King Vajiralongkorn’s eldest daughter, Princess Bajrakitiyabha, dies at 47 after nearly four years in a coma

Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol, the eldest child of King Maha Vajiralongkorn, died at age 47 on Thursday night at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital in Bangkok. The Bureau of the Royal Household said the princess had been in a coma for nearly four years. She collapsed in December 2022 while exercising her dogs and was hospitalized that month with heart problems.

The princess worked as a lawyer. Mourners gathered outside King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital on Friday. Sittinee Damaonsondpoan, a Thai language teacher, took the day off work to attend. ” Boonruksa Louhavitayarat heard the news from her child on Thursday night and printed multiple images of the princess at various ages to bring to the hospital.

“My heart is very deep[ly] sad,” she said. News websites switched to black and white. Bus ticket collectors wore black ribbon pins. The number 47 sold out at local lotteries, including one operated by Dao Buekaew in Bangkok’s Bang Rak district.

The grief came soon after the queen mother’s death in October. At the hospital, mourners sat in an outdoor covered foyer in 32C heat while volunteers handed out tissues and bottles of scent. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul issued a televised statement.

” “With her firm determination, Her Royal Highness dedicated her strength and ingenuity to creating a society founded upon justice, equality and human dignity,” the prime minister stated. He added that her abilities “as a legal scholar, diplomat and social worker” served as an enduring example. Official mourning rites begin on Saturday.

A funeral procession will carry the coffin from Chulalongkorn Hospital to Piman Rattaya Throne Hall in the Grand Palace. The public will be permitted to participate in the royal bathing rites by pouring water over the princess.