Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn paid homage to his ancestors during a ceremony before his official coronation, at which he received the title of King Rama X, the 10th king of the Chakri dynasty.

In the tradition dating back to the 18th century, the Chakri kings have borne the official title of Rama, after an avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu drawn from the Indian epic, the Ramayana.

At the end of the first millennium, the Indian epic was adopted by the Thai people.

The oldest records of the early Sukhothai kingdom, dating from the 13th century, include accounts of the Ramayana.

And for traditional Thai historians, the founding of the kingdom of Sukhothai is the beginning of their nation,

The Ramayana was then adapted to Thailand to become the Ramakien.

And it was under King Rama I, known as 'the Great', that the Ramakien took its final form.

It is from the Thai national epic and many rites and symbols related to royalty come from this very ancient origin, the Ramayana.

Here are the details about the ten kings, Rama, of the Chakri dynasty:

1. Rama I – King Phra Bouddha Yodfa Chulaloke (king from 1782 to 1809)

Rama 1

Phra Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke founded the Chakri dynasty and established Bangkok as the capital of Siam.

He ruled for 27 years and is best known for repelling the last major Burmese attack against Siam, known as the Nine Armies' Wars, from 1785 to 1786.

2. Rama II - King Phra Buddha Loetla Nabhalai (King from 1809 to 1824)

Rama II

King Phra Buddha Loetla Nabhalai succeeded his father in 1809 and reigned for nearly 15 years.

His reign was more peaceful.

Art and literature flourish.

The king was a passionate composer of poetry, plays, and songs.

The most famous poet under the king's patronage was Sunthorn Phu, known as the "Shakespeare of Thailand" for his role in literature.

3. Rama III - King Phra Nangklao (1824-1851)

Rama III

King Phra Nangklao reformed the tax system, the treasury system, and supervised the growth of trade with China during his 27 years of reign from 1824.

Siam re-established official contacts with Western powers for the first time since the end of the Ayutthaya period, and supported the British in their first Anglo-Burmese War in 1824.

The king did not name a successor and the throne passed to his half-brother.

4. Rama IV – King Mongkut (1851-1868)

Rama IV

Probably the most well-known king of Siam after Rama IX in the West.

Mongkut was portrayed in the Broadway musical "The King and I" in 1951, and then in a Hollywood film in 1956.

Under increasing pressure from the West during his 17-year reign, Mongkut signed the Bowring Treaty with the British Empire, which abolished the royal monopoly on foreign trade.

Mongkut later died of malaria he had contracted on an expedition to see a total solar eclipse.

5. Rama V - King Chulalongkorn (1868-1910)

Rama V

The 42-year reign of King Chulalongkorn, son of Mongkut, is known for his efforts at modernization and the abolition of slavery.

He also ceded territories to Western powers, including Laos and Cambodia to France, and the Malay sultanates of Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, and Perlis to the United Kingdom.

Chulalongkorn was the first Siamese king to send royal princes to study in Europe.

He visited twice and presented Siam as a modern nation to European leaders.

See our article:
King Rama V (Chulalongkorn)

6. Rama VI – King Vajiravudh (1910-1925)

Rama VI

Vajiravudh's reign was characterized by the creation and promotion of Siamese nationalism.

He modernized the army and sent troops to join the Allied forces during World War I.

7. Rama VII - King Prajadhipok (1925-1935)

Rama VII

Prajadhipok was the last absolute monarch of Siam and its first constitutional monarch after the Siamese revolution of 1932.

Educated at Eton, he succeeded his brother in 1926.

Six years later, a group of military officers and officials launched a coup with little bloodshed.

Prajadhipok abdicated in 1935 and spent the rest of his life with his wife in England.

The couple had no children.

8. Rama VIII - King Ananda Mahidol (1935-1946)

Rama VIII

Ananda ascended the throne after his uncle abdicated.

His father, Prince Mahidol, was a son of King Chulalongkorn.

Ananda was nine years old and studying in Switzerland when he was chosen to succeed Prajadhipok.

The government changed the name of the country to Thailand in 1939.

In 1946, 20-year-old Ananda was found shot dead in his bedroom inside the Grand Palace in Bangkok under mysterious circumstances, four days before his scheduled return to school in Switzerland.