Thailand history

Long before Thailand existed, hunter-gatherers roamed the land, crafting tools from wood, bamboo, and stone. By 10,000 years ago, they’d settled into farming, raising animals and cultivating rice and beans — traces of which still turn up in northern caves.

With agriculture came innovation. Thai pottery dates back to 6800 BC, and by 2000 BC, the Ban Chiang people were working bronze, making them some of the world’s earliest metallurgists.

By 2,000 years ago, Southeast Asia was a network of small villages trading and interacting. The ancestors of today’s Thais still lived in southern China, while Thailand itself was home to Austroasiatic speakers. Among them, the Mon established Dvaravati, the region’s first major civilization, laying the groundwork for Thai culture.

Dvaravati and Srivijaya (6th-13th century)

The history of Dvaravati is hazy at best, but it refers to a Mon-speaking, Theravāda Buddhist culture rather than a single kingdom. Buddhism may have arrived in Thailand as early as the 3rd century BC, when the Indian emperor Ashoka supposedly sent missionaries to Suvarnabhumi — the “Land of Gold,” likely somewhere in mainland Southeast Asia.

Between the 6th and 9th centuries AD, Dvaravati flourished as a network of Buddhist city-states rather than a centralized empire. Monastery boundary stones (bai sema), votive tablets, and Indian-influenced sculptures suggest a thriving civilization. Key Dvaravati sites — Nakhon Pathom, Lopburi, Si Thep, and Muang Sema — prospered through trade with India via the Three Pagodas Pass. But politically, these city-states were weak. By the 9th century, the Khmers had taken control, though Haripunjaya (Lamphun) remained independent until the 13th century.

To the south, Lankasuka, an Indianized kingdom, emerged in the 2nd century, centered on Ligor (Nakhon Si Thammarat). By the 8th century, it fell under Srivijaya, a powerful Mahāyāna Buddhist city-state based in Sumatra, which thrived on maritime trade between Persia and China. Srivijaya’s influence stretched as far as Chaiya, Thailand, where temple ruins and stunning bronze statues still testify to its cultural reach.

In the 10th century, Lankasuka’s northern region, now called Tambralinga, briefly regained independence but remained under Srivijaya’s influence. By the early 11th century, the Khmer Empire had taken control of peninsular Thailand, installing a Cambodian prince in Tambralinga — just one sign of the growing power struggle that would shape the region’s history.

The Khmers (6th-15th century)

The Khmers, empire-builders of central Southeast Asia, left behind a rich political history inscribed in stone. In the late 6th century, the Khmers of Chenla (north of Cambodia) seized power but suffered setbacks from a Srivijayan military campaign in the 8th century. Their fortunes changed under Jayavarman II (r. 802–850), who unified Kambuja (modern Cambodia) and declared himself devaraja (god-king), a concept later adopted by Thai rulers. Combining Hinduism, ancestor worship, and growing Mahāyāna Buddhist influences, he laid the foundation of the Khmer Empire.

Jayavarman II also moved the capital to Angkor, where later kings — especially after the 11th century — built monumental temples and developed a sophisticated irrigation system (baray) to sustain a massive population. By the 10th century, Angkor dominated Southeast Asia, controlling trade routes and expanding into Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and the Malay Peninsula. Khmer temples, such as Prasat Phanom Rung and Prasat Hin Phimai, still stand in Thailand today.

The empire peaked under Jayavarman VII (r. 1181–1219), a Mahāyāna Buddhist ruler who saw himself as a bodhisattva. He oversaw vast temple construction, but his ambitious projects — along with costly wars — drained resources. Maintaining 20,000 shrines and 300,000 temple workers required 38,000 tonnes of rice annually, pushing the economy to its limits.

After his reign, Angkor’s irrigation system fell into neglect, turning farmland into malarial swamps. Meanwhile, Theravāda Buddhism, with its less hierarchical structure, weakened the divine authority of Khmer kings. By the 13th to 15th centuries, the empire crumbled under pressure from the rising Thai kingdoms. In 1431, the Thais sacked Angkor, marking the end of Khmer dominance, though their architectural and cultural legacy still endures.

