Phuket Heroine's Monument

Phuket Legends

Heroines Monument at the traffic roundabout on Thepkasattri Road in Thalang is no doubt one of the top landmarks on the island.

The inspiring story of how the brave Lady Chan and Lady Mook who led the locals, of whom many were women, to fight against Burmese intruders and won a battle more than 2 centuries ago, still has a strong impact on the psyche of local islanders. In fact for many Thais, the story is in the same vein as the tale of Joan of Arc.

The sisters Chan and Mook were born into the head of Baan Kien Village family. Chan married and became a widow twice. The second time was when she was around 45-50 years old. Her husband, who was the governor of Thalang Town, died from a long illness. This happened just before the Burmese troops invaded. At the onset of the invasion, instead of running away, she and Mook decided to gather the people together and fight back. The rest of the story has become a legend.

There is documentation that shows how Lady Chan lived a full life after the war. She helped locals build up their lives again through tin trading amongst many other things, which was an amazing and unusual role for Thai women back then, when they were only expected to tend to the house and bring up the children.