Bhumibol Adulyadej
Encyclopedia : B : BH : BHU : Bhumibol Adulyadej
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| Reign | June 9, 1946 - Present |
| Coronation | May 5, 1950 |
| Predecessor | King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII) |
| Heir Apparent | HRH Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn |
| Consort | Queen Sirikit |
| Issue | Princess Ubol Ratana HRH Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn HRH Princess Chulabhorn Walailak |
| Royal House | Chakri Dynasty |
| Father | Mahidol Adulyadej, Prince of Songkla |
| Mother | Sangwal, the Princess Mother |
| Born | December 5, 1927 Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States |
King Bhumibol Adulyadej, officially styled "the Great" (Thai: ; IPA: pʰu:mipʰon adunjadeːd; [listen] ) (born December 5, 1927), also known as King Rama IX, has been King of Thailand since June 9, 1946. At over 60 years on the throne, King Bhumibol is the world's longest–serving current Head of State and the longest–serving monarch in Thai history.
Although the King is a constitutional monarch, he has several times made decisive interventions in Thai politics, including the political crisis of 2005-2006. The King is widely credited with facilitating Thailand's transition to democracy in the 1990s, although in earlier periods of his reign he supported military regimes. King Bhumibol also uses his great wealth to fund numerous development projects, particularly in rural areas. Bhumibol is immensely popular in Thailand, and is revered as a semi-divine figure by many Thais. Critics (mostly outside Thailand) attribute this status to the suppression of criticism of the monarchy.
Early life
Bhumibol was born at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States, the youngest son of Mahidol Adulyadej, Prince of Songkhla (son of King Chulalongkorn) and Mom Sangwal (later Somdej Phra Sri Nakarindhara Boromaratchachonnani). At the time of birth, he was known in Thailand as Phra Worawongse Ther Phra Ong Chao Bhumibol Adulyadej (พระวรวงศ์เธอ พระองค์เจ้าภูมิพลอดุลยเดช), reflecting the fact that his mother was a commoner. Had he been born just a few years earlier, before his uncle King Prajadhipok passed a law allowing children of a prince and a commoner to be called Phra Ong Chao (a prince of a lesser status than Chao Fa), he would have been called Mom Chao (the most junior class of the Thai princes), similar to his older brother and sister.
Bhumibol was brought back to Thailand in 1928, after Prince Mahidol finished his medical study at Harvard University. After primary schooling at the Mater Dei school in Bangkok, in 1933 he left with the rest of his family for Switzerland, where he continued his secondary education at the École Nouvelle de la Suisse romande, in Chailly-sur-Lausanne, and received the baccalauréat de lettres (high-school diploma with major in French literature, Latin, and Greek) from the Gymnase classique cantonal of Lausanne. He was studying science at the University of Lausanne when his elder brother, Phra Ong Chao Ananda Mahidol, was crowned King of Thailand. King Ananda Mahidol then elevated his brother and sister to the Chao Fa status (the most senior class of the Thai princes and princesses) in 1935. They came to Thailand briefly in 1938, but returned for further study to Switzerland, where they stayed until 1945.
Succession and marriage
Bhumibol succeeded to the throne following the death of his brother King Ananda Mahidol on June 9, 1946, in what was officially described as an accidental shooting at the Royal Palace in Bangkok.
Since he had not finished his education, the King and his mother decided that he should go back to Switzerland. During this period, his uncle, Rangsit, Prince of Chainat, was appointed Prince Regent. Upon returning to Switzerland, he changed his fields of studies to Law and Political Science, as this would be more useful now that he had become King.
While finishing his degree in Switzerland, King Bhumibol visited Paris frequently. It was in Paris that he first met a distant cousin, Mom Rajawongse Sirikit Kitiyakara, daughter of the Thai ambassador to France. The King then became a frequent visitor to the ambassador's house.
On 4 October 1948, the Fiat Topolino that the King was racing rear-ended a truck on the Geneva-Lausanne highway. He lost his right eye in the accident. While being hospitalized in Lausanne, Mom Rajawongse Sirikit frequently visited him. She met Bhumibol's mother who asked her to continue her studies in Lausanne, as the King had expressed his interest in her and wished to know her better. Bhumibol chose Riante Rive, a boarding school in Lausanne for her. This eventually led to their quiet engagement in Lausanne on July 19, 1949. They married on April 28, 1950, just a week before his coronation.