The earliest Thais (5th-12th century)

The first traceable history of the Thai people places them in southern China around the 5th century AD. As Chinese and Vietnamese expansion pushed them south, they moved into sparsely populated northeastern Laos and neighboring areas. By the 7th century, they had settled in Chiang Saen, forming the state of Yonok. A major turning point came around the late 10th century, when Theravāda Buddhism spread to Yonok via Dvaravati, connecting the Thais to Mon civilization and uniting them within the broader Buddhist world.

Their political rise was influenced by Nan-chao, a powerful military state on China’s southern fringe, which allowed smaller Thai principalities (muang) to develop, particularly in Sipsong Panna. By the late 12th century, Thais were the dominant population in what is now Thailand, though still under Khmer rule. Khmer control centered on Lopburi, but Thai mercenaries (Syam Kuk) were already making their mark — featured prominently in Angkor Wat’s bas-reliefs as a rising force.

Sukhothai (13th-14th century)

By the mid-13th century, the Thais were on the brink of autonomy, fueled by Theravāda Buddhism and the weakening Khmer Empire. The final push came from the Mongol invasion of China and Nan-chao (1215-1250s), forcing the Thais to consolidate power.

Sukhothai’s founding in 1238 was less of a grand revolution and more a lucky power grab. Two Thai princes overthrew the Khmer outpost there, crowning Intradit as king. But for decades, Sukhothai remained a small, vulnerable state — until Intradit’s son, Rama, later known as Ramkhamhaeng (“Rama the Bold”), emerged as a formidable leader.

Ascending the throne around 1278, Ramkhamhaeng expanded his influence across modern-day Thailand, using diplomacy and military prowess. He formed alliances with Lanna and Phayao, extended control into Laos and Myanmar, and secured vassal states down to Nakhon Si Thammarat. He also established a tribute-based political system that lasted until the 19th century.

Sukhothai’s greatest legacy, however, lay in culture and governance. Ramkhamhaeng presented himself as a dhammaraja — a just Buddhist ruler, in contrast to the Khmer god-kings. His famous inscription describes a kingdom of fairness and prosperity, where grievances could be brought directly to the king. Under his reign, Thai religious architecture flourished, borrowing from Khmer and Sri Lankan styles but developing its own distinct creativity. Most notably, he created the Thai script, cementing the cultural identity of the Thai people.

Despite its rapid rise, Sukhothai quickly declined after Ramkhamhaeng’s death in 1299. His successors prioritized religion over politics, and by 1320, Sukhothai had shrunk back into a minor regional power.

Lanna (13th-16th century)

Around the same time as Sukhothai’s rise, another Thai kingdom was forming in the north: Lanna. Its founder, Mengrai, was the chief of Ngon Yang (near modern Chiang Saen). In 1259, he began unifying the region’s fragmented Thai principalities, first by establishing Chiang Rai in 1262, then forging alliances with Phayao’s King Ngam Muang and Sukhothai’s Ramkhamhaeng.

By 1281, after a decade of careful planning, Mengrai conquered the Mon kingdom of Haripunjaya (Lamphun), cementing his rule over northern Thailand. In 1292, with advice from his allies, he founded Chiang Mai, which remains the cultural heart of the north. He strengthened ties with Burma and Laos and managed to keep the Mongols at bay, though from 1312 he paid them small tributes. By the time Mengrai died in 1317 — reportedly struck by lightning — he had built a powerful but politically fragile kingdom.

Lanna regained strength under King Ku Na (r. 1355–1385), who invited the monk Sumana from Sukhothai to establish a Sri Lankan Buddhist sect in 1369. This not only unified the kingdom but also inspired a distinctive artistic tradition. Buddhism’s influence deepened under Tilok (r. 1441–1487), who commissioned temples, cast bronze Buddhas, and spent much of his reign battling Ayutthaya, now the dominant Thai power.

