Product Description

This highly acclaimed book, the standard history of Thailand for almost twenty years, has now been completely revised by the author. David K. Wyatt has also added new sections examining the social and economic changes that have transformed the country in the past two decades.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #312226 in Books
• Published on: 2003-12-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

From the Back Cover
"Wyatt knows his subject well enough and has enough enthusiasm for it to make his book . . . entertaining as well as eminently educational." -David McElveen, Asiaweek; "A very readable account. . . .We come away from reading it with a clearer understanding of where Thailand stands in relation to its neighbors, who the Thai people are, how the Thai government evolved into its present form."-James Stent, Asian Wall Street Journal; "Concise, thorough, and readable."-John Gabree, New York Newsday

About the Author
David K. Wyatt was John Stambaugh Professor of History at Cornell University until his recent retirement.

Customer Reviews

Too detailed for a "short history"
I brought this book, because, as said before, it is the only history of Thailand available. Unfortunately, the author's detail covers a detailed history, and ties in things that do not have to do with the history of Thailand.

The book starts with a prehistory of what is today Thailand, covering the aboriginal Tai peoples who lived in what is today Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and even southern China. Wyatt goes over how Tai people were treated in early Southeastern Asian states - Nan Zhao, Vietnam, China, Laos, Angkorean Cambodia, and also the Mekong Yonok area, as well as the Burmese kingdoms. He then states how the early Tai created states, such as Syam (Siam) and Sukotai, which formed a civilization based on Therevada Buddhism.

Wyatt then covers the Ayutthaya civilization, which formed the first dynasty, with a clearly defined capital at Ayutthaya. We then find how Siam had to deal with the Burmese invaders from Burma and the Mongols, which climaxed in 1767, when Burma finally conquered Siam.

We then hear how Thailand avoided colonization by one by one putting off the European powers, first the UK, then France, then Holland, etc. Finally, the modern period is covered, with the move of the capital to Bangkok in 1782 and the beginning of the Chakri dynasty.

We hear the cultural achievements and Siamese empire of the Bangkok period, and how, Siam enters World War I and the modern world, and finally avoiding Japanese occupation during World War II, and how Siam becomes Thailand, following the removal of the Absolute monarchy.

A very complete book, but very detailed and hard to understand.

A thorough overview, but lacking in some areas.
This book gave me a seemingly thorough overview of the history of Thailand. From the early centuries AD up through 1982, we see how the various countries of southeast Asia interacted with one another in defining their boundaries today. The author gives a good look at how the royalty and wars of the area shaped the peninsula as it currently stands.

There are shortcomings to the book, though, that seriously detracted from it. My biggest complaint is the fact that there aren't enough maps. For example, there is a map that illustrates the area in the mid 1500s, but there isn't another one until the mid 1700s. Boundaries have changed, new cities are referred to, but the reader has no idea exactly what things look like. In addition, there are areas and cities referred to in the text that I couldn't find on any of the maps. My other complaint is the fact that the author uses some notations and terms that are never explained to the reader. I found some of these things confusing and they were never really cleared up to my satisfaction.

If you are looking for a general overview of the history of this area of the world with a focus on Thailand, then this is a very decent book with which to start. If you're looking for something that goes into a lot of detail, this book may let you down.

Until a Better History Comes Along--This Is It
I bought this book in preparation for my first trip to Thailand. I was hoping for a readable overview of Thailand's history to enhance my stay. Unfortunately, I came away less than satisfied with Wyatt's book. It was long and tedious. His writing style is pedantic and dull. The author clearly knows his subject well, but his treatment of Thai history was long on details, presented chronologically, but short on interpretation. Surprisingly, there was little in the book about how Buddhism affected the course of historical events. After finishing the book as the plane touched down in Bangkok, I had assimilated a number of important facts about Thailand, but I didn't feel that the book gave me the chance to understand the sweep of Thai history. Yet, my research did not find any other book in English which covers the subject. Until one comes along, hopefully a better one, I guess this is it.