ABSTRACT
Thailand distinguished itself from other Southeast Asian states in the nineteenth century as the only kingdom that survived the aggressive thrust of the New Imperialism. The kingdom was divided into eighteen zones, each under a high commissioner responsible to the Ministry of the Interior. In 1892 Prince Damrong, who was educated in England and had familiarized himself with the British administration in Myanmar, took charge of the Ministry of the Interior and assumed direct responsibility for provincial administration. The major field of reform was the administration, which was gradually but completely overhauled. The range of reforms undertaken by the young king was very impressive and embraced many aspects of human activity. Mongkut's reforms, important as they were, only scratched the surface of a society bound by tradition and obscurantism. Germans were employed to advise on postal service and railway administrations, and the French were used in the Department of Justice.