By the mid-16th century, Lanna was in steep decline. In 1546, the Lao king Setthathirat briefly ruled Chiang Mai but soon abandoned it — taking the sacred Emerald Buddha to Luang Prabang. In 1558, the Burmese conquered Lanna, ending the Mengrai dynasty. For the next two centuries, Lanna fell under Burmese control, reduced once again to a fragmented patchwork of rival city-states.

Ayutthaya (14th-18th century)

As Lanna struggled for survival, a more powerful Thai kingdom was emerging to the south. In 1351, U Thong, a ruler from Lopburi, founded Ayutthaya on a strategically placed island in the Chao Phraya River. Crowned as Ramathibodi, he unified the lower Chao Phraya valley, adopting Khmer-style governance. The king was a devaraja — sacred, distant, and unapproachable. Society became rigidly hierarchical, with all freemen required to work for the state half the year.

Ayutthaya’s strength lay in trade. Its location made it an international port, benefiting from growing commerce between India and China. Prosperity fueled expansion: in 1438, Ayutthaya absorbed Sukhothai, and in 1444, King Boromraja II sacked Angkor, cementing Thai dominance. King Trailok (r. 1448-1488) introduced administrative reforms that reinforced social hierarchy — his Civil Hierarchy Law ranked subjects by assigned rice fields, shaping Thai society for centuries.

War and trade

By the 16th century, Ayutthaya faced mounting threats from Burma. King Chakkraphat (r. 1548-1569) fortified the city, but in 1569, the Burmese besieged and conquered Ayutthaya, installing a puppet ruler. The kingdom’s fortunes turned under King Naresuan (r. 1590–1605), who defied Burma and, in 1593, personally killed the Burmese crown prince in battle. Despite his military brilliance, Naresuan was ruthless — records claim he executed 80,000 people and forced criminals to eat their own flesh.

Under King Narai (r. 1656-1688), Ayutthaya became a major player in global trade. The Portuguese were first to establish ties in 1511, followed by Spain, Holland, and England. Narai even cultivated close relations with France, alarming his court, who feared Christian influence. After his death, Ayutthaya distanced itself from European powers.

Despite internal succession struggles, Ayutthaya thrived into the 18th century. King Borommakot (r. 1733-1758) presided over a cultural golden age, and Ayutthaya’s Buddhist prestige was so great that Sri Lanka sought Thai monks to restore its monastic orders.

The fall of Ayutthaya

Burmese ambitions reignited in the 1760s. In 1767, after a year-long siege, famine, disease, and fire weakened Ayutthaya’s defenses. The Burmese breached the walls, sacked the city, and burned it to the ground. The Thai king, Suriyamarin, reportedly fled by boat and died of starvation. Tens of thousands were taken captive, and Ayutthaya was abandoned to the jungle.

But Thai resistance didn’t end there. Just months later, a new power was rising downriver: Bangkok.

The early Bangkok empire (1767-1851)

After Ayutthaya fell in 1767, Thailand descended into chaos. The Burmese withdrew, distracted by war with China, leaving the land in disarray. Several power centers emerged, but the most important was at Chanthaburi, where Phraya Taksin, a military commander unfairly blamed for Ayutthaya’s defeat, had regrouped with 500 men. By June 1767, he controlled the eastern coast and quickly expanded his power across central Thailand.

With support from Chinese traders — his father’s community — Taksin was crowned king in December 1768 at Thonburi, opposite modern-day Bangkok. Within two years, he had reclaimed Ayutthaya’s former territories and, by the late 1770s, had surpassed his predecessors by conquering Lanna, Cambodia, and much of Laos. His military success was largely due to his brilliant general, Chao Phraya Chakri.

The fall of Taksin and rise of Rama I

By 1779, Taksin had become increasingly paranoid, imprisoning his family and demanding the monkhood worship him as a god. His erratic behavior led to a coup in 1782, with Chakri seizing power. Taksin was executed — or, according to legend, secretly exiled to Nakhon Si Thammarat.