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- (Formerly HRH) Princess Ubol Ratana, born April 5, 1951 in Lausanne, Switzerland;
- HRH Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, born July 28, 1952;
- HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, born April 2, 1955;
- HRH Princess Chulabhorn Walailak, born July 4, 1957.
Coronation and titles
Bhumibol was crowned King of Thailand on May 5, 1950 at the Royal Palace in Bangkok. His ceremonial name, according to the ancient tradition, is:
- พระบาทสมเด็จพระปรมินทรมหาภูมิพลอดุลยเดช มหิตลาธิเบศรามาธิบดี จักรีนฤบดินทร์ สยามินทราธิราช บรมนาถบพิตร (Phrabat Somdej Phra Paramindra Maha Bhumibol Adulyadej Mahitaladhibet Ramadhibodi Chakrinarubodindara Sayamindaradhiraj Boromanatbophit [listen] )
Following the death of his grandmother Queen Savang Vadhana (สว่างวัฒนา, Sawang Watthana Phra Phanvasa Areekajao), the King entered a 15 day monkhood (October 22 - November 5, 1956), as is customary at the death of elder relatives. During this time, Sirikit was appointed his regent. She was later appointed Queen Regent (Somdej Phra Boromarajininat) in recognition of this.
Although Bhumibol is often referred to as King Rama IX in English, the name "Rama" is never used in Thai. The name is used to approximate "Ratchakal ti Kao" (รัชกาลที่ 9, literally "the Ninth Reign"). More commonly, Thais refer to him as Nai Luang or Phra Chao Yu Hua (ในหลวง or พระเจ้าอยู่หัว: both mean "the King"). Formally, he would be referred to as Phrabat Somdej Phra Chao Yu Hua (พระบาทสมเด็จพระเจ้าอยู่หัว) or, in legal documents, Phrabat Somdej Phra Paraminthara Maha Bhumibol Adulyadej (พระบาทสมเด็จพระปรมินทรมหาภูมิพลอดุลยเดช); and in English as His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej. He signs his name as ภูมิพลอดุลยเดช ป.ร. (Bhumibol Adulyadej Por Ror; this is the Thai equivalent of Bhumibol Adulyadej R[ex]).
Political conflicts
During the early years of his reign, during the government of military dictator Plaek Pibulsonggram, Bhumibol had no real power and was little more than a ceremonial front for the military regime. After Plaek Pibulsonggram's downfall, the monarchy was revitalized under the regime of Sarit Dhanarajata.
Bhumibol attended public ceremonies, toured the provinces and patronised development projects. Under Sarit, the practice of crawling in front of royalty during audiences, banned by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), was revived and the royal-sponsored Thammayut Nikaya order was revitalized. For the first time since the absolute monarchy was overthrown, a King was conveyed up the Chao Phraya River in a royal barge procession to offer robes at temples.
Other disused ceremonies from the classical period of the Chakri dynasty, like the royally-patronized ploughing ceremony (Thai: พิธีพืชมงคล), were also revived. The close association with the King lent political legitimacy to Sarit and the military regime. After Sarit's death, his royalist policies were continued by Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn.
In October 1973 after massive protests and the deaths of a large number of pro-democracy demonstrators led by students, Bhumibol asserted himself politically for the first time by making it clear he favoured an end to Thanom's military regime, even opening the doors of the Chitralada Palace to fleeing students, and holding audiences with their leaders. The King subsequently appointed Thammasat University Rector Sanya Dharmasakti as the new Prime Minister. A succession of civilian governments followed, but in 1976 with the return of Thanom from self-imposed exile led to renewed conflict. Protests against the ex-dictator escalated and came to a head when two newspapers published forged photographs depicting Thammasat students hanging the Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn in effigy. With many people believing that lèse majesté had been committed, military and paramilitary forces attacked the University, leading to a massacre.
The ensuing chaos was used as a pretext for a military coup which resulted in the appointment of Tanin Kraivixien as Prime Minister. He was replaced in another military coup by General Kriangsak Chomanan in October 1977. Kriangsak was succeeded in 1980 by Army Commander in Chief General Prem Tinsulanond, a favorite of the King. In April 1981 a group of army officers staged another coup. Their position quickly crumbled when Prem fled to Khorat and was soon joined by the royal family. The Queen, in a radio broadcast, gave public support to Prem's government. With royal support for Prem made clear, units loyal to the King recaptured the capital.
