Insta-Burger King was founded in Jacksonville, FL, in 1953 by Keith Kramer and Matthew Burns, later purchased and renamed by James McLamore and David Edgerton in 1954.

Instant Burger King was founded in 1954 in Jacksonville, Florida by Keith J. Cramer and his stepfather Matthew Burns. They were inspired by the McDonald brothers' original store and focused on using the Insta-Broiler for cooking burgers.

McLamore and Edgerton opened their first Burger King location in Miami after acquiring a license to operate an Insta-Burger King franchise.

Within the next year of its founding, Insta-Burger King opened several other locations across Florida.

In 1956, Burger King Drive Inn, a mini-chain of restaurants, was founded in Alberta, Canada.

Burger King introduced its iconic 'Whopper' burger in 1957, which became a staple menu item and a popular choice among customers.

Burger King ventured into television advertising in 1958 with commercials for the chain, marking its initial foray into this medium.

In 1959, the Miami-based franchisees David Edgerton and James McLamore purchased Insta-Burger King and renamed it to Burger King.

In 1961, Burger King introduced its iconic burger, the Whopper, which played a significant role in the chain's expansion across the United States.

In 1963, Burger King expanded outside the United States with a store in Puerto Rico. This marked the beginning of Burger King's global presence.

In 1967, the Pillsbury Company purchased Burger King Corporation for $18 million, providing the capital needed for Burger King to grow and become one of America's top burger chains.

In 1969, Burger King unveiled its iconic logo, which was designed to symbolize the restaurant's focus on hamburgers. The original logo featured an orange sandwiched between two yellow semi-circular buns.

After the acquisition by Pillsbury, Burger King opened its first Canadian restaurant in Windsor, Ontario in 1969, marking its entry into the Canadian market.

Chart House, a Louisiana-based franchisee, attempted to purchase Burger King from Pillsbury for $100 million in 1973, but the offer was declined.

In 1974, the iconic 'Have It Your Way' campaign was created by Batten, Burton, Dustin, and Osborne, revolutionizing Burger King's marketing strategy.

In 1975, Burger King reintroduced drive-through windows, enhancing customer convenience.

In 1977, Donald N. Smith was brought in from rival McDonald's to help restructure Burger King and its franchising system. His experience from McDonald's was seen as valuable for Burger King's development.

In 1978, Burger King hired Donald N. Smith to revamp the company through Operation Phoenix. This restructuring included updated franchise agreements, menu expansion, and new store designs.

In 1979, Burger King broadened its product offering by adding the Burger King specialty sandwich line. This move targeted a specific demographic and led to increased sales for the company.

In June 1980, Donald Smith, who led Burger King through a period of expansion and restructuring, left the company to focus on creating a new fast food restaurant chain, Pizza Hut. His departure marked a significant change in leadership for Burger King.

In 1981, Burger King aired an attack ad featuring Sarah Michelle Gellar, claiming their burgers were superior to McDonald's, leading to a legal dispute.

In 1982, Burger King produced one of the first attack advertisements by airing commercials that disparaged its competitor's fried burgers. This move was a bold marketing strategy to differentiate itself in the fast-food industry.

In 1983, Burger King introduced the Croissan'Wich as part of its breakfast menu expansion, targeting a new demographic and offering breakfast items similar to McDonald's.

In 1984, Norman E. Brinker left Burger King to take the helm at Dallas-based gourmet burger chain Chili's.

Burger King launched aggressive advertising campaigns, such as the famous 'Battle of the Burgers', in 1985. These campaigns significantly increased sales by an average of 19% after their launch.

Between November 1988 and January 1989, Grand Metropolitan aimed to enhance Burger King's performance and global standing by implementing a three-prong strategy focusing on operations evaluation, personnel changes, and structural improvements.

In December 1988, Grand Metropolitan replaced Burger King's chairman and CEO, initiated a restructuring of the marketing and management team, and made significant changes to the advertising agencies to improve brand identity and marketing strategies.

In August 1989, Grand Metropolitan acquired UK-based United Biscuits restaurant operations, including the burger chain Wimpy, and converted certain Wimpy locations into Burger King outlets, significantly growing Burger King's presence in the UK.

By the summer of 1990, Burger King successfully acquired the Wimpey hamburger chain, converting 200 Wimpey restaurants to Burger King.

Burger King's headquarters experienced major damage in 1992 from Hurricane Andrew.

In 1993, Jim Adamson was appointed as the CEO of Burger King, bringing Jim McLamore back for advice and consulting, leading to the launch of the Value Meal.

By 1994, Burger King updated its logo by making the font smoother and rounding the edges. These changes were made to comply with advertising standards and replaced the previous raised style.

