A brief history of Koh Chang
Koh Chang lies in Trat province. The province was previously known as Baan Bang Pra. The name Trat comes apparently from a corruption of the word Krat, which is a type of tree, used for making brooms, that grows in the area. Since the province lies by the often disputed border with Cambodia it has seen plenty of historic activity.
During the French colonial expansion into Southeast Asia they occupied parts of Thailand extending through Trat to Chantaburi province. Thailand reluctantly ceded Trat to the French in 1904 as a concession in an agreement that saw the return of Chantaburi. However Thailand’s king Rama V negotiated an exchange with the French on March 23rd, 1906, whereby Trat was reclaimed by Thailand in exchange for the provinces of Sri Sophon, Pratobong and Siem Reap. Every year the day is celebrated locally as Trat’s Independence day.
The tense relationship between Thailand and colonial France continued. In 1941, during the second world war, with France under German occupation and the Vichy regime Thailand saw an opportunity to reclaim territories that had been historically part of the Siam empire from French occupation in the modern day Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Thai ground forces took Laos from France with relative ease but encountered stronger resistance in Cambodia. A French counter-attack on the Thai held villages of Yang Dang Khum and Phum Preav was the fiercest land battle of the war. The French were swept away and forced to retreat. In an effort to regain an advantage after their heavy losses on land the French deployed naval forces in the Gulf of Thailand. On January 17th, 1941, French forces encountered two Thai torpedo boats and a coastal defence vessel off the south coast of Koh Chang at dawn. The resulting exchange, known as the Koh Chang Naval Battle, resulted in the sinking of the three Thai ships and the loss of 36 Thai lives. The fierceness of the Thai resistance was acknowledged by the French, whose forces subsequently withdrew.
Shortly after this battle, on January 28th, a peace treaty, brokered by Japan, was signed between the rival sides in Tokyo. The French were reluctantly forced to give Thailand control of the disputed territories. So for the first time Thailand succeeded in gaining concessions from a European power.
But what of Koh Chang island itself? Until very recently it was sparsely populated. Even today the population is only around 10,000. The inhabitants, unusually for an island, were mainly farmers rather than fishermen, living on rubber-tapping and coconut harvesting. Since the island is part of a border archipelago it is not surprising that there are whispers and rumours of a secret smuggling and pirate past. There isn’t much in the way of hard evidence though.
In terms of tourism it was perhaps the proximity to war-torn Cambodia that spared Koh Chang from the helter-skelter development of the 70’s and 80’s in Samui, Phuket and Pattaya. Twenty years ago Koh Chang was the destination only for a very few backpackers who took to it for its lack of development and rustic charm. As is often the case these early travellers told everyone that they knew about this hidden gem and the inexorable path towards tourist development began. Visitor arrivals steadily increased and infrastructure improved accordingly. Recent rapid developments occurred largely due to the previous Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra declaring Koh Chang a special area for the development of tourism.
Koh Chang Statistics
| Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Province: | Trat |
| Area: | 154.8 km² |
| Inhabitants: | 5,356 (2005) |
| Pop. density: | 34.6 inh./km² |
| Geocode: | 2307 |
| Postal code: | 23170 |
| Area Map | |
 (Link from Wikkipedia) |
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Ko Chang (Thai: เกาะช้าง) is the second-largest island of Thailand, located on the Thai east coast near the border with Cambodia in the Gulf of Thailand. It is a mountainous island with several waterfalls. The island is part of the Mu Ko Chang Marine National Park.
During World War II, Ko Chang was the scene of a naval battle between the Royal Thai Navy and a Vichy France squadron. Two Thai navy vessels were sunk in the encounter.
Until the mid-1980s the infrastructure on the island was undeveloped, but tourism has increased significantly since then.
Geography
The island is about 30 km long and almost 14 km wide only 217 km², The national marine park is have a total area of 650 km² and 70 % is marine. The interior of the island is mountainous and covered with tropical rain forest. The highest elevation is Khao Salak Phet, which is 743 m above sea level. Around the coast of the island are several sandy beaches, most of which have many resorts and hotels nearby.
It is located at 12°03′12″N, 102°21′0″E
Administration
The island forms a sub-district in the province of Trat. The district was formed in 1994, when it was split off from Laem Ngop district. The district is subdivided into two communes (tambon), which are further subdivided into 9 villages (muban). There are no municipal (thesaban) areas, and 2 Tambon administrative organizations.
| Nr. | Name | Thai name | Villages | Inhabitants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Ko Chang | เกาะช้าง | 4 | 3010 |
| 2. | Ko Chang Tai | เกาะช้างใต้ | 5 | 2346 |
National Park
In 1982 the island together with 46 surrounding small islands was protected as the Mu Ko Chang Marine National Park. About 85% of the island is part of the national park, mostly the rain forest in the interior of the island. Nearby coral reefs are also contained within the National Park. Notable animals in the park include the stump-tailed Macaque, the small Indian Civet, the Javan Mongoose, and 61 resident bird species. The Koh Chang Wart Frog (Limnonectes kohchangae) was originally thought to be an endemic species, but has now been found on the mainland as well.
