| Timeline | |
|---|---|
| c 14th century | Settlement of Bangkok |
| c 1538 | Construction of river bypass canal |
| 1688 | Siege of Bangkok expels French garrison |
| 1767 | Fall of Ayutthaya; Taksin establishes Thonburi as capital |
| 1782 | Phutthayotfa Chulalok moves capital to eastern bank |
| 1820 | Cholera pandemic kills 30,000 |
| 1849 | Cholera again devastates population |
| 1864 | First paved road constructed |
| 1893 | Paknam railway opens |
| 1893 | Paknam Incident & French blockade |
| 1894 | Electric trams begin service |
| 1914 | Beginning of city water supply |
| 1924 | Don Mueang Airport opens |
| 1932 | Memorial Bridge opens |
| 1932 | Coup ends absolute monarchy |
| 1941–45 | Bombing of Bangkok in World War II |
| 1942 | City-wide flooding lasts 2 months |
| 1966 | Bangkok hosts the 5th Asian Games |
| 1968 | First high-rise building constructed |
| 1972 | Merger of Phra Nakhon and Thonburi Provinces |
| 1975 | Establishment of Bangkok Metropolitan Administration |
| 1981 | First expressway opens to service |
| 1985 | First governor election |
| 1990 | Gas truck explodes on New Petchburi Road |
| 1998 | Bangkok hosts Asian Games for the fourth time |
| 1999 | First mass-rapid transit line in Bangkok opens (BTS Sukumvit and Silom Lines) |
| 2011 | Severe floods inundate parts of city |
| 2015 | August 2015 Bangkok bombing kills 23 in Thailand's deadliest-ever single terrorist attack |
The history of Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, dates at least to the early 15th century, when it was under the rule of Ayutthaya. Due to its strategic location near the mouth of the Chao Phraya River, the town gradually increased in importance, and after the fall of Ayutthaya King Taksin established his new capital of Thonburi there, on the river's west bank. King Phutthayotfa Chulalok, who succeeded Taksin, moved the capital to the eastern bank in 1782, to which the city dates its foundation under its current Thai name, "Krung Thep Maha Nakhon". Bangkok has since undergone tremendous changes, growing rapidly, especially in the second half of the 20th century, to become the primate city of Thailand. It was the centre of Siam's modernization in the late 19th century, subjected to Allied bombing during the Second World War, and has long been the modern nation's central political stage, with numerous uprisings and coups d'état having taken place on its streets throughout the years.