Vajiralongkorn

Vajiralongkorn
Crown Prince of Thailand
Spouse	Princess Soamsavali Kitiyakara (1977–1991) Yuvadhida Polpraserth (1994–1996) Srirasmi Akharapongpreecha (2001–present)
Issue
Princess Bajrakitiyabha Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti Prince Juthavachara Mahidol Prince Vacharaesorn Mahidol Prince Chakriwat Mahidol Prince Vacharawee Mahidol
House	House of Mahidol Chakri Dynasty
Father	King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX)
Mother	Queen Sirikit
Born	28 July 1952 (1952-07-28) (age 59) Bangkok, Thailand
Religion	Theravada Buddhism

Royal Family of Thailand
HM The King HM The Queen HRH The Crown Prince HRH Princess Srirasmi HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha HRH Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana HRH Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn HRH Princess Chulabhorn Walailak HRH Princess Siribhachudhabhorn HRH Princess Adityadhornkitikhun Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya Khun Ploypailin Jensen Khun Sirikitiya Jensen HRH Princess Soamsawali Thanpuying Dhasanawalaya Sornsongkram
v · d · e

Somdet Phra Boromma-orasathirat Chao Fa Maha Vajiralongkorn Sayammakutratchakuman (Thai: สมเด็จพระบรมโอรสาธิราช เจ้าฟ้ามหาวชิราลงกรณฯ สยามมกุฎราชกุมาร; RTGS: —Mahawachiralongkon—; Thai pronunciation: [má.hǎː wá.ʨʰí.rāː.lōŋ.kɔːn]; Literally: "Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, the Royal Son and Crown Prince of Siam") (born 28 July 1952)^[1] is the only son of Bhumibol Adulyadej, the King of Thailand, and Queen Sirikit. He is the current Crown Prince of Siam (Thailand) and heir apparent to the throne.

In 1972, at the age of 20, the king gave him the title "Somdech Phra Boroma Orasadhiraj Chao Fah Maha Vajiralongkorn Sayam Makutrajakuman", making him the Crown Prince and heir to the throne. He later graduated from the Royal Military College, Duntroon in Canberra, Australia. An officer in the Thai military, he trained with the Australian, British and United States armed services. He is a qualified military pilot and helicopter pilot. He took an active part in military operations against the Communist Party of Thailand during the 1970s, and also led combat operations against a Vietnamese military incursion across the border from Cambodia.

Early life

Vajiralongkorn was born in the Ambara Villa of the Dusit Palace in Bangkok. He was educated at a primary school in Bangkok, and then at private colleges in the United Kingdom (King's Mead School, Seaford and Millfield School, Somerset) and Australia (The King's School, Sydney).

Adult life

The Prince undertook military training at the Royal Military College, Duntroon in Canberra, Australia, and also completed an arts degree at Sukhothai Thammatirat University in Bangkok. Since 1975, he has served as a career officer in the Royal Thai Army. He served as a staff officer in the Directorate of Army Intelligence, and in 1978 he became head of the King's Own Bodyguard Battalion. In that year, however, he interrupted his military career to be ordained for a season as a Buddhist monk, as is customary for all Thai Buddhist males.

Vajiralongkorn trained for periods with the United States, British and Australian armed services, studying special forces demolition, unconventional warfare tactics and advanced navigation training. He is a qualified military pilot and a helicopter pilot. Although a military career is conventional for royal princes, Vajiralongkorn is unique in having taken an active part in military actions inside his own country. In the 1970s he led counter-insurgency campaigns against the forces of the Communist Party of Thailand in the North and Northeast of Thailand, and also took part in operations along the border with Cambodia during the years of the Khmer Rouge regime.

Role and responsibilities

Vajiralongkorn holds the ranks of General in the Royal Thai Army, Admiral in the Royal Thai Navy and Air Chief Marshal in the Royal Thai Air Force. He has been cited as the pilot of an RTAF F-16,^[2] and two Boeing 737s, HS-HRH^[3] and HS-CMV.^[4] His military role in recent years has become increasingly ceremonial. As his father has grown older, Vajiralongkorn has taken a more prominent part in royal ceremonial and public appearances.