Crisis of 1992
In 1992 Bhumibol played a key role in Thailand's final transition to a fully democratic system. A coup on February 23, 1991 put Thailand back under military dictatorship. After a general election, held in 1992, the majority parties invited General Suchinda Kraprayoon, a leader of the coup, to be the Prime Minister. This caused much dissent, and the conflict escalated to demonstrations and then to a large number of deaths when the military was brought in to control the crowd. The situation became increasingly critical as neither side would back down and the violence escalated.The King summoned Suchinda and the leader of the pro-democracy movement, Major General Chamlong Srimuang, to a televised audience. At the height of the crisis, the sight of both men appearing together on their knees (in accordance with royal protocol) made a strong impression on the nation, and led to Suchinda's resignation soon afterwards. It was one of the few public occasions where the King directly intervened in a political conflict. A general election was held shortly afterward, and democracy was thus restored.
Crisis of 2005-2006
The King was closely involved in the Thailand Political Crisis of 2005-2006. In April 2005 Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra presided over a merit-making ceremony at the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, the holiest site in Thai Buddhism. Phoochatkarn, a Bangkok newspaper, stated that Thaksin had usurped the powers of the King by presiding over the ceremony. Sondhi Limthongkul, the owner of Phoochatkarn, promoted the use of slogans such as "We Love the King", "We Will Fight for the King", and "Return Power to the King" in anti-Thaksin rallies. Despite later claims that King Bhumibol had approved of Thaksin role in the ceremony[link][], Sondhi continued to use royal slogans in anti-Thaksin protests.
Weeks before the April 2006 legislative election, the anti-Thaksin coalition (including the Democrat Party, the People's Alliance for Democracy, and the Law Society of Thailand) petitioned Bhumibol to appoint a replacement Prime Minister and Cabinet to resolve the political crisis. However, demands for royal intervention in the political crisis met with much criticism. Bhumibol, in a speech on 26 April, responded "Asking for a Royally appointed prime minister is undemocratic. It is, pardon me, a mess. It is irrational".
One day after publically declaring victory in the April parliamentary elections, Thaksin had a private audience with King Bhumibol. A few hours later, a weeping Thaksin appeared on national television to announce that he would not accept the Premiership, and would be taking leave from politics.
In a rare, televised speech to senior judges, Bhumibol requested that the judiciary take action to resolve the political crisis. On 8 May 2006, the Constitution Court invalidated the results of the April elections and ordered a new round of elections.
After a brief interregnum during his 60th Anniversary Celebrations, King Bhumibol was again invoked in the political stage, when Prime Minister Thaksin publically claimed that a "charismatic" individual "outside the constitution" was trying to overthrow his government. This provoked speculation by many, including several members of the royal family, that Thaksin was referring to King Bhumibol. Sondhi Limthongkul calling for the public to take a stand and choose between the King and Thaksin.
Royal powers
Despite Thailand's successful transition to parliamentary democracy, King Bhumibol retained enormous powers, partly because of his immense popularity and partly because his powers - although clearly defined in the Thai Constitution - were often subject to conflicting interpretations. This was highlighted by the controversy surrounding the appointment of a new Auditor-General. The Constitution Court ruled in July 2004 that the appointment of Jaruvan Maintaka to this post was by the State Audit Commission was unconstitutional. But Jaruvan refused to accept this without an order from the King. In February 2006 the Audit Commission reinstated Jaruvan when it became clear from a memo from the Office of the King's Principal Private Secretary that the King supported her position.
This raised the issue of whether the King was more powerful than the Constitution. Senator Kaewsan Atibhodi, a former member of the Constitution Drafting Committee, noted that under Article Seven of the 1997 Constitution said that: "whenever no provision under this Constitution is applicable to any case, it shall be decided in accordance with the constitutional practice in the democratic regime of government with the King as Head of the State”. Kaewsan interpreted this as giving the King veto powers over the Senate's appointment of Wisut Montriwat to replace Jaruvan: "Whatever [the King] considers [something as being] not beneficial to the people and being unjust, His Majesty has a veto power".
Bhumibol's hold over Thai public opinion was demonstrated following the 2003 Phnom Penh riots in Cambodia, when hundreds of Thai protesters, enraged by the burning of Thai embassy in Phnom Penh, gathered outside the Cambodian embassy in Bangkok, ripped the Cambodian seal out of the front wall, and tried to break into the embassy. The situation was resolved peacefully when Police General Sant Sarutanonda told the crowd that he had received a call from royal secretary Arsa Sarasin conveying the King's call for calm.
