As an important city, Yangon has a relatively short history. In the 11th century, King Anawrahta united the country and began the First Myanmar Empire in Bagan; this was more than 20 years before the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. Today, the former Bagan Empire contains parts of Myanmar and Thailand.

The Second Myanmar Empire, created in the mid 16th century, by King Bayinnaung.  The last Dynasty was founded in 1752 by King Alaungpaya.  At this time, Yangon was built by the king Alaungpaya, in 1755, after the king captured lower Myanmar. Before this city was built, the land was the former site of Pongon, which translates as “dragon” in English. Yangon means "end of strife; with the creation of this city, the king hoped that he would be able to end the fighting and garner peace in Burma, after conquering lower Myanmar.  It was at this time that the British moved into the city. Myanmar became a British colony after three Anglo-Myanmar wars, one in 1825, one in 1852 and one in 1885.

In the 18th century, the Shedagon pagoda, which a 2500 year old Buddhist shrine and a main highlight to see in Yangon, was the center of a lot of political activities. Yangon became capital of Myanmar in 1885, when the British conquered Myanmar. The British selected this city, which at the time was called Rangoon, to be the capital and ended the reign of Mandalay as the capital of Myanmar.

Since January 4th, 1948, Myanmar has been an independent state after 62 years of colonial rule. Myanmar was the last country that the British occupied in this region.