The Supreme Council of State of Siam ( th, อภิรัฐมนตรีสภา) was an advisory and legislative council established by King Prajadhipok of

Siam Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

(Rama VII) that existed from 1925 to 1932. The

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

- and Sandhurst-educated monarch wished to create a council similar to a cabinet, where the most important government officials could meet to decide on state affairs. The council was founded on 28 November 1925 by royal command. Prajadhipok only succeeded to the throne three days earlier, after the death of his brother Vajiravudh on 25 November 1925.

Members

The council was composed of five members, each a

prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...

of the Chakri dynasty who had held ministerial positions during the reigns of King

Rama V 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� ...

and

Rama VI 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 ...

(Prajadhipok's father and older brother). The councillors were: The council was not the only organ of government at the time. The king also had a Privy Council ( th, สภากรรมการองคมนตรี) and a Council of Secretaries ( th, เสนาบดีสภา). However, the Supreme Council was regarded as the most important. Prince Paribatra was the most dominant member of the Council of State, since he was then regent and

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

History

Prajadhipok was the youngest son of King Chulalongkorn, the youngest prince of his generation. Senior princes (Prajadhipok's uncles and older brothers) had dominated the running of the government since the end of the 19th century, and were unwilling to lessen their grip on their power. Prajashipok acquiesced to most of their demands and were willing to pass off many responsibilities to the council. The appointment of Prince

Damrong Rajanubhab Prince Tisavarakumarn, the Prince Damrong Rajanubhab ( Thai: ; Full transcription is "Somdet Phrachao Borommawongthoe Phra-ongchao Ditsawarakuman Kromphraya Damrongrachanuphap" (สมเด็จพระเจ้าบรมวงศ์เธ� ...

to the council also signalled his return to government, after his removal by Vajiravudh from all of his offices in 1915. During its existence the council took many initiatives. For example, in 1929 the council decided to cut public spending on the government including civil servant's pay and defence spending, an action which was one of the main justifications 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 ...

(the People's Party) gave for the Revolution of 1932. The council filled many civil service and

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

positions with their own relatives from the dynasty, replacing many commoners appointed under King Vajiravudh (Rama VI), which also created discontent in the country. The council increased taxes on the populace to try to stem the economic downturn the country faced after the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

, Siam's largest trading partner, abandoned the

gold standard A gold standard is a monetary system in which the standard economic unit of account is based on a fixed quantity of gold. The gold standard was the basis for the international monetary system from the 1870s to the early 1920s, and from the l ...

. The most important action by the council was the rejection of King Prajadhipok's draft Constitution for the Kingdom of Siam in early 1932, on the 150th anniversary of the

House of Chakri The Chakri dynasty ( th, ราชวงศ์ จักรี, , , ) is the current reigning dynasty of the Kingdom of Thailand, the head of the house is the king, who is head of state. The family has ruled Thailand since the founding of the ...

and the foundation of

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 ...

. The constitution would have given the people their first parliament, with a popularly elected lower house and an expanded Supreme Council as an

upper house An upper house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.''Bicameralism'' (1997) by George Tsebelis The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restric ...

. A few months later the Khana Ratsadon staged a coup which ended the absolutist monarchy and replaced it with a

constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...

. The constitution in which they promulgated abrogated the many powers of the monarch and dissolved the Supreme Council; it exiled the influential Prince Paripatra Sukhumband for life.

References

* Royal Gazette
Royal Command on the establishment of the Supreme Council of State
Volume 42, Page 2618, 28 November 2468 B.E.
Senate of Thailand
* Stowe, Judith A. Siam Becomes Thailand: A Story of Intrigue. C. Hurst & Co. Publishers, 1991 {{DEFAULTSORT:Supreme Council Of State Of Siam Political history of Thailand Chakri dynasty Historical legislatures Legal history of Thailand

Members

History

See also

References