A chronology of key events:

Thai Royal navy oarsmen in acient warrior costume

1782 - Beginning of the Chakri dynasty under King Rama I, which rules to this present day. The country is known as Siam. New capital of Bangkok founded.
1868-1910 - Reign of King Chulalongkorn. Employment of Western advisers to modernise Siam's administration and commerce. Railway network developed.
1917 - Siam becomes ally of Great Britain in World War I.

1917 - Siam becomes ally of Great Britain in World War I.
1932 - Bloodless coup against absolute monarch King Prajadhipok. Constitutional monarchy introduced with parliamentary government.
1939 - Siam changes its name to Thailand ("Land of the Free").
1941 - Japanese forces land. After negotiations Thailand allows Japanese to advance towards British-controlled Malay Peninsula, Singapore and Burma.
1942 - Thailand declares war on Britain and US, but Thai ambassador in Washington refuses to deliver declaration to US government.
Post-war uncertainty
1945 - End of World War II. Thailand compelled to return territory it had seized from Laos, Cambodia and Malaya. Exiled King Ananda returns.

Bangkok, known as "Krung Thep" - City of Angels Population: 7.2 million Original settlement established by Chinese traders Became capital of Kingdom of Siam in 178

1946 - King Ananda assassinated.
1947 - Military coup by the wartime, pro-Japanese leader Phibun Songkhram. The military retain power until 1973.
1965 onwards - Thailand permits US to use bases there during the Vietnam War. Thai troops fight in South Vietnam.
Short-lived civilian rule
1973 - Student riots in Bangkok bring about the fall of the military government. Free elections are held but the resulting governments lack stability.
1976 - Military takes over again.
1978 - New constitution promulgated.
1980 - General Prem Tinsulanonda assumes power.
1983 - Prem gives up his military position and heads a civilian government. He is re-elected in 1986.
1988 - General Chatichai Choonhaven replaces Prem after elections.
1991 - Military coup, the 17th since 1932. A civilian, Anand Panyarachun, is installed as prime minister.   
                                            

Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep temple is located near northern city of Chiang

1992 - New elections in March replace Anand with General Suchinda Kraprayoon. There are demonstrations against him, forcing him to resign. Anand is re-instated temporarily. Elections in September see Chuan Leekpai, leader of the Democratic Party, chosen as prime minister.
1995 - Government collapses. Banharn Silpa-archa, of the Thai Nation party, elected prime minister.
1996 - Banharn's government resigns, accused of corruption. Chavalit Yongchaiyudh of the New Aspiration party wins elections.
Financial turmoil
1997 - Asian financial crisis: The baht falls sharply against the dollar, leading to bankruptcies and unemployment. The IMF steps in. Chuan Leekpai becomes prime minister.
1998 - Tens of thousands of migrant workers are sent back to their countries of origin. Chuan involves the opposition in his government in order to push through economic reforms.
1999 - Economy begins to pick up again. Thai media highlight high cost of drug treatments for Aids and HIV. Thailand begins to pressurise drugs companies to find ways to make the drugs cheaper.

Thousands were killed in controversial anti-drug drive

2002 - Burma closes border with Thailand again after Thai army fires shells into Burma during battle between Burmese army and ethnic Shan rebels. Border reopens in October.
Temple row
2003 - Serious diplomatic spat with Cambodia over Angkor Wat temple complex. Controversial crackdown on drugs starts; more than 2,000 suspects are killed. The government blames many killings on criminal gangs; rights groups say extra-judicial killings were encouraged by the authorities.
2004 - Martial law imposed in largely-Muslim south after more than 100 killed in a wave of attacks blamed on Islamic militants. More than 100 Islamic militants die in coordinated attacks on police bases in the south. An inquiry finds that the deaths of 85 Muslim protesters in army custody not deliberate. Thousands killed as a tsunami, triggered by a powerful undersea earthquake, devastate communities on the south-west coast, including the resort of Phuket.
                                   
               Hero for a time

Policeman-turned-tycoon Thaksin Shinawatra transformed 
Thai politics but was ousted in a military coup

Coup
2006 - Snap election, called by Thaksin amid mass rallies against him, is boycotted by the opposition and is subsequently annulled, leaving a political vacuum. The PM takes a seven-week break from politics. Military leaders stage a bloodless coup while Thaksin is at the UN General Assembly. Retired General Surayud Chulanont is appointed as interim prime minister in October.
2007 - First draft of new constitution approved by committee appointed by the military administration. Ousted PM Thaksin Shinawatra's Thai Rak Thai party is banned. Voters in a referendum approve a new, military-drafted constitution. December general elections mark the first major step towards a return to civilian rule. The People Power Party (PPP), seen as the reincarnation of Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai (Thais Love Thais) party, wins the most votes.

The Preah Vihear temple sparked a border standoff with Cambodia

2008 - An elected parliament convenes for the first time since 2006. Samak Sundaravej is sworn in as prime minister. Ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra returns from exile, but flees to Britain after failing to appear in court to face corruption charges. Cambodia and Thailand move troops to disputed land near ancient Preah Vihear temple after decision to list it as UN World Heritage Site fans nationalist sentiments on both sides.
Unrest
2008 - State of emergency in Bangkok after thousands of pro- and anti-government demonstrators clash following a week of mass protests calling for the resignation of the premier. PM Samak Sundaravej is dismissed for breach of a conflict of interest law. Somchai Wongsawat becomes PM, but anti-government protests continue. Thaksin Shinawatra is found guilty of corruption in absentia. PM Somchai Wongsawat is forced from office by a court ruling disbanding the governing People Power Party for electoral fraud and barring its leaders from politics for five years. Opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva becomes third new leader in three months.
2009 - Continuing unrest forces the cancellation of an Asean summit after anti-government protesters storm the venue. Leaders of the protest group that helped topple Thaksin Shinawatra apply to register themselves as the New Politics Party. Thousands of pro- and anti-Thaksin protestors hold regular rallies in Bangkok and elsewhere. Row with Cambodia grows over the appointment of Thaksin as an economic adviser to Phnom Penh. Up to 20,000 Thaksin supporters rally in Bangkok to demand fresh elections. Thailand deports about 4,000 ethnic Hmong back to communist-ruled Laos, deeming them to be economic migrants. The UN and US expressed concern about their possible reception in Laos.

The UN voiced concern about the fate of Hmong repatriated from Thaila

2010 - Tens of thousands of pro-Thaksin protesters - in trademark red shirts - paralyse parts of central Bangkok for two months to demand PM Abhisit's resignation and early elections; after negotiations fail, troops storm the protesters' barricades and end the demonstrations. Death toll from Thailand's worst political violence in modern history put at 91. Thailand resumes diplomatic ties with Cambodia after Phnom Penh announces Thaksin's resignation.
2011 Tensions rise as Cambodia charges two Thai citizens with spying after they were arrested for crossing the disputed border. Respective forces exchange fire across the border. Both sides agree to allow Indonesian monitors to prevent further clashes. Sister of fugitive former leader Thaksin Shinawatra, Yingluck, elected country's first female prime minister. Cambodia and Thailand agree to withdraw troops from disputed border area. Worst floods in 50 years kill hundreds, engulf outskirts of Bangkok.

Thailand's polarised politics has led to waves of mass protest

June - Anti-government yellow-shirts blockade parliament to prevent debate on proposed reconciliation bill aimed at ending six-tear-old political tensions. Group fears that a proposed amnesty would enable the return of ousted PM Thaksin Shinawatra.