MAPS OF HISTORY · HISTORY OF · Thailand

ONE LAND · 4 ATLASES

Thailand, on the map of history

What was Thailand before it was Thailand? Below, every era of this land in the Maps of History collection — who ruled it, what it was called, and when control changed — each line linked to the dated map that shows it. Modern borders stand in as an honest approximation; every atlas says so on the map itself.

Sukhothai & Lan Na (mod. Thailand) · The Mongol Empire, 1206–1294

OPEN THE MONGOL EMPIRE ON THE LIVING MAP →

Siam · The Great War, 1914–1918

OPEN WWI ON THE LIVING MAP →

Thailand · The War Room — WW2, 1936–1945

Siam bent rather than broke: allowed Japanese passage, declared war on the Allies (its ambassador in Washington refused to deliver the declaration — diplomacy’s finest technicality), and emerged treated as a victim rather than an ally of Japan.

OPEN WW2 ON THE LIVING MAP →

Thailand · The Cold War, 1945–1991

OPEN THE COLD WAR ON THE LIVING MAP →