Thailand has almost everything to offer the tourist. For travelers who are interested in history, Thailand has a lot of destinations for them to visit. These include the following four provinces that are considered to be the most historical among the 76 provinces of the Kingdom.
Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya
The Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province is named after its most popular city, the city of Ayutthaya. Ayutthaya’s most prominent historical role was being a capital of Thailand, back when it called Siam, from 1351. This was during a period when Thailand was ruled by the Khmer Capital in Burma, forces of which the Ayutthaya challenged and expelled all the way back to Angkor Wat in 1431.
Ayutthaya, which is based on the name of an Indian city called Ayodhya, assimilated all other Kingdoms in Thailand under one flag.
At present, the ruins of the once magnificent city of Ayutthaya are preserved in order to give visitors a look at one facet of Thailand’s history. The ruins were also declared as a UNESCO Heritage Site in 1991.
Chiang Mai
Another province that was historically important during the days when Thailand was not a unified state, the Chiang Mai province was the seat of power for the Lanna Kingdom in 1296. The Lanna’s rivals were the Sukhothai, which were also established in their own region at the same century.
In addition to its capital city, Chiang Mai is popular for hosting a very significant population of Hill tribes. These tribes include the Akha, the Hmong, the Lahu, and the Lisu, all from Southern China. Other tributes are the Akha, the Karen, the Tai Lue, the Tai Yai and the Yao.
Chiang Mai was absorbed and became a tributary of the more powerful Ayutthaya Kingdom in 1599.
Sukhothai Province
The Sukhothai Province plays host to the eponymous city, which was once the capital of the Kingdom bearing the same name. The city of Sukhothai was considered as the first town or city established as independent of the Khmer Empire, after Thai forces defeated and pushed it back to Burma.
In addition to the ruins of the old city, one of the features that set Sukhothai apart is the survival of the classic language of the province. Sukhothai was also the first to use the alphabet that remains in use today in modern Thailand, with little to no changes done to the syllabary.
Nakhon Pathom
Nakhon Pathom is one of the oldest provinces in Thailand. Long before the immigrants from China came to the Kingdom and establish their kingdoms, the Dvaravati had already settled along the coasts of the Chao Prhaya River.
The province is known for the Phra Pathom Chedi, a restored version of the building first established by the Dvaravati settlers. The construction of the surviving version of the Chedi was initiated by King Rama IV, and completed by King Rama V in 1870.
Because of the Dvaravati, Nakhon Pathom City is considered as the birth place of Buddhism in Thailand.
If you’re looking to explore a bit of the Kingdom’s history, these four provinces should be the best places to start.
