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1864-1919
 

The Royal Children
of HM The Regent Queen
were:

  Princess Bahurad Manimaya
  King Rama VI
  Prince Tribej Rutamadhamrong
  Prince Chakrabongse Bhuvanath
  Prince Siriraj Kakudhabhandhu
  Princess (died young)
  Prince Asdang Dejavudh
  Prince Chudadhuj Dharadilok
  King Rama VII
 
 

HM Queen Sri Bajarindra
The Regent Queen

Related Links

  The Queens of Siam


 
 
The Queen and her sons
Her Majesty Queen Sri Bajarindra was born Her Royal Highness Princess Saovabha Phongsri on 1 January 1864 to His Majesty King Mongkut (Rama IV).  She was the youngest of three sisters to become consort to their half-brother, His Majesty King Chulalongkorn (Rama V).

Marriage within the family
It may sound a little unconventional for brothers and sisters to marry, but to the Thai Royal customs of the old days, a high ranking princess was forbidden to marry a commoner, not even if she wanted to relinquish her title.  It was only until 1932 that such marriages were accepted, but only after relinquishing the royal title.  Therefore, it made sense to marry their own brothers and sisters or cousins, at that time.  The inter-marriage in effect produced children who died young, due to the mixing of the same blood.  It is noticeable that the royals who have commoner mothers tend to live longer, some to over 100 years old.

Power struggle?
The Princess Saovabha Phongsri was created Queen (Somdetch Phra Nang Chao Saovabha Phongsri Phra Baromma Rajini Nath) on 21 March 1897, after her eldest son, Prince Maha Vajiravudh, became the second Crown Prince of Siam in 1895.  There were rumours and gossips to this day that there might have been a power struggle between the Regent Queen and her sister, the Queen Consort Savang Vadhana, who's son, Prince Maha Vajirunhis, was the first Crown Prince, but died young.  There are debates as to why the power has shifted to the younger sister, hence her eldest son became the second crown prince.  The answer is that there was no power struggle as the then Prince Vajiravudh was the King's second eldest son who held the title of "Chao Fa," a title that meant a royal prince who also had a mother of royal blood.  In addition, Queen Savang had many daughters, while Queen Sri Bajarindra had all sons.  Naturally, the title of Crown Prince would pass to the next highest ranking Prince.

One Queen vs two, three, or four theory
Contrary to the modern understanding that there were more than one queen during King Rama V's reign, Queen Sri Bajarindra was the only queen, as well as the first regent queen in Thai history, during the times when the king made state visits abroad.  The title of "Queens" were only used on the other three royal wives during the present and last reign.  This was because Queen Savang Vadhana was grandmother to both King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII) and the present King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX).  In the Thai language though, they were created "Somdetch Pra," but the title "Rajini" (queen) was not added at the end of their names.  Therefore, the other "queens" were not queens as such.  Yet, because in the English language there is no title that could match a "Somdetch Pra" of the Thai language: they only limit to queens and princesses and nothing in between, these royal ladies were therefore queens.  And, the other sisters were given such a high-ranking title because they all were women of royal blood; they were daughters of King Rama IV, hence half-sisters to King Rama V.

It is also argueable that Queen Sri Bajarindra was the first queen of Siam by Western standard, as the title of "queen" is in fact western, and not Thai.  The royal wives of Kings Rama I, II, III, and IV were ranked according to their heritage, and thus the royal wives, who were all of royal blood, daughters of a king, became known as queens of Siam, so not to confuse westerners.  Yet, the Thai titles were elborate and befitting their royal status, they cannot be translated into other languages, so the only western title that could match these titles would be that of "queen."  So then, all the wives of a king, who were also of royal blood,  were in fact queens of Siam.  Well, I hope you get the point anyway.

The other Queens
Queen Sri Bajarindra's other sisters were Somdetch Phra Sri Savarindira Baromma Raja Devi (Queen Savang Vadhana) 1862-1955, and Somdetch Pra Nang Chao Sunanda Kumariratana (Queen Sunanda Kumariratana) 1860-1880.  Another half-sister was Queen Sukhumala Marasri (1861-1927) who was also a daughter of King Monkut and another wife. 

The Regent Queen
Queen Sri Bajarindra was known for her sense of style, as well as one who made an impact on the issues for women.  She established the first school for girls, the Rajini School (The Queen School), as during her time, ladies were not given an education equivalent to that of the men.  She was created the Regent Queen (Rajini Nath) to see the affairs of the Kingdom while the King made visits abroad.  The only other Queen to hold such a rank is the present Queen Sirikit, who was regent while the King was ordained as a monk, a practice common to Thai men of the Buddhist religion.

Her Majesty Queen Sri Bajarindra died during the reign of her son, King Vajiravudh, in 1919 at the age of 55.