Chakri, now Rama I (r. 1782–1809), moved the capital across the river to Bangkok, better protected from Burmese attacks. He modeled it after Ayutthaya, constructing a grand palace and enshrining the Emerald Buddha, reclaimed from Laos. With Ayutthaya’s records lost, he rewrote religious, legal, and historical texts, reviving Thai culture. His greatest literary contribution was the Ramakien, a Thai adaptation of the Ramayana, solidifying the new monarchy’s divine status.

The Burmese remained a threat, launching major invasions in 1785, but were decisively repelled. Trade with China revived, and Rama I restructured governance, retaining aspects of Khmer-style devaraja rule but allowing greater power-sharing among his courtiers.

Rama II and Rama III

The peaceful accession of Rama II (r. 1809–1824) marked the establishment of the Chakri dynasty, which rules Thailand to this day. His reign was culturally rich, producing master poets like Sunthorn Phu, but politically uneventful.

His successor, Rama III (r. 1824–1851), was more conservative, discouraging literary pursuits but investing heavily in Wat Pho, transforming it into Thailand’s first public learning center. His reign saw two major military conflicts: a brutal suppression of a Lao rebellion in 1827, which led to mass forced resettlements in Isaan, and a 14-year war with Vietnam over Cambodia, which ended inconclusively.

More significantly, Western pressure mounted. Fearing British colonial expansion, Rama III reinforced Bangkok’s defenses with a massive iron chain across the Chao Phraya River. In 1826, he reluctantly signed the Burney Treaty with Britain, reducing trade taxes in exchange for political security. By the 1850s, Thailand stood on the brink of a new era — one that would demand a more flexible response to Western power, a task left to his visionary successors.

Mongkut and Chulalongkorn (1851-1910)

Mongkut: The diplomat king

Rama IV (1851–1868), better known as Mongkut (Phra Chom Klao), spent 27 years as a Buddhist monk before taking the throne. Far from secluded, he traveled widely, studied Western languages and sciences, and maintained ties with French and American missionaries. Alarmed by the state of Thai Buddhism, he founded the Thammayut sect, promoting stricter monastic discipline.

Mongkut’s biggest challenge came in 1855, when Britain’s Sir John Bowring arrived demanding trade concessions. Realizing resistance was futile, Mongkut opened Thailand to global trade, cutting taxes, allowing British land ownership, and abolishing most state monopolies. Similar treaties soon followed with France, the U.S., and others. While colonial powers carved up Southeast Asia, Thailand only lost influence over Cambodia, which became a French protectorate in 1863. Trade boomed, Bangkok modernized, but Mongkut died in 1868 before pushing deeper reforms.

Chulalongkorn: modernizing Thailand

Mongkut’s son, Chulalongkorn (Rama V, r. 1868-1910), took the throne at 15, after being educated in both Thai traditions and Western ideas — partly under Anna Leonowens, inspiration for The King and I. When he reached full power, he immediately pushed reforms: banning royal prostration, abolishing slavery (gradually from 1874), and modernizing administration.

However, his rapid changes faced fierce resistance from conservative officials, leading to the Front Palace Crisis of 1875, a near civil war. Forced to slow down, he instead focused on consolidating Thailand’s borders, placing a commissioner in Chiang Mai in 1874 to prevent British interference in Lanna’s teak trade.

By the 1880s, as old-guard officials died off, Chulalongkorn overhauled government — creating ministries for finance, justice, health, and education, appointing educated royal relatives, and hiring Western advisors. Despite this, Western pressure remained intense. The Franco-Siamese Crisis (1893) saw French gunboats reach Bangkok, forcing Thailand to cede Laos. In 1907, Cambodia was lost to France, and in 1909, three Malay states went to Britain.

By Chulalongkorn’s death in 1910, Thailand had sacrificed land but secured independence — and had the institutions needed for 20th-century modernization.

