1057 King Anawrahta of Myanmar captures Thanton in northern Thailand, strengthening Theravada Buddhism in the country.
1084 Kyanzittha begins his reign in Myanmar.
1113 End of Kyanzittha's reign in Myanmar
1113 Alaungsithu's reign begins in Myanmar
1190 In Myanmar, Anawrahta's lineage regains control with the assistance of Sri Lanka. Pagan has been in anarchy. The new regime reforms Burmese Buddhism on Sri Lankan Theravada models.
1277 Burma's Pagan empire begins to disintegrate after being defeated by Kublai Khan at the Battle of Ngasaunggyan, at Yunnan near the Chinese border.
1427 Minrekyansa becomes King of Ava (''ancient Burma'').
1766 The Burmese begin to invade the Thai kingdom of Ayutthaya.
1767 The Burmese army captures the Thai capital of Ayutthaya, and destroys the city.
1886 Britain annexes Burma
1899 Gordon Douglas is ordained as a Buddhist monk in Myanmar. He is the first westerner to be ordained in the Theravada tradition.
1942 World War II: Japanese forces invade Burma.
1945 World War II: British troops liberate Mandalay, Burma
1947 Murder of Burmese nationalist Aung San
1948 Burma gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
1949 Burma recognizes People's Republic of China.
1957 U Nu becomes Prime Minister of Burma.
1962 A military coup occurs in Burma.
1962 The United Nations General Assembly elects U Thant of Burma as the new UN Secretary-General.
1988 Thousands of protestors in Burma (now Myanmar) are killed during demonstrations against the government in the 8888 Uprising.
1989 Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is placed under house arrest.
2000 God's Army, a Karen militia group led by twins Johnny and Luther Htoo, take 700 hostages at a Thai hospital near the Burmese border.
2004 One of the worst natural disasters in recorded history hits southeastern Asia when the strongest earthquake in 40 years hits the entire Indian Ocean region. The massive 9.3 magnitude earthquake, epicentered just off the west coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, generates enormous tsunami waves that crash into the coastal areas of a number of nations including Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Malaysia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Burma and Indonesia. The official death toll in the affected countries stands at 186,983 while more than 40,000 people are still missing.
2004 One of the worst natural disasters in recorded history hits southeastern Asia when the strongest earthquake in 40 years hits the entire Indian Ocean region. The massive 9.3 magnitude earthquake, epicentered just off the west coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, generates enormous tsunami waves that crash into the coastal areas of a number of nations including Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Malaysia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Burma and Indonesia. The official death toll in the affected countries stands at 186,983 while more than 40,000 people are still missing.