Brief Biography of
His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej

His Majesty the King was born on Monday the 5th of December 1927, at Mount Auburn Hospital, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.A., being the third and youngest child of Their Royal Highnesses Prince and Princess Mahidol of Songkla.

His Majesty attended the Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Romande, Chailly sur Lausanne. Later on he moved to the Gymnase Classique Cantonal of Lausanne from where he received his Bachelier s lettres diploma. He then chose to enter Lausanne University to study science, but the sudden death of his elder brother, King Ananda Mahidol, in Bangkok on the 9th of June, 1946, changed the course of his life completely, for the Law of Succession bestowed on him the arduous but challenging function of the Thai Crown. The Government on behalf of the people came to ask the Princess Mother for her other son to be their King. As he had not finished his education, His Majesty decided to go back to Switzerland for another period of study, but this time in the subject of Political Science and Law in order to equip himself with the proper knowledge for government.

Following the completion of his education in Switzerland in the early 1950s, His Majesty returned home to Thailand. In the years following, he began what has become his way of life - traveling throughout the year to the provinces and rural areas of the kingdom to visit his people, talk to them and, perhaps even more important, listen to them. He learns first hand of their needs and their problems and then sets about trying to find a way of giving immediate help; later these problems are studied in depth to find a permanent solution or way of assistance.

 

The Flag

The flag of the Kingdom of Siam was created during the reign of King Rama II and flew on all Siamese sea-going vessels. The symbol of a white elephant on a red background was chosen because white elephants are considered very auspicious by Thais. King Rama II was known as the 'White Elephant King' as he had three of these noble animals in his possession during his reign. The present national flag , the "Trai-rong" or three colors , was designed by King Rama VI and was first used on September 28, 1917.

The five horizontal stripes of three colors-red, white, and blue-have very significant meanings. Red signifies the life-blood of Thai people; the white stripe symbolizes the purity of Buddhism, the national religion; and the dominant blue stripe, the monarchy and the important part it plays in the daily life of the Thai people.

Another version: The flag originally had a red stripe in the center, but it was changed to blue to show support of its World War I allies. The color red symbolizes blood shed for the country.