The succession of the king of Thailand finds no light in the darkness: 7 children, 4 wives and no heir

BarcelonaIt is quite sad that one of the few real job assignments for royal families is to procreate until they obtain possible heirs to their throne and they cannot even succeed in that. This has happened in Europe on some occasions. Perhaps one of the most remembered is that of King Baudouin of the Belgians, who, together with his wife, Fabiola de Mora y Aragón, did not succeed, and the throne ended up being inherited by the monarch's brother, Albert, who was already 60 years old when he acceded to the headship of the Belgian state. If that case was sad because, despite trying, they unfortunately could not have children, the current case of Thailand is more convoluted, in which King Rama X has had 7 children and not one is suitable for the position, which will remain vacant when he is gone. And he is already 71 years old...

The first descendant of King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun, who reigns under the name Rama X, is Princess Bajrakitiyabha, the fruit of the monarch's marriage to Soamsawali Kitiyakara, a princess by birth and her husband's first cousin. Together they only had Bajrakitiyabha, a woman who is currently 47 years old and who has always been seen as a de facto heir by a large part of the country's public opinion. Discreet and committed to all sorts of causes, she was always admired for her solid university education both inside and outside the country, as well as for her subsequent diplomatic career. Born the firstborn and with an impeccable life curriculum, many thought that, even though the laws do not support her from the outset, she could one day hold the crown if the rules changed.

However, in 2022, misfortune struck her. According to Palau's report, she suffered a severe heart attack while walking the dogs in a natural park near one of Thailand's many royal residences and fell into a coma. A coma from which she has never woken up and about which there have recently been news. Although the Thai royal house gives fewer and fewer explanations about her, just over a week ago it had to issue a statement because rumors about her figure were circulating again. On this occasion, Palau has reported that an abdominal infection is jeopardizing the life of the princess, to whom all kinds of treatments are being applied to try to save her and keep her alive, even in her current poor condition.

After his cousin, the king married the actress Yuvadhida Polpraserth. With her he had five children, four sons and one daughter. The relationship, which did not sit well in the court's context, was official for years. Finally, however, it is unknown whether due to maneuvers by some internal Machiavelli or due to real disagreements, the king broke up with her and sidelined her. The unofficial accusation was that she had been unfaithful to him with a military officer close to the Palace. Following that, the monarch disowned his children with her and the actress left the country. She first settled in the United Kingdom and currently lives in the United States. Over time, only the daughter they share, Sirivannavari, has been authorized to return to Thailand, where her father rehabilitated her within the royal family. Currently, this 39-year-old woman is well-known in the country because she has great popularity on social media. In fact, she recently opened a fashion exhibition in Paris, a city where she lived for a few years.

Of all this string of children, none can inherit the throne, as one is on the verge of death and the rest are disqualified by Thai laws, which do not allow descendants who have been previously repudiated to inherit the title of king. Faced with this situation, the only one left is the last son the monarch had, Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, who is currently 21 years old and is the son of Srirasmi Suwadee, who met the king when he was a prince because she worked as a member of his personal service. This young man, to whom the position might presumably come a little too soon and who is not very popular in the country because he lives in Germany, is affected by another condition that has never been officially confirmed but that many media outlets take for granted: an autism spectrum disorder. This, according to current Thai regulations, would be an absolute impediment for him to be proclaimed king.

Without official designation

With this landscape, Rama X has not yet designated an heir, which he has the right to do, as it is not automatic by right of primogeniture there. In his country, this only applies if the monarch dies without having designated an heir from among his descendants. Women are not prohibited from reigning as they are in Japan, but they are subject to the condition that none of the men they have as brothers can exercise the position. That is to say, they can reign but only as a backup plan, even being surpassed by the descendants of their brothers.

Given all this, some observe in some of the sons that the king had with the exiled actress Yuvadhida Polpraserth a possible heir, even if he is not to his liking. In fact, the press in the Asian country has reported that Vacharaesorn Vivacharawongse, who is currently 45 years old, has returned there. Furthermore, his return, after almost 3 decades, has been notable not only for the time that has passed but also because he has returned to be ordained as a Buddhist monk, an indispensable ritual for any aspirant to the Thai crown. The lack of censorship by the authorities has led to the thought that perhaps the path to the throne is beginning to be smoothed for him, given that there is no other viable option. Despite this, there has also been no pronouncement in his favor from the Palace.

Rama X, who is currently married to former flight attendant Suthida Bajrasudha Bimalalakshana – with whom he has had no children and with whom it is foreseeable that he will not have any because she is already 47 years old –, has had a highly criticized public life. A life little comparable to that of his father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, revered almost as a god in Thailand after 70 years of reign. Having lived abroad while reigning in Thailand, a personal life full of ups and downs, the takeover of many assets of the Crown and the army, or the criticisms from Amnesty International or Human Rights Watch for how he has repressed opponents make his time on the throne – where he arrived just ten years ago – have been very disappointing. Not being able to continue a royal family with assets between 30 and 70 billion dollars would be the final blow.