The end of absolute monarchy (1910-1935)

Vajiravudh: reform and resistance

Chulalongkorn’s son, Vajiravudh (Rama VI, r. 1910-1925), was British-educated and flamboyant but struggled to break free from his father’s powerful aristocratic appointees. In 1911, he created the Wild Tigers, a paramilitary corps aimed at building a loyalist base among civil servants. This alienated the army, and in 1912, a group of junior officers attempted Thailand’s first-ever military coup. It failed, but it marked a shift — challenges to royal power were now coming from outside the nobility.

Vajiravudh introduced compulsory primary education and promoted monogamy over polygamy. His writings encouraged Western-style modernization, and he appointed more commoners to government. However, he fiercely opposed democracy.

During World War I, Thailand joined the Allies in 1917, sending 1,300 troops to France. This strategic move helped negotiate the end of unequal treaties with Western powers (1920-1926), restoring Thai control over its own laws and trade policies.

Prajadhipok: the fall of the monarchy

Vajiravudh’s extravagant spending — eating up 10% of the state budget — left Thailand in financial crisis. With no direct heir, the throne passed to his inexperienced half-brother, Prajadhipok (Rama VII, r. 1925-1935). Facing economic turmoil, he relied on a Supreme Council of State, seen as a return to aristocratic rule.

Meanwhile, a new Western-educated elite in the civil service resented the monarchy’s grip on power. The Great Depression (1930) further worsened Thailand’s economy, setting the stage for revolution.

On June 24, 1932, military officers and bureaucrats — led by Pridi Phanomyong and Luang Phibunsongkhram — staged a coup, ending absolute monarchy overnight. Prajadhipok was reduced to a figurehead before abdicating in 1935. His 10-year-old nephew, Ananda Mahidol, was crowned king while still a schoolboy in Switzerland — marking Thailand’s transition to constitutional rule.

To the 1957 coup: : Thailand’s tumultuous transition

Military rule and rising nationalism (1932-1941)

The success of the 1932 coup owed much to army officers, who soon dominated Thai politics. Fearing British or French intervention to restore the monarchy, the Promoters introduced Western-style reforms, including press freedom and social equality, though few materialized.

A major rift soon emerged. In 1933, Pridi Phanomyong proposed a socialist economic plan — which the military denounced as communist. Forced into exile, Pridi returned the following year but was politically weakened. Meanwhile, a royalist counter-coup in October 1933 nearly sparked civil war, but was crushed by Luang Phibunsongkhram (Phibun), solidifying the military’s grip.

Phibun became prime minister in 1938, steering Thailand toward nationalism. In 1939, he renamed the country Thailand (formerly Siam) and imposed anti-Chinese policies, including discriminatory taxes on Chinese businesses.

World War II and the Japanese Occupation (1941-1945)

In 1940, with France occupied by Germany, Thailand invaded Cambodia and western Laos, reclaiming lands lost in 1893. But in December 1941, Japan invaded Thailand — coinciding with the attack on Pearl Harbor. After brief resistance, Phibun ordered a ceasefire and allied with Japan, declaring war on the U.S. and Britain in 1942.

However, Thai resistance remained active. In Washington, Seni Pramoj, Thailand’s ambassador, refused to deliver the war declaration and organized the Seri Thai resistance movement with U.S. support. In Bangkok, Pridi, serving as regent, covertly assisted Allied agents under Japanese occupation.

By 1944, Japan was losing the war, and Phibun was forced to resign. A civilian government under Khuang Aphaiwong took over, and after Japan’s surrender in 1945, Thailand was spared severe punishment, thanks to American intervention.

Postwar chaos and the 1957 coup

In Thailand’s first party-based elections (1946), Pridi became prime minister, ushering in hopes for democracy. However, this optimism was shattered when King Ananda Mahidol was mysteriously found dead in his palace on June 9, 1946. Though three palace servants were executed, suspicions lingered, and Pridi was blamed. He resigned, and in 1948, the military returned — with Phibun staging a pro-royalist, anti-communist coup.

