Rama II died at the age of 58. His younger son, Prince Mongkut, was heir-assumptive, but Rama II had not actually names him as his successor, so it fell to an Accession Council to determine the succession. Although Mongkut's mother was senior, the Council decided to give the throne to the son of one of Rama II's junior wives, Prince Chesda Bondindra, who ruled as Rama III, because of his greater administrative experience. Perhaps fearing for his life, Mongkut became a monk. However, Rama III chose not to designate a successor, which left the way open for Mongkut to succeed him when he died in 1851. Leaving the monkhood, Mongkut, then 47, finally became king as Rama IV, known in the Western world as the king who appointed Anna Leonowens as tutor and governess for his children.[7] There is a Memorial Park dedicated to Rama II in Bangkok, where an annual memorial fair is held in his honor. In 1968, he was declared a World Heritage Person by UNESCO.
In addition to Rama II's artistic legacy, his example of entering negotiation with the colonial powers would become Thailand's mechanism to avoid domination and loss of independence. His son, Rama III, entered the first treaty with the British in 1826, when, after the British assumed control of part of Burma, it became obvious that negotiation and diplomacy was the best way to protect Thailand from colonial domination.