The Royal Household Bureau has announced the passing of Queen Mother Sirikit of Thailand at the age of 93. The royal matriarch had been hospitalized since 2019 due to multiple health conditions and developed a bloodstream infection earlier this month before her death on Friday evening.
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul initially canceled his scheduled appearance at the ASEAN summit in Malaysia following news of her passing, though he later revised his plans to participate in a ceasefire ceremony with Cambodia that will include U.S. President Donald Trump.
Born in 1932 during Thailand’s transition to constitutional monarchy, Sirikit Kitiyakara was the daughter of Thailand’s ambassador to France. Her life of privilege took a romantic turn while studying music and languages in Paris, where she met the future King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Their relationship blossomed from an initial meeting where she recalled feeling “hate at first sight” due to his tardiness, eventually leading to their engagement in 1949 and marriage when she was 17.
The Queen Mother became known for her fashion influence, collaborating with French designer Pierre Balmain to create outfits from Thai silk, significantly contributing to the revival of the country’s traditional silk industry. For over forty years, she accompanied the King on visits to remote villages, with their development work for rural communities regularly featured in national broadcasts.
Her legacy includes the establishment of her birthday, August 12, as Mother’s Day, a national holiday in Thailand since 1976. She briefly served as regent in 1956 while her husband undertook Buddhist monastic studies.
Following King Bhumibol’s death in 2016 and her son’s subsequent coronation as King Maha Vajiralongkorn in 2019, Sirikit received the title of Queen Mother. The royal family has declared a one-year mourning period for household members and relatives.
