History Since the late 18th century, the history of Bangkok has essentially been the his tory

of Thailand. Many of the country's defining events have unfolded here, and to day the language, culture and food of the city have come to represent those of t he entire country. This role is unlikely, given the city's origins as little more than an obscure Chinese trading port, but today boasting a population of 10 mill ion, it is certain that Bangkok will be shaping Thailand's history for some time t o come. Contents The Chakri Dynasty & the birth of Bangkok Waterways & roadways European influence & the 1932 revolution WWII & the struggle for democracy The people's constitution & the emergence of Thaksin Mistakes, missteps & stumbling blocks The bloodless coup The Chakri Dynasty & the birth of Bangkok One of Taksin's key generals, Phraya Chakri, came to power and was crowned in 1782 as Phra Yot Fa. Fearing Thonburi to be vulnerable to Burmese attack from the we st, Chakri moved the Siamese capital across the river to Baang Mkwk (Olive Plum ri verbank), named for the trees that grew there in abundance. As the first monarch of the new Chakri royal dynasty which continues to this day Phraya Chakri was p osthumously dubbed King Rama I. The first task set before the planners of the new city was to create hallowed gr ound for royal palaces and Buddhist monasteries. Astrologers divined that constr uction of the new royal palace should begin on 6 May 1782, and ceremonies consec rated Rama I's transfer to a temporary new residence a month later. Construction of permanent throne halls, residence halls and palace temples follo wed. The plan of the original buildings, their position relative to the river and the royal chapel, and the royal parade and cremation grounds to the north of the pa lace (today's Sanam Luang) exactly copied the royal compound at Ayuthaya. Master c raftsmen who had survived the sacking of Ayuthaya created the designs for severa l of the more magnificent temples and royal administrative buildings in the new capital. Upon completion of the royal district in 1785, at a three-day consecration cerem ony attended by tens of thousands of Siamese, the city was given a new name: `Krun gthep mahanakhon amonratanakosin mahintara ayuthaya mahadilok popnopparat ratcha thani burirom udomratchaniwet mahasathan amonpiman avatansathit sakkathattiya wi tsanukamprasit'. This lexical gymnastic feat translates roughly as: `Great City of A ngels, the Repository of Divine Gems, the Great Land Unconquerable, the Grand an d Prominent Realm, the Royal and Delightful Capital City full of Nine Noble Gems , the Highest Royal Dwelling and Grand Palace, the Divine Shelter and Living Pla ce of Reincarnated Spirits'. Foreign traders continued to call the capital Bang Makok, which eventually trunc ated itself to `Bangkok', the name most commonly known to the outside world. The Tha is, meanwhile, commonly use a shortened version of the name, Krung Thep (City of Angels) or, when referring to the city and burgeoning metropolitan area surroun ding it, Krung Thep Mahanakhon (Metropolis of the City of Angels). In time, Ayuthaya's control of tribute states in Laos and western Cambodia (includ ing Angkor, ruled by the Siamese from 1432 to 1859) was transferred to Bangkok, and thousands of prisoners of war were brought to the capital to work as coolie labour. Bangkok also had ample access to free Thai labour via the phri lang (commo ner/noble) system, under which all commoners were required to provide labour to the state in lieu of taxes. Using this immense pool of labour, Rama I augmented Bangkok's natural canal-and-ri ver system with hundreds of artificial waterways feeding into Thailand's hydraulic lifeline, the broad Mae Nam Chao Phraya. Chakri also ordered the construction o f 10km of city walls and khlawng rwp krung (canals around the city), to create a royal `island' Ko Ratanakosin between Mae Nam Chao Phraya and the canal loop. Sectio

ns of the 4.5m-thick walls still stand in Wat Saket and the Golden Mount, and wa ter still flows, albeit sluggishly, in the canals of the original royal district . The break with Ayuthaya was ideological as well as temporal. As Chakri shared no bloodline with earlier royalty, he garnered loyalty by modelling himself as a D hammaraja (dhamma king) supporting Buddhist law rather than a Devaraja (god king ) linked to the divine. Under the second and third reigns of the Chakri dynasty, more temples were built and the system of rivers, streams and natural canals surrounding the capital wa s augmented by the excavation of additional waterways. Waterborne traffic domina ted the city, supplemented by a meagre network of footpaths, well into the middl e of the 19th century. Temple construction remained the highlight of early development in Bangkok until the reign of Rama III (182451), when attention turned to upgrading the port for international sea trade. The city soon became a regional centre for Chinese trad ing ships, slowly surpassing even the British port at Singapore. By the mid-19th century Western naval shipping technology had eclipsed the Chine se junk fleets. Bangkok's rulers began to feel threatened as the British and Frenc h made colonial inroads into Cambodia, Laos and Burma. This prompted the suspens ion of a great iron chain across Mae Nam Chao Phraya to guard against the entry of unauthorised ships. Read more: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thailand/bangkok/history#ixzz2mQM8vKpX