Towards the end of the 19th Century, Siam, as Thailand was then known, found itself under intense pressure from the surrounding colonial powers of Britain and France (French Indochina), as many of its territories extended far further than its borders today. It was no surprise, therefore, when, in 1893, France occupied the western part of Chantaburi Province. With Britain acting as a broker, Siam gained it back some ten years later but only at the expense of Trat Province, which it gave up in exchange. In order to get that back, in 1906-7, Siam ceded the lands around the Mekong River, areas we now know as Champasak in southern Laos and Battambang, Sisophon and Siem Reap in western Cambodia. The British, as part of their agreement in brokering the exchange, acquired several provinces in Burma previously held by Siam. Nonetheless, once the dust had settled and borders had been redrawn, Rama V was highly revered for securing the return of Trat Province and Independence Day is held each year on 23rd March, with a monument erected to him at City Hall.