Thailand’s Great King
This four-part series is intended to help Thai children learn to read, talk and write about their King in English.Part 1: The early years
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can hear this section by clicking here.
All
children in Thailand know their country has a King. His name is King
Bhumibol Adulyadej and he has ruled Thailand for sixty years. That is
why we are having so many celebrations this year. It is the King's Diamond Jubilee (the
sixtieth anniversary of his becoming King).
However, many of the visitors to this website come from other countries, so they may not know about Thailand's King. Let's tell them a little about him, OK?
His
Majesty the King was born in 1927. He wasn't born in Thailand, however.
He was born in the United States where his father, Prince Mahidol (see
photo to the right), was studying at Harvard University. Unfortunately,
little Prince Bhumibol never really got to know his father 
because
he died when he was only two years old. Thus, the young Prince grew up
with HRH the
Princess Mother, his older sister Princess Galyani and his older
brother King Ananda.
The family lived most of the time in Switzerland where the children went to school. Both Prince Bhumibol and his brother the King enjoyed their long stay in Switzerland. They were treated as normal children. They had regular jobs to do at home and when they wanted toys, they had to earn money to pay for them. Below are some photos of Prince Bhumibol when he was a child.
