Thailand king names consort Queen ahead of coronation

Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn announced on Wednesday that he had married his consort, General Suthida Vajiralongkorn, and named her Queen Suthida.

The announcement, carried in the Royal Gazette, came just before the official coronation of the king, 66, on May 4-6.

Queen Suthida, 40, has long been rumoured to be romantically linked with King Vajiralongkorn since he was the crown prince, but their relationship was not made public until now.

Queen Suthida is King Vajiralongkorn’s fourth wife. The king has five sons and two daughters from his previous marriages.

The 66-year-old king ascended the throne when his late father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, died in 2016 after seven decades on the throne.

His much-delayed coronation will be held on Saturday.

King Vajiralongkorn attributed the reason for the initial delay of his coronation to the mourning for his late father, who was deeply revered as a father figure and moral authority, but has never given a reason for the continued delay, nor had he named the date until the beginning of this year.

King Vajiralongkorn is the world’s richest monarch according to business news website Business Insider, having last year taken full ownership of the Crown Property Bureau, which is estimated to have at least US$30 billion worth of holdings.