Chulalongkorn

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Chulalongkorn จุฬาลงกรณ์
King Rama V
Royal Siamese Armed Forces

Chulalongkorn
Privy Seal
Thai name
Thai	พระบาทสมเด็จพระปรมินทรมหาจุฬาลงกรณ์ฯ พระจุลจอมเกล้าเจ้าอยู่หัว พระปิยมหาราช
RTGS	Phrabat Somdet Phra Poraminthra Maha Chulalongkorn Phra Chulachomklao Chao Yu Hua Phra Piya Maharat

Chulalongkorn (

, titled Rama V from 1 October 1868 to his death in 23 October 1910.

Chulalongkorn was born as the son of King

]

Chulalongkorn's reign was characterised by the modernisation of Siam, governmental and social reforms, and territorial concessions to the

] All his reforms were dedicated to ensuring Siam's independence given the increasing encroachment of Western powers, so that Chulalongkorn earned the epithet Phra Piya Maharat (พระปิยมหาราช, the Great Beloved King).

Early life

King Chulalongkorn was born on 20 September 1853 to King Mongkut and Queen Debsirindra and given the name Chulalongkorn. In 1861, he was designated Krommamuen Pikhanesuan Surasangkat. His father gave him a broad education, including instruction from Western tutors such as Anna Leonowens. Chulalongkorn, along with his siblings, were educated by Leonowens from her arrival in August 1862 through to her departure in 1867. During this time, Chulalongkorn became friends with Leonowens' son Louis Leonowens who was 2 years younger then Chulalongkorn. His friendship with Louis would continue his adulthood where he assisted Louis' business in Siam.^[2]

In 1866, he became a

Upon his return to his secular life in 1867, he was designated Krommakhun Phinit Prachanat (กรมขุนพินิตประชานาถ.)

In 1867, King Mongkut led an expedition to the

solar eclipse of 18 August 1868

. Both Mongkut and his son fell ill of malaria. Mongkut died on 1 October 1868. Assuming the 15-year-old Chulalongkorn to be dying as well, King Mongkut on his deathbed wrote, "My brother, my son, my grandson, whoever you all the senior officials think will be able to save our country will succeed my throne, choose at your own will."

As Mongkut had not designated who would succeed him, the choice fell to a council to decide. The council led by Prince Deves, Mongkut's eldest half-brother, then choose Chulalongkorn as Mongkut's successor. However, Chulalongkorn was only 15 and so the council choose

Regency

The young Chulalongkorn was an enthusiastic reformer. He visited Singapore and

]

Si Suriyawongse then arranged for the

Yingyot

(who was Chulalongkorn's cousin).

As regent, Si Suriyawongse wielded great influence. Si Suriyawongse continued the works of King Mongkut. He supervised the digging of several important khlongs, such as Padung Krungkasem and Damneun Saduak, and the paving of roads such as Charoen Krung and Silom. He was also a patron of Thai literature and performing arts.

Early reign

At the end of his regency, Si Suriyawonse was raised to

]

Chulalongkorn's first reform was to establish the "Auditory Office" (Th: หอรัษฎากรพิพัฒน์) on 4 June 1873,^[7] solely responsible for tax collection, to counter the influence of the Bunnag family who had been in control of wealth collection since early Rattanakosin.^[8] As tax collectors had been under the aegis of various nobles and thus a source of their wealth, this reform caused great consternation among the nobility, especially the Front Palace. Chulalongkorn appointed Chaturonrasmi to be an executive of the organization, which he closely oversaw.^[9] From the time of King Mongkut, the Front Palace had been the equivalent of a "second king", with one-third of national revenue allocated to it. Prince Yingyot of the Front Palace was known to be on friendly terms with many Britons, at a time when Siamese relations with the British Empire were tense.^{[citation needed]}

In 1874, Chulalongkorn established the Council of State as a legislative body and a privy council as his personal advisory board based on the British privy council. Council members were appointed by the monarch.