He officially opened the 2007 Southeast Asian Games, held in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. The event coincided with the 80th birthday of his father Bhumibol.

Public and the media

HRH Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn's portrait on Rajdamnoen Road

Due to the lèse majesté law, criticism of the royal family is strictly prohibited in Thailand. However, Vajiralongkorn's private life continues to be a controversial subject of discussion, although not publicly. In the 10 January 2002 edition of the Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER), an article appeared suggesting that Vajiralongkorn had business ties with then Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. An immediate ban was placed on distribution of the magazine, and the Thai government, citing a threat to national security, suspended the visas of the FEER's two Thailand correspondents, Shawn Crispin and Rodney Tasker.^[5]

In 2002, The Economist wrote that, "Vajiralongkorn is held in much less esteem (than the king.) Bangkok gossips like to swap tales of his lurid personal life...Besides, no successor, however worthy, can hope to equal the stature King Bhumibol has attained after 64 years on the throne." This issue of The Economist was banned in Thailand. In 2010, another issue of The Economist (which was not distributed in Thailand) asserted that Vajiralongkorn is "widely loathed and feared" and "unpredictable to the point of eccentricity",^[6] while the online journal Asia Sentinel alleged that he is "regarded as erratic and virtually incapable of ruling"^[7] and was blocked shortly thereafter.^[8] In a diplomatic cable leaked by WikiLeaks, senior Singaporean foreign ministry official Bilahari Kausikan asserted that Vajiralongkorn has a gambling habit which was partly funded by now exiled former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.^[9]

On 12 November 2009, a home video was released to Wikileaks showing Vajiralongkorn and a topless Princess Srirasmi celebrating the birthday of the Prince's poodle dog.^[10] Part of this video was broadcast on the 'Foreign Correspondent' programme on the Australian government's ABC TV channel on 13 April 2010, as part of a half-hour documentary critical of the Royal family of Thailand.^[11]

On 19 January 2009, Harry Nicolaides, an Australian national, was sentenced to three years in prison for self-publishing a fictional book deemed to have committed lèse majesté (later Nicolaides was pardoned by the king). The offending passage alluded to rumors that "if the prince fell in love with one of his minor wives and she betrayed him, she and her family would disappear with their name, familial lineage and all vestiges of their existence expunged forever."^[12][13] The global news network CNN refused to air the passage.^[14]

In July 2011, the German judicial authorities in Munich impounded an aircraft, Boeing 737, belonging to Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn. Administrators seized the aircraft subject to a 20 year old debt of the Thai government to a now-defunct German construction corporation that has risen to some 30 million euros. The German authorities, who currently administer the corporation's interests in bankruptcy, have stated the measure was a "last resort" in accounting for the debt. The Thai government, which had theretofore not responded to German demands, called the move "highly inappropriate."^{[15] [16]} On 1 August Vajiralongkorn's office announced, he would pay the deposit amounting to 20 million Euro himself.^[17] One day later the Thai foreign minister Kasit Piromya confirmed that the Thai government would really pay the deposit.^[18]

Family

Royal flag of HRH Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn

On 3 January 1977 Vajiralongkorn married Princess Soamsavali Kitiyakara (born 1957), a first cousin on his mother's side. They had one daughter, Princess Bajrakitiyabha in 1978. Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn started living with actress Yuvadhida Polpraserth in the late 1970s and had several children with her. Although Princess Soamsavali had refused divorce for many years, Vajiralongkorn was finally able to sue for divorce in the Family Court in January 1993. In the court proceedings, Vajiralongkorn accused Princess Soamsavali of being completely at fault for the failed relationship. She was not able to refute the charges due to the prohibition against lèse majesté. The divorce was finalized in July 1993.^[19] Princess Soamsavali and her daughter continue to play a significant role in royal ceremonies.

