Thailand has a lot of holidays. Maka Bucha Day. Visakha Bucha Day. Mother’s Day. Father’s Day. Constitution Day. Ploughing Day.
Yesterday was another one of Thailand’s many holidays: Chulalongkorn Day, which commemorates and honors King Chulalongkorn, also known Rama V, on the day of his death.
King Chulalongkorn reigned Siam from 1868 until his death in 1910 at the age of 57. Thailand and Thais owe him the majority of the credit when they brag about never having been colonized. His rule is also marked by introducing many modernizing policies and reforms. Most Westerners may be familiar with him as a student of Anna Leonowens, whose story was turned into the play and movie “The King and I.”
Early Life and Ascending to the Throne
Born in 1853, he rose to the throne at age 16. His father, King Mongkut contracted malaria while going to check to see if his calculations for a solar eclipse were correct and on his deathbed instructed that “whoever you all the senior officials think will be able to save our country will succeed my throne, choose at your own will.”
Chulalongkorn had also contracted malaria and was feared to be dying as well, but survived and the senior officials had his coronation on November 11, 1868. He then studied public affairs and observed modern administration of the British and Dutch colonies of India and Java, which gave him many ideas for reforms to introduce in Siam. He became king in his own right on November 16, 1873.
Reforms and Modernizations
One of the first reforms that Chulalongkorn introduced was establishing the Auditory Office, creating a centralized tax collection body rather than relying solely on corrupt tax collectors at the village level, which also ended up funneling money away from a member of the nobility who was getting a little to close with the British, who were considered the enemy.
Later, he reformed the feudal politics to give the king more power.
He also established the Royal Military Academy in 1887 and trained the Siamese military in accordance with Western standards, which allowed him to centralize the government of the country. This gave him the ability to abolish methods of torture in the judiciary process and bring in a Western judiciary code.
Other reforms that the king introduced were the Monthon system, which divided the country up into provinces, cities, amphurs, dtambons and mubaans (descending order of size).
Chulalongkorn’s Wives and Children
Chulalongkorn had 96 consorts and father 77 children and he was the first king to send his children to study abroad. There, the princes picked up the liberal ideas of democracy and elections and urged their father to press for Siam to become a constitutional monarchy, which he agreed with but said that the country was not ready yet.
Negotiations to Maintain Independence
It was the Franco-Siamese War of 1893 where Chulalongkorn flexed his negotiation skills and effectively prevented Siam from becoming colonized. By giving up territory, which now makes up present-day parts of Cambodia and Laos, he was able to avert a full blown escalation of battle. This incident inspired Chulalongkorn to visit Europe, the first Siamese monarch to do so, to ensure that Siam was recognized as as fully independent and honorable.
Recognizing Chulalongkorn in Modern Times
He died on October 23, 1910 from kidney disease, and was much loved and greatly revered by the Thai people. As such, it is not uncommon to see his portrait in people’s homes or places of business and on October 23 people wear pink (because he was born on a Tuesday) and pay their respects to the various memorials to him, including the Royal Equestrian Statue in front of Dusit Palace in Bangkok, which I stopped by yesterday, myself.
Casual travelers may be familiar with Chulalongkorn through his depiction on the back of the 100 baht note, which commemorates another one of his big accomplishments: freeing the slaves. After seeing the bloodshed of the American Civil War, he set forth on abolishing the practice to avoid such a situation in Siam.
