The Republic of Thailand, formerly known as Siam, is a country at the center of the Southeast Asia's Indochinese peninsula. The nation was a member of the Axis during the Second World War and is now currently an independent member of the Co-Prosperity Sphere. The country is bordered to the north by Yunnan, to the south by the Military Governorate of Shonan-Marai, to the north-west by the Union of Burma; and the east by the Kingdom of Kampuchea and the Kingdom of Laos.
History
Thailand has largely prospered under the rule of its beloved Chomphon Por Plaek Phibunsongkhram. He was an early adherent to the new fascist ideologies on the rise in Europe during the 30s.
Acceding to power in 1938, he modeled his government and reforms explicitly on the changes Mussolini had made to Italy. He modernized and westernized areas of Thai life as wide-ranging as clothes, film, and eating utensils; but the most effort was expended on creating a national state as respected and all-pervasive as Italy or Germany are. True to his title, Plaek took full advantage of the miraculous fascist victories in Europe by launching several campaigns into surrounding French and British territory, while the Japanese were still largely tied down on the Burmese and Chinese fronts.
However, Plaek's manic dreams of dominion over the entire peninsula were quickly dashed when the Japanese quickly moved to occupy any remaining western colonial holdings following the end of the war. Towards the end of the decade, matters grew worse when severe flooding of the Chao Phraya river left almost a million dead and the nations infrastructure in tatters. The Japanese Zaibatsus pounced and aggressively secured extremely favorable trade deals. This devastated Bangkok’s industry and threw Thailand into chaos as it became a resource-based economy virtually overnight. After a decade of increasing economic inequality and stagnant industry, opposition to Plaek is on the rise. The outlawed Democrat Party organizes openly, demonstrating the government's increasing impotence. And Plaek is aging; his subordinates have already begun jostling for succession. With the world gearing up for another war, perhaps there’s room for an old Chomphon Por to ride into battle one more time...
