Thailand observes Chakri Memorial Day as a public holiday on April 6th every year. Officially known as “King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke the Great Day and Chakri Dynasty Memorial Day,” this holiday commemorates the establishment of the Chakri Dynasty by King Rama I in 1782, over two centuries ago.
Prior to his accession to the throne, Rama I held for years the title Chakri, the civil chancellor. In founding the dynasty, the king himself chose "Chakri" as the name for it. The emblem of the house is composed of the discus (Chakra) and the trident (Trisula), the celestial weapons of gods Vishnu and Shiva, of whom the Thai sovereign is seen as an incarnation.