Phibun’s second rule (1948–1957) saw brutal crackdowns on pro-Pridi coup attempts, while his regime grew increasingly dependent on the U.S. Cold War alliance. With China turning communist (1949) and France losing Indochina (1954), Thailand became a key American ally. Between 1951 and 1957, the U.S. provided $149 million in economic aid and $222 million in military aid, fueling Phibun’s dictatorship while enriching the military elite.

By 1955, facing internal rivals, Phibun embraced democracy, but his 1957 election win was blatantly rigged — sparking national outrage. That September, General Sarit Thanarat, the army chief, overthrew Phibun, launching yet another era of military rule.

To the present day: political turmoil and military rule

The rise and fall of Thaksin (2001–2006)

Billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra won the 2001 election with his Thai Rak Thai (TRT) party, capitalizing on his wealth and populist policies. He implemented farmer debt relief, village funds, and universal healthcare, earning him strong rural support. However, his increasing control over the media, courts, and police alarmed Thailand’s elites. His brutal war on drugs in 2003 left thousands dead, while violence surged in the Muslim-majority southern provinces.

Despite growing opposition, Thaksin won the 2005 election by a landslide, becoming Thailand’s most dominant elected leader. However, his family's $1.7 billion tax-free sale of Shin Corporation in 2006 sparked mass protests by the royalist People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD). In September 2006, the military ousted Thaksin in a coup while he was abroad.

The specter of Thaksin: 2006-2014

Though banned, Thaksin’s allies regrouped as the People’s Power Party (PPP) and won the 2007 election. The PAD — now known for their yellow shirts — responded with mass protests, seizing Bangkok’s airports in 2008. The courts dissolved the PPP, paving the way for Abhisit Vejjajiva and the Democrat Party to take power.

This enraged Thaksin’s supporters, now the red-shirted United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD). In 2010, UDD protests demanding new elections escalated into violent military crackdowns, killing 91 people. But Thaksin’s influence remained unshaken — his sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, won the 2011 election, becoming Thailand’s first female prime minister.

In 2013, Yingluck’s proposed amnesty for Thaksin triggered new protests led by Suthep Thaugsuban and his whistle-blowing supporters. In May 2014, the army staged its twelfth successful coup, led by General Prayut Chan-o-cha, who took power as prime minister.

The military regime and the reign of Rama X (2014-present)

Following the coup, the military’s National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) suspended democracy, censored the media, and arrested dissenters. Elections were promised but repeatedly delayed. In October 2016, King Bhumibol (Rama IX) died, ending his 70-year reign. His son, Vajiralongkorn (Rama X), took the throne in 2017, though with far less public reverence.

The 2019 election — Thailand’s first in five years — was widely seen as rigged. The junta’s Palang Pracharat Party won, with the unelected Senate appointing Prayut as prime minister. In 2020, massive youth-led protests erupted, challenging both Prayut and the monarchy, but were suppressed through arrests and harsh lèse-majesté laws.

Thailand’s political landscape in 2025

Thailand held its general election on May 14, 2023, in what was widely seen as a referendum on military-backed rule. The progressive Move Forward Party (MFP), led by Pita Limjaroenrat, emerged as the largest party, riding a wave of youth-driven support for monarchy reform, military reduction, and political freedoms. The Pheu Thai Party, linked to Thaksin Shinawatra, came second, while the military-aligned Palang Pracharat and United Thai Nation Party — which backed then-Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha — suffered heavy losses.

Despite MFP’s victory, Pita was blocked from becoming prime minister by the military-appointed Senate, which refused to back his reformist agenda. This opened the door for Pheu Thai, which struck a controversial coalition deal with pro-military parties. In August 2023, Srettha Thavisin, a real estate tycoon from Pheu Thai, was elected prime minister, while Thaksin Shinawatra returned to Thailand after 15 years in exile, serving a short prison sentence before being released on parole.