Front Palace crisis

Front Palace or Wang Na (circa 1890) now the Bangkok National Museum

On the night of 28 December 1874, a fire broke out near the gunpowder storehouse and gasworks in the main palace. Front Palace troops quickly arrived, fully armed, "to assist in putting out the fire". They were denied entrance and the fire was extinguished.[10]^: 193 The incident demonstrated the considerable power wielded by aristocrats and royal relatives, leaving the king little power. Reducing the power held by the nobility became one of his main motives in reforming Siam's feudal politics.

When Prince Yingyot died in 1885, Chulalongkorn took the opportunity to abolish the titular Front Palace and created the title of "Crown Prince of Siam" in line with Western custom. Chulalongkorn's son, Prince Vajirunhis, was appointed the first Crown Prince of Siam, though he never reigned. In 1895, when the prince died of typhoid at age 16, he was succeeded by his half-brother Vajiravudh, who was then at boarding school in England.

Haw insurgency

In the northern Laotian lands bordering China, the insurgents of the Taiping Rebellion had taken refuge since the reign of King Mongkut. These Chinese were called Haw and became bandits, pillaging the villages. In 1875, Chulalongkorn sent troops from Bangkok to crush the Haw who had ravaged as far as Vientiane. However, they met strong Chinese resistance and retreated to Isan in 1885. New, modernized forces were sent again and were divided into two groups approaching the Haw from Chiang Kam and Pichai. The Haw scattered and some fled to Vietnam. The Siamese armies proceeded to eliminate the remaining Haw. The city of Nong Khai maintains memorials for the Siamese dead.

Third Anglo-Burmese War

In Burma, while the British Army fought the Burmese

, Siam remained neutral. Britain had agreements with the Siamese government, which stated that if the British were in conflict with Burma, Siam would send food supplies to the British Army. Chulalongkorn honored the agreement. The British expected he would send an army to help defeat the Burmese, but he did not do so.

Military and political reforms

Devawongse Varopakarn (Foreign Minister), King Chulalongkorn and Prince Damrong Rajanubhab

(Interior Minister). During his reign the king employed his brothers and sons in the government, ensuring royal monopoly on power and administration

Freed of the Front Palace and Chinese rebellions, Chulalongkorn initiated modernization and centralization reforms.[11] He established the Royal Military Academy in 1887 to train officers in Western fashion. His upgraded forces provided the king much more power to centralize the country.

The government of Siam had remained largely unchanged since the 15th century. The central government was headed by the Samuha Nayok (i.e., prime minister), who controlled the northern parts of Siam, and the Samuha Kalahom (i.e., grand commander), who controlled southern Siam in both civil and military affairs. The Samuha Nayok presided over the Chatu Sadombh (i.e., Four Pillars). The responsibilities of each pillar overlapped and were ambiguous. In 1888, Chulalongkorn moved to institute a government of ministries. Ministers were, at the outset, members of the royal family. Ministries were established in 1892, with all ministries having equal status.

The Council of State proved unable to veto legal drafts or to give Chulalongkorn advice because the members regarded Chulalongkorn as an absolute monarch, far above their station. Chulalongkorn dissolved the council altogether and transferred advisory duties to the cabinet in 1894.

Chulalongkorn abolished the traditional Nakorn Bala methods of torture in the judiciary process, which were seen as inhumane and barbaric to Western eyes, and introduced a Western judicial code. His Belgian advisor, Rolin-Jaequemyns, played a great role in the development of modern Siamese law and its judicial system.

Pressures for reform

Monarchs of the Chakri dynasty
	Phutthayotfa Chulalok (King Rama I)
	Phutthaloetla Naphalai (King Rama II)
	Nangklao (King Rama III)
	Mongkut (King Rama IV)
	Chulalongkorn (King Rama V)
	Vajiravudh (King Rama VI)
	Prajadhipok (King Rama VII)
	Ananda Mahidol (King Rama VIII)
	Bhumibol Adulyadej (King Rama IX)
	Vajiralongkorn (King Rama X)
v t e

Chulalongkorn was the first Siamese king to send royal princes to

]

In 1884 (year 103 of the

Meiji Japan

and that Siam should become a constitutional monarchy. Chulalongkorn demurred, stating that the time was not ripe and that he himself was making reforms.

