234th Anniversary of the Royal House of Chakri and as the Capital of (5/4/2016)

The year 2016 marks the 234th anniversary of Bangkok as the capital of Thailand. The history of Bangkok as a royal capital dates back to the year 1782, when King I established Bangkok as the capital. He was also the founder of the Royal House of Chakri, of which the present monarch King Bhumibol Adulyadej is the ninth monarch.

King built the and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha complex, which is now a major landmark of Bangkok and one of the countrys important tourist attractions.

Following the destruction of Ayutthaya in 1767, moved south to Thon Buri to regroup and restore their kingdom. King Rama I at that time was appointed a field commander of King the Great of the Thon Buri Kingdom. He is recorded to have fought many military campaigns before being given the title of Chao Phraya Chakri, the equivalent of a modern Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. When he accepted the throne, the title Chakri was applied to the family line and remains the name of the Royal House.

After the death of King Taksin, Chao Phraya Chakri ascended the throne on 6 April 1782, when he was 46 years old. He started to establish Rattanakosin, or Bangkok, as the royal capital. Realizing that Thon Buri on the west bank of the would always be threatened by enemy attacks, he moved the capital from Thon Buri to Bangkok on the east side. The architecture of the new capital was modeled after that of Ayutthaya, the formal capital.

The establishment of the new capital was the starting point of the history of Bangkok. So the history of the Royal House of Chakri is, in fact, the history of the Bangkok period. Amid political changes in each period, the Royal House of Chakri has reigned over the kingdom for 234 years now.

Before 1782, Bangkok had only been a small trading community. The first Chakri King transformed it into a thriving, cosmopolitan city based on Ayutthayas example. Besides serving as Thailands capital city, the present-day Bangkok is also the center in every respect for the country, geographically and economically.

Bangkok has been on the \"World Best Cities list created by the US-based magazine Travel and Leisure for 20 years. Thai food was also one of the factors that led to readers of Travel and Leisure voting Bangkok as one of the worlds Top Overall Cities in the magazines influential Worlds Best Awards 2015.

Bangkok took sixth place on the list. As well as cuisine, destinations were judged for friendliness, shopping, and city landmarks. Bangkok was popular with readers for its street food and blend of ancient culture and modern luxury.

Currently, the city has a registered population of 5.7 million, excluding a great number of unregistered people.

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