When Vajiralongkorn was introduced to Yuvadhida Polpraserth, she was an aspiring actress. She became his steady companion and gave birth to his first son, Prince Juthavachara Mahidol, on 29 August 1979. He later had three other sons and a daughter by her. They were married at a palace ceremony in February 1994, where they were blessed by the King and the Princess Mother, but not by the Queen. After the marriage, she was allowed to change her name to Mom Sujarinee Mahidol na Ayudhaya, signifying she was a commoner married to a royal. Sujarinee was also commissioned as a major in the army and took part in royal ceremonies with Vajiralongkorn. When she fled to Britain in 1996 with their children, Vajiralongkorn had posters around his palace accusing her of committing adultery with Anand Rotsamkhan, a 60-year-old air marshal.^[20] The prince abducted their daughter and brought her back to Thailand to live with him. Their daughter was later elevated to the rank of Princess whilst Sujarinee and her sons were stripped of their diplomatic passports. She and her sons later moved to the United States. As of 2007, Sujarinee is known as Sujarinee Vivacharawongse.

Vajiralongkorn married again, on 10 February 2001, to Srirasmi Akharaphongpreecha, a commoner from an otherwise modest background who had been in his service since 1992. The marriage was not disclosed to the public until early 2005. She gave birth to a son, Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, on 29 April 2005 and was elevated to become Princess Srirasmi, Mom Srirasmi Mahidol na Ayuthaya. The son was immediately elevated to the rank of Prince. In a magazine interview, Vajiralongkorn stated his intention to settle down.^[21]

Royal cypher of Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn

Styles of Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn of Thailand
Reference style	His Royal Highness
Spoken style	Your Royal Highness
Alternative style	Sir

Children

With Princess Soamsavali Kitiyakara:

• HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha, born 7 December 1978 (1978-12-07) (age 32).

With Mom Sujarinee Mahidol na Ayudhaya:

• HSH Prince Juthavachara Mahidol, born 29 August 1979 (1979-08-29) (age 32)
• HSH Prince Vacharaeson Mahidol, born 27 May 1981 (1981-05-27) (age 30)
• HSH Prince Chakriwat Mahidol, born 26 February 1983 (1983-02-26) (age 28)
• HSH Prince Vacharawee Mahidol, born 14 June 1985 (1985-06-14) (age 26)
• HSH Princess Busya Nambejira Mahidol (later changed to Siriwanwari), born 8 January 1987 (1987-01-08) (age 24). Elevated to HRH Princess Siriwannawari Nariratana by royal command on 15 June 2005.

With HRH Princess Srirasmi (elevated to HRH on 15 June 2005) :

• HRH Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, born 29 April 2005 (2005-04-29) (age 6)