The King has the constitutional prerogative to pardon criminals. The 2006 pardon of several convicted paedophiles, including an Australian rapist and child pornographer, has caused controversy.
Royal projects
King Bhumibol has been involved in many social and economic development projects, although the nature of his involvement has varied by political regime.
The military regime of Plaek Pibulsonggram (1951-1957) suppressed the monarchy; however, during that period King Bhumibol managed to initiate a few projects using his own personal funds. These projects included the Royal Film and Radio Broadcasting Projects.
In the military regime of Sarit Dhanarajata and his successors (1958-1980), King Bhumibol was reportrayed as the "Development King," and appropriated to the economic and political goals of the regime. Royally-initiated projects were implemented under the financial and political support of the government, including projects in rural areas and communities under the influence of the Communist Party of Thailand. King Bhumibol's visits to these projects were heavily promoted by the Sarit government and broadcast on the state-controlled media.
During the civilian governments of General Prem Tinsulanond (1981-1987), the relationship between the Thai state and the monarch was at its closest. Prem, later to become President of King Bhumibol's Privy Council, officially allocated government budgets and manpower to support royal projects. Most activities in this period involved the development of large scale irrigation projects.
During the modern period (post-1988), the structured development of the Royal Projects reached its apex. King Bhumibol's Chaipattana Foundation was established, promoting what he called the self-sufficient economy, an alternative to the export-oriented policies adopted by the period's elected governments.
Awards
The king is a recipient of the Royal Victorian Chain, a personal award of the British Monarch.In May 2006, UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, presented the United Nations first Human Development Lifetime Achievement Award to the king.
The king, who serves as head of The National Scout Organization of Thailand, was presented the Bronze Wolf award on June 20, 2006, World Organization of the Scout Movement's highest award, for his support and development of Scouting in Thailand by His Majesty Carl XVI Gustav, King of Sweden and Honorary President of the World Scout Foundation. The presentation took place at Chitralada Palace in Thailand and was witnessed by Chairman of the World Scout Committee Herman Hui.
60th Anniversary celebrations
Also called the Diamond Jubilee, the 60th Anniversary Celebrations of His Majesty the King's Accession to the Throne were a series of events marking Bhumibol's reign. Events included the royal barge procession on the Chao Phraya River, fireworks displays, art exhibitions, pardoning 25,000 prisoners, concerts and dance performances. Tied in with the anniversary, on May 26, 2006 United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan presented the King with the United Nations Development Program's first Human Development Lifetime Achievement Award. National holidays were on June 9 and June 12–13, 2006. On June 9, the King and Queen appeared on the balcony of Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall before hundreds of thousands of people. The official royal barge procession on June 12 was attended by the King and Queen and royal visitors from 26 other countries. On June 13, a state banquet for the royal visitors was held in the new Rama IX Throne Hall at the Grand Palace, the first official function for the hall. All the Thai television channels were tuned to this historical event, preempting coverage of the FIFA World Cup.
Private life
Bhumibol is an accomplished jazz musician and composer. He was awarded honorary membership of the Vienna Institute of Music and Arts at the age of 32. He used to play jazz music on air on the Or Sor radio station. In his travels, he has played with such jazz legends as Benny Goodman, Jack Teagarden, Lionel Hampton and Maynard Ferguson. His songs can often be heard at social gatherings and are performed in concerts. They can be listened to.
The King is also a painter, photographer, author and translator. His book Phra Mahachanok is based on a traditional Jataka story of Buddhist scripture. The story of Thong Daeng is the story of his dog Khun Thong Daeng. He is also the only monarch to hold a patent, holding one in 1993 for a waste water aerator named "Chai Pattana" and several patents on rainmaking since 1955: the "sandwich" rainmaking patent in 1999 and lately the "supersandwich" patent in 2004.
