Maha Vajirunhis, Crown Prince of Siam ( th, มหาวชิรุณหิศ; ; 27 June 1878 – 4 January 1895) was the first

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wif ...

of the

Chakri dynasty 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 ...

. He was the first son 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� ...

and Queen

Savang Vadhana Sri Savarindira ( th, ศรีสวรินทิรา; , 10 September 1862 – 17 December 1955), also known as Savang Vadhana ( th, สว่างวัฒนา; ), was a consort and half-sister of Chulalongkorn (Rama V), but she was no ...

together, who were half-siblings. The King built a palace for the Prince, nicknamed Windsor Palace. The European-style palace was demolished after his death. The site is now occupied by the National Stadium of Thailand.

Heir apparent

In 1886, after the death of the last Vice King

Bovorn Vichaichan Krom Phra Ratchawang Bowon Wichaichan ( th, กรมพระราชวังบวรวิไชยชาญ) or Phra Ong Chao Yodyingyot (or Yingyot) (พระองค์เจ้ายอดยิ่งยศ) (6 April 1838 – 28 Aug ...

, King Chulalongkorn chose not to appoint one of his brothers as a new Vice King, but instead appointed his eldest son as the

Crown Prince of Siam The Crown Prince of Thailand (or Siam; th, สยามมกุฎราชกุมาร; ; lit. the royal son of Siam) is a title held by the heir apparent to the Thai throne. First created by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) in 1886, for his s ...

. On 14 January 1886, he was officially introduced to his position with the title of ''Sayam Makutrajakuman'', or Crown Prince of Siam. From this appointment Sir

Ernest Mason Satow Sir Ernest Mason Satow, (30 June 1843 – 26 August 1929), was a British scholar, diplomat and Japanologist. Satow is better known in Japan than in Britain or the other countries in which he served, where he was known as . He was a key fig ...

, the British ambassador to Thailand, brought a telegraph of congratulations from

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

of the United Kingdom.

Private interests

Prince Vajirunhis was interested in the

liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term ''art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the ...

, writing daily in a diary he was given by his father at the age of five. He wrote many poems. One, written for his father on 25 October 1888, is below:

Death

He died unexpectedly of

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...

at age 16, long before he could reach the throne. King Chulalongkorn's second son, Prince

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 ...

, was then named crown prince, and succeeded him as Rama VI in 1910.

Ancestry

References

External links

Soravij

'The Crown Prince of Siam', 1894

Science & Society Picture Library The Science Museum is a major museum on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, London. It was founded in 1857 and is one of the city's major tourist attractions, attracting 3.3 million visitors annually in 2019. Like other publicly funded ...

1878 births 1895 deaths 19th-century Thai people 19th-century Chakri dynasty Thai male Chao Fa Crown Princes of Thailand Heirs apparent who never acceded Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Chula Chom Klao

Vajirunhis Maha Vajirunhis, Crown Prince of Siam ( th, มหาวชิรุณหิศ; ; 27 June 1878 – 4 January 1895) was the first Crown Prince of Thailand, Crown Prince of the Chakri dynasty. He was the first son of King Chulalongkorn and Queen ...

Children of Chulalongkorn {{thailand-bio-stub