Throughout Chulalongkorn's reign, writers with radical ideas had their works published for the first time. The most notable ones included Thianwan Wannapho, who had been imprisoned for 17 years and from prison produced many works criticizing traditional Siamese society.

Conflict with French Indochina

In 1863, King

, remained a Siamese possession. This was the first of many territorial cessions.

In 1887, French Indochina was formed from Vietnam and

Franco-Siamese crisis of 1893

.

The French gunboat Le Lutin entered the

. Chulalongkorn sent Rolin-Jacquemyns to negotiate. The issue was eventually settled with the cession of Laos in 1893, but the French troops in Chantaburi and Trat refused to leave.

The cession of vast Laotian lands had a major impact on Chulalongkorn's spirit. Prince

Royal Thai Naval Academy

in 1898.

Despite Siamese concessions, French armies continued the occupation of Chantaburi and Trat for another 10 years. An

Koh Kong

. In 1906, the final agreement was reached. Trat was returned to Siam but the French kept Koh Kong and received Inner Cambodia.

Seeing the seriousness of foreign affairs, Chulalongkorn visited Europe in 1897. He was the first Siamese monarch to do so, and he desired European recognition of Siam as a fully independent power. He appointed his queen,

Reforms

Siam had been composed of a network of cities according to the

. Each city retained a substantial degree of autonomy, as Siam was not a "state" but a "network" of city-states. With the rise of European colonialism, the Western concept of state and territorial division was introduced. It had to define explicitly which lands were "Siamese" and which lands were "foreign". The conflict with the French in 1893 was an example.

Sukhaphiban districts

Sukhaphiban (สุขาภิบาล) sanitary districts were the first sub-autonomous entities established in Thailand. The first such was created in Bangkok, by royal decree of King Chulalongkorn in 1897. During his European tour earlier that year, he had learned about the sanitary districts of England, and wanted to try out this local administrative unit in his capital.

Monthon system

With his experiences during the travel to British colonies and the suggestion of

.

Local rulers did not cede power willingly. Three rebellions sprang up in 1901: the

Abolition of corvée and slavery

Ayutthaya King Ramathibodi II established a system of corvée in 1518 after which the lives of Siamese commoners and slaves were closely regulated by the government. All Siamese common men (phrai ไพร่) were subject to the Siamese corvée system. Each man at the time of his majority had to register with a government bureau, department, or leading member of the royalty called krom (กรม) as a Phrai Luang (ไพร่หลวง) or under a nobleman's dominion (Moon Nai or Chao Khun Moon Nai มูลนาย หรือเจ้าขุนมูลนาย) as a Phrai Som (ไพร่สม). Phrai owed service to sovereign or master for three months of the year. Phrai Suay (ไพร่ส่วย) were those who could make payment in kind (cattle) in lieu of service. Those conscripted into military service were called Phrai Tahan (ไพร่ทหาร).

Chulalongkorn was best known for his abolition of

. Chulalongkorn, to prevent such a bloodbath in Siam, provided several steps towards the abolition of slavery, not an extreme turning point from servitude to total freedom. Those who found themselves unable to live on their own sold themselves into slavery by rich noblemen. Likewise, when a debt was defaulted, the borrower would become a slave of the lender. If the debt was redeemed, the slave regained freedom.

However, those whose parents were household slaves (ทาสในเรือนเบี้ย) were bound to be slaves forever because their redemption price was extremely high.

Because of economic conditions, people sold themselves into slavery in great numbers and in turn they produced a large number of household slaves. In 1867 they accounted for one-third of Siamese population. In 1874, Chulalongkorn enacted a law that lowered the redemption price of household slaves born in 1867 (his ascension year) and freed all of them when they had reached 21.

