The 11th Infantry Regiment, King's Close Bodyguard ( th, กรมทหารราบที่ 11 มหาดเล็กราชวัลลภรักษาพระองค์) (ร.11 ทม.รอ.) is a

King's Guard The King's Guard and King's Life Guard (called the Queen's Guard and the Queen's Life Guard when the reigning monarch is female) are the contingents of infantry and cavalry soldiers charged with guarding the official royal residences in the ...

regiment under the 1st Division, King's Guard of the

Royal Thai Army The Royal Thai Army or RTA ( th, กองทัพบกไทย; ) is the army of Thailand and the oldest and largest branch of the Royal Thai Armed Forces. History Origin The Royal Thai Army is responsible for protecting the kingdom's ...

. The regiment is divided into three battalions, all of them based in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

. Formerly having a duty to guard the palace in the reign of

King Mongkut Mongkut ( th, มงกุฏ; 18 October 18041 October 1868) was the fourth monarch of Siam (Thailand) under the House of Chakri, titled Rama IV. He ruled from 1851 to 1868. His full title in Thai was ''Phra Bat Somdet Phra Menthora Ramathibo ...

to practice military subjects in order to perform effective and set up a Royal Palace Guard Regiment or the army surrounded the palace with the blue uniform is likely to come from the color of Krom Wang (Bureau of the Lord Chamberlain) uniforms. The reign of

King Chulalongkorn Chulalongkorn ( th, จุฬาลงกรณ์, 20 September 1853 – 23 October 1910) was the fifth monarch of Siam under the House of Chakri, titled Rama V. He was known to the Siamese of his time as ''Phra Phuttha Chao Luang'' (พร� ...

please

King Vajiravudh Vajiravudh ( th, วชิราวุธ, , 1 January 188126 November 1925) was the sixth monarch of Siam under the Chakri dynasty as Rama VI. He ruled from 23 October 1910 until his death in 1925. King Vajiravudh is best known for his effort ...

, when he was the Siamese Crown Prince as a special colonel of the regiment which makes the unit have a bond with King Vajiravudh. Later, when King Vajiravudh ascended the throne he was accepted as a special commander of the Regiment which His Majesty's color is blue.

History

The Royal Guards were established by King Mongkut (Rama IV) of Siam to serving and protect the monarchy by acting as a custody unit and supervise the safety situation neatness in the fence around the royal court, which led to commoners referring to them as the "Tahan Lorm Wang" (The palace bodyguards). In the past political history of The 11th Infantry Regiment is considered an important role. Especially when any event occurs which led to the undermining of national security, then the 11th Infantry Regiment would take him to join one of the main forces of security as in the past such as Boworadet rebellion,

Franco-Thai War The Franco-Thai War (October 1940 – January 28, 1941, th, กรณีพิพาทอินโดจีน, Krṇī phiphāth xindocīn; french: Guerre franco-thaïlandaise) was fought between History of Thailand (1932–1973), Thailand an ...

Manhattan Rebellion The Manhattan Rebellion ( th, กบฏแมนฮัตตัน) was a failed coup attempt by officers of the Royal Thai Navy against the government of Prime Minister Plaek Pibulsonggram (Phibun) on 29–30 June 1951. They took the prime mini ...

including

Communist insurgency in Thailand The communist insurgency in Thailand was a guerrilla war lasting from 1965 until 1983, fought mainly between the Communist Party of Thailand (CPT) and the government of Thailand. The war began to wind down in 1980 following the declaration of an ...

. During

2010 Thai political protests The 2010 Thai political protests were a series of political protests that were organised by the United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) (also known as "Red Shirts (Thailand), Red Shirts") in Bangkok, Thailand from 12 March–19 M ...

11th Infantry Regiment become a main role for Centre for Resolution of Emergency Situation to control protests of

United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship The United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) ( th, แนวร่วมประชาธิปไตยต่อต้านเผด็จการแห่งชาติ; นปช., alternatively translated as National Demo ...

. 11th Infantry Regiment under the command of Colonel

Thanom Kittikachorn Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn ( th, ถนอม กิตติขจร, ; 11 August 1911 – 16 June 2004) was the leader of Thailand from 1963 to 1973, during which he staged a self-coup, until public protests which exploded into viole ...

was established as a King's Guard unit in His Majesty

King Bhumibol Adulyadej Bhumibol Adulyadej ( th, ภูมิพลอดุลยเดช; ; ; (Sanskrit: ''bhūmi·bala atulya·teja'' - "might of the land, unparalleled brilliance"); 5 December 192713 October 2016), conferred with the title King Bhumibol the Great ...

on 20 January 1949. The Royal Guards still exist down to the present and serve as protectors of the Royal Family of Thailand. On 18 January 2019, the unit has renamed to 11th King's Own Bodyguard Regiment. Then, on 23 April 2019, the unit has renamed again to 11th Infantry Regiment, King's Close Bodyguard. On October 1, 2019, the unit was transferred to be directly to Royal Security Command under the command of King Maha Vajiralongkorn, along with 1st Infantry Regiment.

Organization

Active

* 1st Infantry Battalion, 11th King's Own Bodyguard Regiment (King Vajiralongkorn's Own Guards) * 2nd Infantry Battalion, 11th King's Own Bodyguard Regiment (King Vajiralongkorn's Own Guards) * 3rd Infantry Battalion, 11th King's Own Bodyguard Regiment (King Vajiralongkorn's Own Guards)

Uniforms

The 1st and 2nd battalions wears a ceremonial uniform of scarlet blue and black facings and a

bearskin A bearskin is a tall fur cap, usually worn as part of a ceremonial military uniform. Traditionally, the bearskin was the headgear of grenadiers, and remains in use by grenadier and guards regiments in various armies. Bearskins should not be c ...

-styled cap based on the British Army Foot Guards with a row of single buttons (similar to those used by the British

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

Notable members

* Crown Prince Maha Vajiravudh (later King Rama VI) Special Colonel of the regiment *Field Marshal

, Commander of the regiment, Prime Minister of Thailand (1963-1973,1958), Former Commander-in-Chief of the

, Former Supreme Commander of the Royal Thai Armed Forces *General

Apirat Kongsompong Apirat Kongsompong ( th, อภิรัชต์ คงสมพงษ์; ; born 23 March 1960) was the Commander in Chief of the Royal Thai Army from 1 October 2018 to 30 September 2020. He currently serves as the Vice-Chamberlain of the Roya ...

, Commander of the regiment, Former Commander-in-Chief of the

(2018-2020) *General Pornpipat Benyasri, Former Chief of Defence Forces (2018-2020)

Gallery

File:Unit colours of the 2nd Infantry Battalion, 11th Infantry Regiment, King's Guard.jpg, Unit colours of the 2nd Infantry Battalion, 11th Infantry Regiment, King's Guard File:Soldiers from 11th Infantry Regiment on guarding the first funeral procession of King Rama IX.jpg, Soldiers from 11th Infantry Regiment on guarding the first funeral procession of King Rama IX File:11th Infantry Regiment, King's Guard..png, 11th Infantry Regiment, King's Guard in 2019

References

{{Military of Thailand King's Guard units of Thailand Military units and formations established in 1902 Thailand Royal Guards 1902 establishments in Siam Guards regiments