The King suffers from lumbar spine stenosis, a narrowing of the canal that contains the spinal cord and nerve roots, which results in back and leg pain and numbness in the legs. He received a microsurgical decompression in July 2006.[link][link]
Sailing
King Bhumibol is an accomplished sailer and sail-boat designer[link]. He won a gold medal for sailing in the Fourth Southeast Asian Peninsular (SEAP) Games in 1967, together with HRH Princess Ubol Ratana who he tied for points[link]. This accomplishment is all the more remarkable given King Bhumibol's lack of binocular depth perception. The King has also sailed the Gulf of Thailand from Hua Hin to Toey Harbour in Sattahip, covering 60 nautical miles in a 14-hour journey on the "Vega 1", an OK Class dinghy he built.Like his father, a former naval engineer, King Bhumibol was an avid boat designer and builder. He produced several small sail-boat designs in the International Enterprise, OK, and Moth Classes. His designs in the Moth class include the “Mod”, “Super Mod”, and “Micro Mod”.
King's wealth
King Bhumibol is one of the wealthiest men in the world. Estimates of the post-devaluation wealth of the royal household range from 2 billion to 8 billion USD (approx. 80 - 320 billion THB). The assets of the King, the Thai royal household, and palace properties are managed by the Crown Property Bureau (CPB) and Privy Purse. The CPB was established by the Constitution but is independent of the Thai Government. Through the CPB, the King owns equity in many companies, including Siam Cement (the largest Thai industrial conglomerate), Siam Commercial Bank (one of the largest banks), and Shin Corporation (one of the largest telecom companies; owned via SCB along with Temasek Holdings). One of the largest property owners in Thailand, the CPB rents or leases about 36,000 properties to third parties, including the sites of the Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok, the Suan Lum Night Bazaar, and Central World Tower.
Biographies
American journalist Paul Handley, who spent thirteen years in Thailand, wrote the biography The King Never Smiles. The Information and Communications Ministry banned the book and blocked the book's page on the Yale University Press website in January 2006. In a statement dated 19 January 2006, Thai National Police Chief General Kowit Wattana said the book has "contents which could affect national security and the good morality of the people."
The censored publicity materials at the Yale University Press website describe a book telling "the unexpected story of (King Bhumibol Adulyadej's) life and 60-year rule — how a Western-raised boy came to be seen by his people as a living Buddha, and how a king widely seen as beneficent and apolitical could in fact be so deeply political, autocratic, and even brutal... Blasting apart the widely accepted image of the king as egalitarian and virtuous, Handley convincingly portrays an anti-democratic monarch who, together with allies in big business and the murderous, corrupt Thai military, has protected a centuries-old, barely modified feudal dynasty." Yale University Press Senior Editor John Kulka has called the book an "interpretive biography".
William Stevenson, who had access to the Royal Court and the Royal Family, wrote the biography The Revolutionary King in 2001. An article in Time says the idea for the book was suggested by Bhumibol.
Critics noted that the book displays intimate knowledge about personal aspects of the King. However, the book has been banned in Thailand and the Royal Household Bureau has warned the Thai media about even referring to it in print. The book has been criticized for factual inaccuracies, disrespecting the King (it refers to Bhumibol by his family nickname "Lek"), and proposing a controversial theory explaining the death of King Ananda. "The King said from the beginning the book would be dangerous for him and for me," says Stevenson.
Succession to the throne
King Bhumibol's only son, Prince Vajiralongkorn, was given the title "Somdej Phra Boroma Orasadhiraj Chao Fah Maha Vajiralongkorn Sayam Makutrajakuman" (Crown Prince of Siam) on December 28, 1972 and made heir apparent to the throne in accordance with the Palace Law on Succession of 1924.On December 5, 1977, Princess Sirindhorn was given the title, "Sayam Boromrajakumari" (Royal Princess of Siam). Her title is often translated by the English-language press as "Crown Princess", although her official English-language title is simply "Princess".
Although the constitution was later amended to allow the Privy Council to appoint a princess as successor to the throne, this would only occur in the absence of a heir apparent. This amendment is retained in Section 23 of the current 1997 "People's Constitution." This effectively signaled Princess Sirindhorn as second in line to the throne, but did not affect Prince Vajiralongkorn's status as heir apparent.
Recent constitutions of Thailand have made the amendment of the Palace Law of Succession the sole prerogative of the King. According to Gothom Arya, former Election Commissioner, this allows the King, if he so chooses, to appoint his son or any of his daughters to the Throne. presented in Kathmandu, Nepal
See also
- The Golden Jubilee, the largest faceted diamond in the world, was presented to King Bhumibol Adulyadej on the 50th anniversary of his coronation.
- History of Thailand (1932-1973)
- History of Thailand since 1973
- Public Holidays in Thailand