The newly freed slaves would have time to settle themselves as farmers or merchants so they would not become unemployed. In 1905, the Slave Abolition Act ended Siamese slavery in all forms. The reverse of 100 baht banknotes in circulation since the 2005 centennial depict Chulalongkorn in navy uniform abolishing the slave tradition.

The traditional corvée system declined after the Bowring Treaty, which gave rise to a new class of employed labourers not regulated by the government, while many noblemen continued to hold sway over large numbers of Phrai Som. Chulalongkorn needed more effective control of manpower to undo the power of nobility. After the establishment of the monthon system, Chulalongkorn instituted a census to count all men available to the government. The Employment Act of 1900 required that all workers be paid, not forced to work.

Establishment of a modern army and modern land ownership

Haw Wars

, 1875

Chulalongkorn had established a

The

Abolition of prostration

In 1873, the Royal Siamese Government Gazette published an announcement on the abolition of prostration. In it, King Chulalongkorn declared, "The practice of prostration in Siam is severely oppressive. The subordinates have been forced to prostrate in order to elevate the dignity of the phu yai. I do not see how the practice of prostration will render any benefit to Siam. The subordinates find the performance of prostration a harsh physical practice. They have to go down on their knees for a long time until their business with the phu yai ends. They will then be allowed to stand up and retreat. This kind of practice is the source of oppression. Therefore, I want to abolish it." The Gazette directed that, "From now on, Siamese are permitted to stand up before the dignitaries. To display an act of respect, the Siamese may take a bow instead. Taking a bow will be regarded as a new form of paying respect."^[16]

Civic works

The construction of railways in Siam had a political motivation: to connect all of the country so as to better maintain control of it.

In 1901, the first railway was opened from Bangkok to Korat. In the same year, the first power plant of Siam produced electricity and electric lights first illuminated roadways.

In 1906 King Chulalongkorn adopted a Semang orphan boy named Khanung.^[17]

In 1907 he founded the royal rice varieties competition, at first only for the Tung Luang and Rangsit Canal districts. The next year it was held at Wat Suthat and since then has been held at various locations around the kingdom, by Chulalongkorn and his descendants.^[18][19]

Relations with the British Empire

Siamese authorities had exercised substantial control over Malay sultanates since Ayutthaya times. The sultans sought British support as a counterweight to Siamese influence. In 1909, the Anglo-Siamese Treaty of 1909 was agreed. Four sultanates (Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu and Perlis) were brought under British influence in exchange for Siamese legal rights and a loan to construct railways in southern Siam.

Family

King Chulalongkorn was a prolific producer of children. He had 9 consorts and 143 concubines during his lifetime, siring with them

Death and legacy

Chulalongkorn had visited Europe twice, in 1897 and 1907. In 1897 he travelled widely through Europe, learning all he could on many subjects to benefit the Siamese people. He travelled and visited many European royal families. He spent much time in Britain and was inspired, among other things, to improve the health of his people by creating public health, or sanitary districts. In Sweden he studied the Forestry system. In 1907 he visited his son's school in Britain and consulted with European doctors in pursuit of a cure for his kidney disease.

King Chulalongkorn died on 23 October 1910 of kidney disease at the Amphorn Sathan Residential Hall in the Dusit Palace, and was succeeded by his son Vajiravudh (King Rama VI).^[21]

The royal Equestrian statue of King Chulalongkorn was finished in 1908 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the king's reign. It was cast in bronze by a Parisian metallurgist.

Chulalongkorn University, founded in 1917 as the first university in Thailand, was named in his honour. On the campus stand the statues of Rama V and his son, Rama VI. King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, operated by the Thai Red Cross Society is named after him and is one of Thailand's largest hospitals.

In 1997 a

His passage through Utanede left a mark on the village as one street was named after the king. The pavilion is erected next to that road.