Adamson implemented changes at Burger King in 1995, including streamlining the menu and improving relations with franchisees, resulting in a 28 percent increase in sales.

The fifth Burger King logo was unveiled in 1999. It featured a design where the king image was omitted, and the logo was simplified with the company name placed between two halves of a hamburger bun.

Diageo decided to divest itself of Burger King and put the company up for sale in 2000.

By 2001, AmeriKing Inc., one of the largest Burger King franchisees, entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to stagnant growth and financial struggles. This event had a significant impact on Burger King's overall value and operations.

Burger King Holdings, the parent company of Burger King, also known as Burger King Corporation, was formed as a Delaware corporation on July 23, 2002. It derives income from various sources, including property rental, sales through company-owned restaurants, and franchise fees.

In 2003, Burger King hired the advertising agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky to revamp its advertising with a new campaign centered around 'The King'.

Burger King introduced 'the King' character as a caricatured variation of the Burger King character used in the 1970s/1980s children's advertising campaign, leading to the creation of internet memes and a new advertising approach.

Burger King went public on May 18, 2006, with the largest IPO of a US-based restaurant chain, generating $425 million in revenue.

Burger King predicted that 80 percent of its market share would come from foreign expansion, focusing on Asia-Pacific, Indian subcontinent, Eastern Europe, Africa, Middle East, and Brazil.

In the first half of 2008, Burger King initiated a plan to revitalize its stores by replacing or remodeling almost all of its North American locations by July 2008. The renovation plan aimed to increase same-store sales but affected the company's revenue stream for the final quarters of its 2008 fiscal year.

In 2009, Burger King introduced the '20/20' store designs featuring a radical new design with bright colors, corrugated metal accents, and high definition video displays. The new format aimed to compete in the fast casual restaurant market segment.

In September 2010, 3G Capital acquired Burger King from TPG and its partners for $3.26 billion. This marked a new chapter in the company's ownership history, following a period of consecutive profitable quarters and a decline in business during the financial crisis.

3G Capital acquired Burger King in October 2010, leading to immediate restructuring of the company, including the replacement of top executives and layoffs.

In March 2011, Burger King introduced a reformulated version of its BK Chicken Tenders as part of its menu restructuring.

In 2012, 3G Capital sold a 29% stake of Burger King to Justice Holdings LTD.

Burger King reported a profit of US$68.2 million in Q3 of 2013, a significant increase from US$6.6 million in the same quarter of 2012, after divesting corporate-owned locations.

As part of 3G's restructuring plan, Burger King decided to divest its corporate owned locations and re-franchise them to private owners, becoming a 100% franchised operation by the end of 2013.

Burger King announced the acquisition of Tim Hortons in August 2014, forming a new holding company with 3G Capital. The deal involved Berkshire Hathaway and aimed at international growth.

At the end of 2015, Restaurant Brands International, Burger King's parent company, announced that its subsidiaries would no longer use chicken fed with certain antibiotics crucial to human health.

As of 2016, Burger King boasts over 15 thousand locations, serves more than 11 million visitors daily, and holds the second position in sales in the United States, following McDonald's.

In 2018, Restaurant Brands acquired Popeye's for $1.8 billion, further expanding its market coverage and expertise. This acquisition allowed Restaurant Brands to diversify its portfolio with a range of offerings including coffee, sandwiches, hamburgers, fries, and chicken sandwiches.

Burger King filed a lawsuit against Fritz Management LLC to remove Burger King trademarks from 37 units in South Texas due to unsanitary conditions.

A vegan from Atlanta filed a lawsuit against Burger King for allegedly not clearly disclosing that Impossible Whopper burgers were cooked on the same grill as beef burgers.

Burger King India went public with an IPO on the BSE and NSE in India, which was subscribed over 150 times, leading to a successful stock market debut.

Burger King faced criticism for a controversial tweet on International Women's Day in 2021, which was deemed sexist by many, leading to backlash and eventual deletion of the tweet with an apology.

On March 10, 2022, Burger King suspended all its operations in Russia.

A lawsuit was filed against Burger King in 2022, alleging that the Whopper was falsely advertised to look larger than it actually is.

Tom Curtis, president of Burger King U.S. & Canada, announced a new store design called 'The Sizzle' at the annual franchisee convention in Canada. The redesign aims to revamp existing locations with new interior and exterior looks, incorporating features like kiosks, dedicated pickup areas, and partnerships with food-ordering platforms.

In January 2024, Restaurant Brands International announced the acquisition of Carrols Restaurant Group, the largest franchisee of Burger King, for around $1 billion, aiming to remodel and sell back restaurants over five to seven years.