Royal love triangle: the Thai King and his two wives

Born on 28 July 1952, Maha Vajiralongkorn is the current ruling king of Thailand.

Thailand follows the rule of male primogeniture, which is a patriarchal succession law, where only the first born male child of the current monarch will have rights to inherit his parent’s rule.

Born as the only male child of King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit, Vajiralongkorn became the only person entitled to succeed the Thai throne and naturally did so upon his father’s passing.

Vajiralongkorn has married five times and divorced three times. The list of wives and ex-wives consists of Soamsawali Kitiyakara, Yuvadhida Polpraserth, Srirasmi Suwadee, Suthida Tidjai, and Niramon Ounprom.

Currently, Vajiralongkorn is married to Suthida Tidjai who serves as the current Thai queen, and Niramon Ounprom (titled Sineenat), who is the royal consort. The situation of the queen and the consort is remarkable and has caused some controversy in the Asian country.

Born on 3 June 1978, Suthida Tidjai is the queen of Thailand. From Reuters, she was given the official title and name Queen Suthida Vajiralongkorn na Ayudhaya upon her marriage to Vajiralongkorn on 1 May 2019.

According to Reuters, Queen Suthida graduated from Assumption University and holds a bachelor’s degree in communications. Subsequently, she became an air stewardess for JALways Airlines and Thai Airways from 2003 to 2008.

The New Straits Times reports that Suthida first met Vajiralongkorn during a charity event in 2007, when he operated an aircraft for Thai Airways. She was still an air stewardess at the time.

Switching careers in 2013, Suthida entered into the Royal Army of Thailand - a route not uncommon for women in the country. She was appointed as commander of the Crown Prince’s guard detail in 2014.

After the death of King Bumibol, Suthida was appointed as general of Vajiralongkorn's bodyguard detail in 2016. A year later, she was appointed as deputy commander of the Royal Guard.

The Washington Post reports that although Suthida was often seen with Vajiralongkorn, their romance and relationship was not officially confirmed until they had a surprise wedding ceremony just days before Vajiralongkorn’s official coronation.

Born on 26 January 1985, Niramon Ounprom is the first consort to be officially appointed in Thailand in over a century.

She was officially given the noble title of Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi, Sineenat for short, when Thai king Vajiralongkorn ascended the throne in 2019. Her appointment was made only two months after the king’s marriage to Suthida, The Straits Times reports.

Before being crowned the Thai Royal Consort, Sineenat had worked as a nurse. She had earned a bachelor’s degree in Nursing at the Royal Thai Army Nursing College in 2008.

Sineenat was in constant contact with military officers while she worked as a military nurse. According to The Nation, she eventually got a more direct role in the Thai military when she enrolled in the Ratchawallop Police Retainers and rose to the rank of colonel in 2015.

Rolling Stone reports that Sineenat isn’t just a pretty face. In addition to her training as a nurse, the Thai Consort is also proficient in jungle warfare, combat, parachuting, and piloting private aircrafts.

Not much is known about the beginnings of her relationship with Vajiralongkorn, but it is assumed that it developed while she worked as his bodyguard whilst he was still the crown prince of Thailand.

(Image: Udonthani Thai-Chinese Cultural Center)

The Straits Times reports that soon after her appointment, Sineenat was accused of trying to take Suthida’s position as queen. In the already unusual situation of two wives for the king, this presumed conflict caused a major scandal in Thailand.

(Image: Education National Museum Bangkok)

In response to the (perceived) rivalry, Vajiralongkorn made the announcement to oust Sineenat from her position as consort. He decided to strip Sineenat of her official rank and royal titles just months after her appointment.

(Image: Phuket Rajabhat University)

At that point, the situation seemed bleak for the expelled royal consort. Vajiralongkorn has a reputation for persecuting his exes. With the exception of his first wife Soamsawali Kitiyakara - who is his royal cousin - all his ex-wives have been either exiled from Thailand or have had their relatives prosecuted for offending royalty.

In a startling turn of events, however, the Thai Royal Palace declared in September 2020 that  Sineenat’s rank and titles were to be returned to her. To this day, no one knows the reasons for the consort’s sudden reinstatement.

(Image: Phuket Rajabhat University)

The South China Morning Post suggests that now all is well in the Thai royal love triangle. It even reports that there are chances of giving Sineenat a promotion. If this is true, she would become the second queen of Thailand, sharing the same powers as the current (sole) queen Suthida.

(Image: Thai Royal Office)

The story of the king and his two wives is far from over. Many questions are still unanswered about what goes on behind the gates of the palace.

(Image: Thai Royal Office)