The old 100 baht banknote of Series 14, circulated from 1994 to 2004, bears the statues of Rama V and Rama VI on its reverse. In 2005, the 100 baht banknote was revised to depict King Chulalongkorn in naval uniform and, in the background, abolishing slavery.[24] The 1,000 baht banknote of Series 16, issued in 2015, depicts the King Chulalongkorn monument, Ananda Samakhom Throne Hall, and the abolition of slavery.^[25]

Chulalongkorn was one of twenty "Most Influential Asians of the Century" for the 20th Century by Time Asia Magazine in 1999.^[26]

Honours

Styles of King Chulalongkorn Rama V of Siam
Reference style		His Royal Majesty
Spoken style	Your Royal Majesty

Emblem of Siam

from 1878 to 1910.

Military ranks

• Field Marshal of the Royal Siamese Army^[27]
• Admiral of the Fleet of the Royal Siamese Navy^[28]

National honours

• 1882 - Founder and Sovereign of the Most Illustrious Order of the Royal House of Chakri,
• 1868 - Sovereign Knight of the Ancient and Auspicious Order of the Nine Gems, with Collar
• 1900 - Founder and Sovereign of the Most Illustrious Order of Chula Chom Klao,
• 1909 - Knight Grand Cordon of the Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant
• 1869 - Knight Grand Cross of the Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand
• 1882 - Dushdi Mala Medal Pin of Arts and Science (Military)
• 1882 - Dushdi Mala Medal Pin the government in His Majesty (Military)
• 1882 - Chakra Mala Medal
• 1904 - King Mongkut's Royal Cypher Medal, 1st Class
• 1901 - King Chulalongkorn's Royal Cypher Medal, 1st Class
• 1897 - King Chulalongkorn's Rajaruchi Medal, 1st Class

Foreign honours

• Royal Hungarian Order of Saint Stephen, 1868 (Austria-Hungary)^[29]
• Grand Cross of the Royal and Distinguished Order of Charles III, 5 August 1871;^[30] with Collar, 16 October 1897 (Spain)^[31]
• Honorary Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George, 3 August 1878 (United Kingdom)^[32]
• Kingdom of Hawaii)^[33]
• Sweden-Norway)^[34]
• Knight of the Royal Order of the Seraphim, 11 July 1887 (Sweden-Norway)^[35]
• Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum, 6 October 1887 (Empire of Japan)^[36]
• Knight of the Order of the Elephant, 8 January 1892 (Denmark)^[37]
• Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus, 1887 (Kingdom of Italy)^[38]
• Knight of the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-called, 1891 (Russian Empire)^[39]
• Knight of the Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation, 24 December 1891 (Kingdom of Italy)^[40]
• Grand Cross of the Sash of the Three Orders, 1897 (Kingdom of Portugal)^[41]
• Knight of the Order of the Black Eagle, 1897 (Kingdom of Prussia)
• Knight of the Order of the Rue Crown, 1897 (Kingdom of Saxony)^[42]
• Grand Cross of the Ludwig Order, 7 October 1897 (Grand Duchy of Hesse)^[43]
• Knight of the House Order of Fidelity, 1897 (Grand Duchy of Baden)^[44]
• Knight of the Order of Saint Hubert, 1906 (Kingdom of Bavaria)^[45]
• Grand Cross of the Order of Henry the Lion, 1907 (Duchy of Brunswick)^[46]

Ancestry

See also

• List of children of Mongkut
• List of consorts and children of Chulalongkorn
• List of people with the most children
• King Ananda Mahidol
• King Bhumibol Adulyadej

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Chulalongkorn (category)

• Chulalongkorn – Definition of Chulalongkorn^{[permanent dead link]}
• King Chulalongkorn Day at Chiang Mai Best
• A clip of King Chulalongkorns 1897 visit to Sweden
• Investiture of His Majesty Somdetch Pra Paramindr Maha Chulalonkorn, King of Siam, with the Ensigns of a Knight Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George
• Biography of His Majesty King Chulalongkorn Rama V
• Diaries and Travel Writings of King Chulalongkorn of Siam | Southeast Asia Digital Library. Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine.

Chulalongkorn House of Chakri Born: 20 September 1853 Died: 23 October 1910
Regnal titles
Preceded by Mongkut	King of Siam 1868–1910	Succeeded by Vajiravudh