In 1350 A.D. King U-thong founded his own Kingdom in Ayothaya (as it was then called). Strategically it was the right place for the capital city of the Kingdom as it was surrounded by three rivers; now called the Chao Phraya, Pasak and Lop Buri Rivers.

At this time Sukhothai which had been the most powerful and prosperous kingdom in the Golden Peninsular (composed of Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia) was in decline. Meanwhile Ayothaya was getting stronger and stronger and finally took control many of the other kingdoms in the region, including Sukhothai, and it was renamed “Ayutthaya”.

During the reign of King Naresuan the Great, the power of Ayutthaya Kingdom expanded to cover the whole Golden Peninsular (Thailand, part of Burma bordered by Thailand, the whole of Laos, Cambodia and the whole of Malaysia and present-day Singapore). These other kingdoms had to prove their loyalty by offering annual tribute to the Kings of Ayutthaya.

Ayutthaya dominated the region for 417 years, from 1350 to 1767 A.D. During this long period its cultural and artistic achievements were substantial and profound. On 13 December 1991 the Ayutthaya Historical Park was praised and declared a Cultural World Heritage Site by UNESCO. It has remained “a must” for every foreign visitor who visits Thailand.