---
node: fashion_rattanakosin
type: fashion
slug: rattanakosin_kingdom_fashion
title: "Fashion in the Rattanakosin Kingdom"
lead: "In the Rattanakosin (Bangkok Chakri) Kingdom court dress reached great refinement and then Westernised; under Rama IV and V, the traditional wrapped lower garment came to be paired with Western jackets and blouses."
published: 2026-07-28
updated: 2026-07-28
image_file: rattanakosin_kingdom_fashion.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chulalongkorn,_Rama_V,_His_Majesty_the_King_of_Siam,_1872.jpg"
image_author: "The Graphic — King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), 1872"
image_license: "Public domain"
change: "Created as a fashion sub-page under the history section, with a period image (thailand region)"
requester: internal
reason: "Per the owner's decision, fashion lives under each history era"
---

## Overview

Under the new capital of Bangkok, court dress kept tradition while modernising from the later 19th century.

## Key garments and style

Early on, the chong kraben and sabai tradition continued. Under Rama V (Chulalongkorn), amid exchange with the West, an eclectic dress arose at court, pairing the chong kraben with a lace blouse or a Western jacket. Rama VI urged women from the wrapped lower garment toward a wrapped skirt and Western dress.

## Transition

After the 1932 constitutional revolution, modern Thailand pursued the modernisation of dress and the making of a national costume.