Phuket’s History Summary
Colonists from
India founded Phuket Town in the 1st century B.C..
In the 3rd
century A.D a Greek geographer, Ptolemy, referred to it as “Jang Si Lang” which
then became “Junk Ceylon”, this is the name you will see on ancient maps of
Thailand or Siam.
The oldest
inhabitants of Phuket are the sea gypsies who cam to Phuket about 500 years
ago. They would settle in one bay until all the resources in the location are
finished and then move onto another bay to give nature time to recover.
In 1785 Captain
Light discovered the Burmese attack, the Burmese had been repelled a year
earlier but came back with a larger army. He quickly warned Phuket’s
authorities. Phuket’s governor had just passed away so the organization of the
defense was in the hands of his widow, Kunying Chan. She and her sister Mook
got all forces they could together and disguised local women as male soldiers,
which made Phuket’s military seem unbeatable. After a month the Burmese
surrendered and King Rama 1 awarded Kunying Chan with the royal title of “Thao
Thep Kasattri”. A memorial was built on Thepkassatri road for locals to pay
their respects to Mook and Kunying Chan.
Tin mining drew
thousands of Chinese labourers, coming from Penang, Malaysia over 100 years
ago, to the island, out to find a better life. They brought with them the
Sino-Portuguese style; they built many beautiful houses in this style
especially in Phuket Town.
Rubber plantations
are another aspect that brought Phuket’s wealth. Phuket was introduced to
rubber plantations at the start of the year; rubber plantations once covered
40% of Phuket. Many of the farmers still work their plantations like they did
50 years ago.
When tourism came
to Thailand, Phuket was one of the first provinces to embrace the industry and
soon became a hotspot around the world for its natural beauty and warm
reception. The island receives millions of visitors each year and that number
will continue to grow.
On the 26th
December 2004 Phuket was involved in one the worst natural disasters in
history. It was triggered by an undersea earthquake which had an estimated
magnitude of 9.1 to 9.3,it killed around 230,00 people in Indonesia, Sri Lanka,
India and Thailand. The west coast of Phuket was very damaged by the tsunami,
and most homes, hotels and other buildings on low grounds were badly damaged.
Areas including Khao Lak were almost completely wiped out.
