Phraya The Thai nobility was a social class comprising titled officials (''khunnang'', th, ขุนนาง) in the service of Thai monarchy, the monarchy. They formed part of a hierarchical social system which developed from the time of the Ayutthaya K ...

Manopakorn Nitithada ( th, พระยามโนปกรณ์นิติธาดา; ; born Kon Hutasingha ( th, ก้อน หุตะสิงห์; ); 15 July 1884 – 1 October 1948) was the first Prime Minister of Siam after the Siamese Revolution of 1932 as he was selected by the leader of the People's Party – the party that instigated the revolution. However, in the following year, Manoparkorn was ousted by a coup in 1933 due to the conflicts between members of People's Party.

Early life

Kon Hutasingha was born on 15 July 1884 in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, 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 estima ...

to Huad and Paew Hutasingha ( Thai: นายฮวด กับนางแพ้ว หุตะสิงห์), both of whom were of

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

extraction. He received his primary education at

Suankularb Wittayalai School Suankularb Wittayalai School (โรงเรียนสวนกุหลาบวิทยาลัย) (also known as Suankularb College) literally ''Rose Garden College'' is an all-boys secondary school for grades 7 through 12 in Bangkok, T ...

in Bangkok. He pursued his law education at Assumption College and at the Law School of the

Ministry of Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry. Lists of current ministries of justice Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia) * Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Just ...

. He then continued his studies abroad. It is claimed that he was a member at the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn an ...

, in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, but no evidence of his membership can be found in the Inn's admission registers. After he had finished his education, he began to work for the Ministry of Justice and climbed the traditional career ladder and was eventually granted the title

and received his honorary name: "Manopakorn Nitithada". In 1918, he gained a seat in the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

of 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 efforts ...

(or Rama VI).ความขัดแย้งภายในคณะราษฎรที่มีผลต่อหนังสือพิมพ์
/ref>

Revolution and premiership

Following the Revolution of 1932, King

Prajadhipok Prajadhipok ( th, ประชาธิปก, RTGS: ''Prachathipok'', 8 November 1893 – 30 May 1941), also Rama VII, was the seventh monarch of Siam of the Chakri dynasty. His reign was a turbulent time for Siam due to political and ...

(or Rama VII) consented to a

Provisional Constitution A provisional constitution, interim constitution or transitional constitution is a constitution intended to serve during a transitional period until a permanent constitution is adopted. The following countries currently have,had in the past,such a c ...

on 27 June 1932. The first People's Assembly of Siam, composed entirely of appointed members, met for the first time on 28 June. The revolutionary Khana Ratsadon Party, not wanting to appear as if it had instigated the revolution for self-aggrandizement, chose Phraya Manopakorn as President of the Committee. He was considered a largely neutral and clean figure, but at the same time respected enough to take the position. As a result, the Assembly with the advice of Pridi Panomyong, one of the leaders of the

Khana Ratsadon The People's Party, known in Thai as Khana Ratsadon ( th, คณะราษฎร, ), was a Siamese group of military and civil officers, and later a political party, which staged a bloodless revolution against King Prajadhipok's government a ...

offered Manopakorn the post of "President of the People's Committee", an early version of the post of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

. The first mission of Phraya Manopakorn's Cabinet was to draft a permanent constitution. King Prajadhipok made an observation that the term "President of the People's Committee" sounded like a

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

or republican post. After a debate, the office was eventually changed to "prime minister". The first constitution of Siam was promulgated under Phraya Manopakorn's watch on 10 December 1932, now celebrated as the Thai Constitution Day. Soon after, Phraya Manopakorn became the head of the first constitutional government of Siam. The Manopakorn

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

, or People's Committee, composed of members, half from the People's Party and half from senior

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

s and military officers, was appointed under the guidance of the party. Phraya Manopakorn in essence became the Khana Ratsadon's puppet, and the country a single-party state.

Yellow Cover Dossier incident and Coup

In 1933, Pridi Panomyong, by then a

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...

, presented his Draft Economic Plan or Yellow Cover Dossier to King Prajadhipok. The dossier was an economic plan, which advocated

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

solutions to the country's many financial and economic problems. Prajadhipok even branded the dossier "communist" and attacked Pridi publicly about it. When Pridi's dossier was rejected, his status fell and caused a major disruption among the members of People's Party and the People's Committee itself. Phraya Mano rallied those who opposed the socialist plan of Pridi including

Phraya Songsuradet Colonel Thep Phanthumsen ( th, เทพ พันธุมเสน; 12 August 1892 – 1 June 1944), better known by the noble title Phraya Songsuradet (), was a Thai military officer and member of the People's Party. As a cadet he studied at ...

and dissolved his own cabinet to oust Pridi, who had great support within the People's Party. To regain some stability and silence domestic critics, Phraya Manopakorn had some articles in the constitution suspended. Manopakorn barred the People's Assembly from any further meetings and the

judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

was shut down. Pridi was forced to flee to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It was said that Manopakorn "led the coup with his pen", this event is known in Thailand as the "April 1933 Coup" (or the "Silent Coup") ( Thai: รัฐประหารในประเทศไทย เมษายน พ.ศ. 2476). Phraya Manopakorn then approved the Anti-Communist Act, which empowered him to arrest those suspected of having communist sentiments: the entire Central Committee of the

Communist Party of Siam The Communist Party of Thailand (Abbreviation, Abrv: CPT; th, พรรคคอมมิวนิสต์แห่งประเทศไทย, ) was a Communism, communist party in Thailand active from 1942 until the 1990s. Initially know ...

was arrested and imprisoned. After the Yellow Dossier Incident, the degree of political freedom was greatly reduced by Phraya Manopakorn's policies. He censored many leftist activities including shutting down

newspapers A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports ...

and

publications To publish is to make content available to the general public.Berne Conve ...

. However the People's Party, which gave him the premiership, would eventually be his downfall. On 16 June, Phraya Pahol Polpayuhasena, the country's most powerful military leader and member of the People's Party, together with three other senior officers retired from the People's Committee, for "health reasons".

Death and legacy

Phraya Manopakon Nitithada Memoriam Stone at Wat Pathumwanaram 2019 01

The 1933 Siamese coup d'état happened on 20 June, led by Phraya Pahol and other military leaders. Phraya Manopakorn was immediately removed as prime minister. Phraya Phahol appointed himself the country's second prime minister and took over the government. King Pradhipok duly accepted his appointment. Manopakorn was then exiled to

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...

British Malaya The term "British Malaya" (; ms, Tanah Melayu British) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. U ...

, and lived there until his death in 1948, aged 64. Phraya Manopakorn was Siam's first prime minister and the first to be ousted by a coup. He would not be the last civilian prime minister to be ousted by a military coup. His legacy is mixed: on the one hand he took over the reins of government at a difficult time (

Wall Street Crash of 1929 The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange colla ...

), but on the other he exceeded his powers and was not able to counter the powers of the

which became increasingly dictatorial.

References

Bibliography