History

Prachuab Khiri Khan’s modern history dates back to the Ayutthaya era when it was known as ‘Bang Nangrom’ or ‘Muang Na Rang’. Its original location is not clear as few artifacts remain from that time, the result of destruction and looting at the hands of invading Burmese. To this day, no proof exists of the town’s precise location.

Prachuab Khiri Khan—Na Rang or Bang Nangrom as it was known at the time, was a dependency of Ayutthaya, the capital of Siam, and an important stopover on the route to the south. The area’s ‘Khao Sam Roi Yot’ or ‘300 Mountain Peaks’ was well known among sailors at the time as a navigational marker.

In the later Ratanakosin era, during the reign of King Mongkut (Rama IV), ‘Wah Kor’, a sub-district of Prachuab Khiri Khan, became noted as a site of astrological importance. The king, an enthusiastic scientist and astronomer, predicted that Wah Kor would be the best place to witness the total eclipse of the sun on August 18, 1868.

In 1894, during the reign of King Rama V, Bang Bangrom, Kui Buri and Klong Warn were combined to form a new town called Prachuab Khiri Khan. Later, in 1898, its district office was moved to Luk Island at Prachuab Bay. At that time, both Prachuab Khiri Khan and Pran Buri were districts of Phetchaburi province.

Finally, during the reign of the next king, Rama VI, Pran Buri was renamed Prachuab Khiri Khan and made a province in its own right.

On December 8, 1941, Prachuab Khiri Khan was chosen as the point of entry into Thailand by the Japanese invasion force. Japanese troops landed at Manao Bay, a small, sheltered haven just a few kilometers from the provincial capital, sparking Thailand’s entry into the Second World War.

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