Phuket certainly was part of the Shivite Empire of the First Millennium, which was based in the Malay Peninsula, and later was noted as the 11th of 12 cities that made up the powerful Srivichai Kingdom based in Java. During this time it was known by its emblem - the dog. Siamese control of the area started during the Sukothai Period in the 13th century. Despite being more than 1000kms away, it was noted for being economically important due to its natural reserves of ivory, gems, natural pearls, hides, spices, firewood, caulk for ship hulls, some found locally but much of it arriving by sea traders from India, Burma, Java and beyond. Tin was the first really valuable commodity to bring fortune to the island and in the 16th century the Dutch East India Company set up a trading post in Phuket to capitalise on this mining. While the northern and eastern areas of the island remained in Siamese hands, the western and southern regions were administered by the Dutch. With its legacy of sea-merchants, Phuket soon attracted other nations. The French began arriving in numbers and a missionary named Brother Renee Charbonneau, was appointed governor of in 1681. Phuket’s history soon became entangled with the events of the time as the mighty Siamese Kingdom of Ayutthaya fell to the Burmese in 1767. The Siamese soon regrouped and expelled them, moving the capital to Bangkok, but the Burmese tried to launch one last raid by sea against Phuket, intending to capture as many people as possible and carry them off to slavery. While at sea Captain Light discovered the Burmese fleet and sent word of the attack to Phuket. Kunying Jan, wife of the recently deceased governor, and her sister Mook rallied the population of the island and led the defense against the invaders, defeating them after a month long siege. Today they are known as the Heroines and are commemorated by a monument located on Thep Kassattri road. In 1876 a group of them went on a bloody rampage of theft and murder in protest of poor wages. Locals were forced to take refuge in Wat Chalong until the miners were persuaded to calm down. The two monks responsible are much revered to this day for their actions and statues of them can be seen at the temple. By the early 20th century Phuket had become an important administrative centre for the area, under control from Bangkok. It was responsible for control of Phang Nga, Krabi, Ranong, Trang, Satun and Takua-Pah. In 1932 Thailand replaced Siam as the name of a new constitutional monarchy and Phuket became one of the initial provinces. Since the island had hosted foreigners for centuries the infra-structure for tourism rapidly grew into what it is today - boasting Thailand’s most sophisticated resources for vacationers. However, with this came an unwelcome side, with outsider land speculators and thoughtless developers turning parts of the island into crowded and over-developed centres, destroying the local rubber and fruit industries in some parts and causing an influx of migrant workers. Despite this, it retains some of its traditional character. Phuket town still has an atmosphere of old Chinese trading families go about their business in time-honoured fashion, and the island continues to support a fishing industry seemingly oblivious to the tourists around them. Even the curious Moken sea gypsies continue life in a subsistence and timeless manner. On December the 26th 2004 Phuket found itself at the centre of a media frenzy after the tsunami struck, killing more than 25,000 people in the region and devastating the west facing resort areas such as Patong, Kamala, Kata and Karon. It was a tragic event and an enormous setback for the island, but fortunately much of the area has largely recovered. | 
