work with the United States Office of Strategic Services (OSS). The OSS trained Thai personnel for underground activities, and by the end of the war, more than 50,000 Thai had been trained and armed to resist the Japanese. The Seri Thai movement in Thailand was active in collecting information and intelligence like the location of Japanese strategic places (bridges, power stations, factories and army bases, etc.) for the Allies. This information was then relayed by radio to the British in India and Sri Lanka.
Phibun's alliance with Japan during the early years of war was initially popular. The Thai army joined Japan's Burma Campaign with the goal of recovering part of the Shan states previously given over to Britain by the Treaty of Yandabo. They gained the return of the four northern-most Malay states lost in the Anglo-Siamese Treaty of 1909, and with Japanese mediation in the Franco–Thai war they also recovered territory lost in the Franco-Siamese War of 1893. But Japan stationed 150,000 troops on Thai soil. As the war dragged on, the Japanese increasingly dealt with Thailand as a conquered territory rather than as an ally. Though the United States had not officially declared war, on 26 December 1942, the US Air Force bombers based in India launched the first major bombing raid that damaged Bangkok and other targets and caused several thousand casualties. Public opinion and, even more important, the sympathies of the civilian political elite, moved perceptibly against Phibun's alliance with Japan. In June 1944, Phibun was forced out of his office and replaced by the first predominantly civilian government since the 1932 coup. Bombing raids continued, a B-29 raid on Bangkok destroying two key power plants on 14 April 1945 and although some bombers were shot down by the Japanese, the Seri Thai network was effective in the rescue of some of the downed allied airmen.
The new government was headed by Khuang Aphaiwong, a civilian linked politically with conservatives such as Seni. The most influential figure in the regime, however, was Pridi Phanomyong, whose anti-Japanese views were increasingly attractive to the Thai. In the last year of the war, Allied agents were tacitly given free access by Bangkok. As the war came to an end, Thailand repudiated its wartime agreements with Japan but the civilian leaders, however, were unable to achieve unity. After a falling-out with Pridi, Khuang was replaced as prime minister by the regent's nominee, Seni, who had returned to Thailand from his post as leader of the Free Thai movement in Washington. Postwar accommodations with the Allies also weakened the civilian government. As a result of the contributions made to the Allied war efforts by the Free Thai Movement, the United States, which unlike the other Allies had never officially been at war with Thailand, refrained from dealing with Thailand as an enemy country in postwar peace negotiations. Before signing a peace treaty, however, Britain demanded war reparations in the form of rice for shipment to Malaya, and France refused to permit admission of Thailand to the United Nations (UN) until Indochinese territories annexed during the war were returned.
The Seri Thai movement had several operational centers like in Bangkok, Rayong, Kanchanaburi, Phu Khieo, Petchabun, Prachinburi, Sakhon Nakhon (led by Tiang Sirikhanth, the MP for Sakhon Nakhon), Phrae, etc. The Phrae Free Thai group which had about 500 members, was established by Thong Kanthatham, at the time an MP for Phrae and who was a good friend of Dr. Pridi Banomyong (one of the founders of the Seri Thai Movement - see also Pridi Banomyong ? the father of Thai democracy for info on Dr. Pridi). The Phrae group had its head quarters in Ban Mueang Khai (north of Phrae) but they used a cave (coordinates N18.27876 E100.05785) in the mountains near Ban Paen as their radio transmission center as well as for storage of weapons, etc.
The privately owned Seri Thai Museum in Phrae was established by Khun Puchong Kanthatham, owner of the Paradon Hotel and who is a son of Thong Kanthatham. The museum is very quiet and although there are supposed to be people around to answer questions, during my visit I was the only person in the museum (admission is free).
Below are some pictures of the exhibits in the Museum. Most of the exhibits are in the form of posters so you will have to do quite a bit of reading and, as they seem to have added quite a few additional items and took out some of the furniture, some of the exhibits have become a bit cramped
Seri Thai Foot soldier keeping the hammock swinging for Master Sergeant Steven Sysko
Telepgraph operator in the cave
The Seri Thai Cave near Ban Paen
The view from the cave
Spirit house and small temple near the cave
Other Seri Thai Museums, Caves, etc.
Besides the cave in Ban Paen, there is also another Seri Thai Cave and a Statue of Tiang Sirikhanth who was the leader of the Seri Thai operations in Sakhon Nakon. The cave is located a bit west of Road 213 at these coordinates: N17.09649 E103.96985
Bangkok has its own Seri Thai Memorial Building which is located in the Seri-Thai Park (Bueng Kum Park), Seri Thai Rd. Soi 53, Bueng Kum (Open Tuesday to Friday and on Sunday from 10.00 am to 4.00 pm - http://www.sac.or.th/databases/museumdatabase/en/review_inside_image.php?id=124
Some additional information on the Seri Thai Movement
After World War II ended, a group of Seri Thai members received on 2 September 1945 the Medal of Freedom from the U.S. government. From left: Air Chief Marshall Tavee Julasup, Major General Boonmark Tesabutr, Commander Vimol Viriyavidh, Mr. Piset Pattaphongs, M.C. Yuthisatien Sawadivatana, M.L. Ekachai Kumpoo, Mr. Anond Srivardhana, Dr. Sala Tsanond, Air Marshal Sith Savetsila, Mr. Umnuay Poonpipatana, Mr. Udomsak Pasavanij, Mr. Kusa Punyarchun, Mr. Somjit Yos-sunthorn.
Sources of information on the Free Thai Movement: Free Thai Movement - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Thailand and the Japanese Presence, 1941-45", By Thamsook Numnonda https://bookshop.iseas.edu.sg/publication/1438#contents
"Free Thai. Personal Recollections and Official Documents" by Wimon Wiriyawit - Free Thai. Personal Recollections and Official Documents: Wimon Wiriyawit: 9789748496900: Amazon.com: Books
"Thailand's Secret War: OSS, SOE and the Free Thai Underground During World War II" (Cambridge Military Histories) by E. Bruce Reynolds - Amazon.com: Thailand's Secret War: OSS, SOE and the Free Thai Underground During World War II (Cambridge Military Histories) (9780521836012): E. Bruce Reynolds: Books or read/download it here: http://www.e-reading.ws/bookreader....ee_Thai,_OSS,_and_SOE_during_World_War_II.pdf
The Office of Strategic Services in Worldwar II in Thailand see page 339 - 350 of "The Secrets War" which can be downloaded here http://www.znaci.net/00001/294.pdf
For more info on the Japanese invasion and occupation of Thailand see:
Japanese invasion of Thailand - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thailand in World War II - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
