The Kingdom of Sedang was created by French explorer Charles-Marie David de Mayréna in 1888. Mayréna was a former French government official who was involved in various dubious affairs including arms deals and embezzlement. He owned a plantation in French Indo-China and when the King of Siam began to claim land around the French territory, he took advantage and convinced the local tribesmen to form a small kingdom under his rule. He then offered various governments trading rights to the Kingdom but to no avail. The Kingdom perished when Mayréna died under mysterious circumstances in 1890.