Ancestry

References

1. ^ "Old school ties" Bangkok Post, 22 Aug. 2006.
2. ^ "Royal Thai Air Force F-16 Special Color Schemes". F-16 Aircraft Database. http://www.f-16.net/aircraft-database/F-16/special-color-schemes/airforce/RTAF/. Retrieved 22 Jan 2010. "Local S/N:10318 ; AF/Unit:RTAF; Aircraft:91-0067; Details: Wore a special camouflage scheme only worn by RTAF F-5s in the agressor role. Instead of the regular USAF FY/N on the tail, there is no. 904.91. The markings below the cockpit indicate that this is the personal aircraft of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn of Thailand." 
3. ^ "Thailand – Air Force Boeing 737–400 HS-HRH – Kuala Lumpur – Int (Sepang) Photo". 6 Dec 2007. http://www.airplane-pictures.net/image8385.html. Retrieved 22 Jan 2010. "Thai prince special ride departing after attending Malaysia's 50th independence day [31 Aug 2007]" ,
4. ^ Danijel Jovanovic. "Picture of the Boeing 737-4Z6 aircraft". airliners.net. http://www.airliners.net/photo/Thailand---Air/Boeing-737-4Z6/1582769/&sid=3dc2a42911429f40b2b3570eaecfea48. Retrieved 22 Jan 2010. "HS-CMV / 11–111 (cn 27906/2698) Probably one of the specials of the whole year! The Thai prince flying out the Inn valley in front of the mountains. What a beautiful sight!" 
5. ^ Duncan. McCargo, Media and Politics in Pacific Asia, page 146
6. ^ "As father fades, his children fight". The Economist. 18 March 2010. http://www.economist.com/opinion/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15718981&source=hptextfeature. 
7. ^ More Lèse majesté Charges in Thailand Asia Sentinel, 1 April 2010
8. ^ Thailand – Grenade attacks and online censorship amid mounting political tension FromTheOld, 30 March 2010
9. ^ Dorling, Philip; McKenzie, Nick (12 December 2010). "Top Singapore officials trash the neighbours". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.smh.com.au/world/top-singapore-officials-trash-the-neighbours-20101211-18thg.html. 
10. ^ Suppressed video of Thai Crown Prince and Princess at decadent dog party Wikileaks, 12 November 2009
11. ^ Foreign Correspondent
12. ^ Thais detain Aussie writer, The Australian, 5 September 2008
13. ^ Thai court jails Australian novelist for three years over royal 'insult', The Scotsman, 19 January 2009
14. ^ Author jailed for insulting Thai king, CNN.com, 19 January 2009
15. ^ "Germany Impounds Thai Prince Vajiralongkorn's Jet". BBC online. 2011-07-13. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-14138273. Retrieved 2011-07-14. 
16. ^ "Plane stupid: the damage is done". The Nation. 19 July 2011. http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2011/07/19/opinion/Plane-stupid-the-damage-is-done-30160562.html. Retrieved 20 July 2011. "The Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) confirmed the Thai government's contention that the RTAF in 2007 presented the Boeing 737 jet to the Prince for his personal use." 
17. ^ "Is the dispute with Walter Bau coming to an end?". Bangkok Pundit. 2011-08-02. http://asiancorrespondent.com/61511/is-the-dispute-with-walter-bau-coming-to-an-end/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BangkokPundit+%28Bangkok+Pundit%29. Retrieved 2011-08-02. 
18. ^ "Government pays for Crown Prince's Boeing". Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. 2011-08-02. http://www.faz.net/artikel/C31325/thailand-regierung-zahlt-doch-fuer-gepfaendete-kronprinzen-boeing-30477950.html. Retrieved 2011-08-02. 
19. ^ Nonthaburi Family Court, Documents of Case #79/2536, 14 January 2007
20. ^ Christy Campbell (20 October 1996). "Adultery princess casts shadow on untouchables". Web archive. The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 24 October 1996. http://www.yasni.co.uk/ext.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgroups.google.co.uk%2Fg%2Faee7fefd%2Ft%2Fd3ffae104c2a1377%2Fd%2F6c4a07a964374ad8%253Fq%253D%252522Anand%252BRotsamkhan%252522%25236c4a07a964374ad8%26ei%3DiGwTS6eaOpW8Qpmqic0O%26sa%3Dt%26ct%3Dres%26cd%3D1%26source%3Dgroups%26usg%3DAFQjCNF5Qhu7fKla90mz5_m_nzIIi_3clg&name=Anand+Rotsamkhan&cat=filter&showads=1. Retrieved 20 July 2011. "WHEN the Queen and Prince Philip arrive in Bangkok next week to begin their state visit to Thailand they will find sanctuary from media salaciousness." 
21. ^ "Simplicity, warmth win hearts," The Nation

Further reading

• Paul M. Handley, The King Never Smiles, Yale University Press, 2006

Vajiralongkorn House of Chakri Born: 28 July 1952
Thai royalty
Vacant Title last held by Vajiravudh	Crown Prince of Thailand 1972 – present	Incumbent
First Heir apparent	Line of succession to the Thai throne 1st position	Succeeded by Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti