It was reported that Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn, also known as Rama X, was waiting to greet her with a bouquet of flowers when she landed. Thailand’s Queen Suthida made history with her first solo flight in a Gripen fighter jet in Surat Thani on Thursday, October 8.
The appointment was widely reported as the first of its kind in almost a century. The historic flight has turned the spotlight on Thai monarchy and the ‘other women’ in the king’s life. (Also read: Thailand’s Queen Suthida takes to the skies for solo flight in fighter jet ) Thailand’s royal tradition of keeping royal consorts is rooted in the history of the Siamese monarchy, when kings could have multiple wives and consorts. For centuries, Siam — the former name of Thailand — had a royal court in which a king could have multiple wives and consorts. This was connected to dynastic succession, the need to produce royal heirs, social hierarchy and alliances between the monarchy and influential families. The word concubine is often used in English to describe these women, but it can oversimplify the arrangements. Women in the royal household could serve in different capacities, and some held formal court titles. The change was gradual rather than instantaneous. Rama V’s successor, King Vajiravudh (Rama VI), moved away from maintaining a polygamous royal household. Under King Prajadhipok (Rama VII), the monarchy formally embraced the principle of one husband and one wife in the 1920s. The Thai king has seven children by three previous marriages, all of which ended in divorce. (Also read: Thailand’s king Maha Vajiralongkorn reconciles with ousted consort ) When Vajiralongkorn ascended the throne as King Rama X, he appointed Sineenat as his Royal Noble Consort, giving her the noble title of Chao Khun Phra. Sineenat became the royal consort just two months after the king married Queen Suthida.
King Rama V, who ruled from 1868 until his death in 1910, is one of the best-known examples of a Siamese monarch with a large royal household. Historical accounts record that he had 77 children, born to numerous wives and consorts. (Also read: Disowned son of Thailand king becomes a Buddhist monk, renewing succession drama ) The shift towards monogamy was part of Siam’s broader transformation into a modern state in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when the kingdom sought to present itself as a modern, sovereign nation amid European colonial expansion. The current king of Thailand, King Maha Vajiralongkorn (also known as Rama X), brought the topic of polygyny back into public view in 2019 when he appointed Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi as his Royal Noble Consort, just over two months after marrying Queen Suthida. His marriage to Suthida in May 2019 was his fourth marriage.
The women in the harem were required to wear their hair short and carry a heart-shaped pendant around their necks to show their devotion to the king. All had been given the rank of major general. Oranong’s special position can be discerned by the fact that last month, she accompanied the king to an official event without the presence of the queen. Later, they traveled to Wat Benchamabophit to perform acts of merit in memory of King Chulalongkorn Rama V.
In October 2019, Sineenat was stripped of her titles, positions and military ranks, after the king accused her of misconduct and disloyalty, including attempting to rival the queen. In August 2020, the king restored her titles and ranks, with the palace declaring that the earlier revocation was invalid. In 2007, King Vajiralongkorn established a harem at the Grand Hotel Sonnenbichl in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, according to journalist Andrew MacGregor Marshall. “The youngest member of the harem, Oranong Suwannasri was born on September 8, 1992, in Roi Et province. She quickly became one of Vajiralongkorn’s favourites,” Marshall said in an X thread in 2024. The list included Oranong who, at 31, became one of the youngest generals in the Thai military.
Because of what followed, the episode became particularly striking.
In 2024, King Vajiralongkorn announced the promotion of five women to the role of “special” Royal Guards. The king and Oranong first visited Wat Boromniwas in Bangkok, according to a Vanitatis report.
