General Pao Pienlert Boripanyutakit ( th, เภา เพียรเลิศ บริภัณฑ์ยุทธกิจ; November 10, 1893March 4, 1970) was a Thai political figure who served as a Minister of Finance and Minister of Commerce.

Biography

Pao was the second oldest of 12 children. He lived and studied in military school in Thailand until the age of 16 at which time he went abroad to continue military study on full scholarship. He first studied in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

until

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

broke out, after which he was transferred to Switzerland and later to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

when Thailand participated in World War I at École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr to complete his education. He also served as an assistant to the

Defence Attaché Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indust ...

at the embassy in Paris during his study and after graduation. He returned to Thailand at the age of 28 and served as an army official until the King granted his official title as Phra Boripanyutakit at the age of 36. He was named one of the 19 highest-ranking officials in his nation's army, serving as a liaison between the

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 so ...

and the Allies force during

. He spoke fluent French, German, and English. He served as the

Minister of Commerce A Commerce minister (sometimes business minister, industry minister, trade minister or international trade minister) is a position in many governments that is responsible for regulating external trade and promoting economic growth (commercial polic ...

for 8 terms (February 12, 1935 to February 16, 1942, from May 29, 1948 to November 29, 1951, and again from March 31, 1957 to September 16, 1957). He served as the

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

for two different terms, from December 17, 1941 – August 1, 1944 and December 8, 1951 – March 30, 1953. He also served for a very brief period as

Minister of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister ...

in 1951 in the aftermath of the Silent Coup. His most notable contribution to finance was that he helped established the

foreign currency exchange A bureau de change (plural bureaux de change, both ) (British English) or currency exchange (American English) is a business where people can exchange one currency for another. Nomenclature Although originally French, the term "bureau de chan ...

of Thailand in 1955. In commerce, he helped industrialize the enamelling process for porcelain and metals commercially, started the export program for the rice industry in Thailand, and helped to create the first

seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...

in Thailand.

Biography

References

Further reading