Taksin, also called Phraya Taksin or Phya Tak (born April 17, 1734, Ayutthaya [Thailand]—died April 6, 1782, Thon Buri, Thailand), Thai general, conqueror, and later king (1767–82) who reunited Thailand, or Siam, after its defeat at the hands of the Myanmar (Burmese) in 1767.
Of Chinese-Thai parentage, Taksin became the protégé of a Thai nobleman who enrolled him in the royal service. In 1764 he gained the rank of phraya as the governor of the province of Tak, and to distinguish him from previous governors he was called Phraya Taksin. He and his provincial troops were among