Sirikit was the mother of Thailand’s current King Vajiralongkorn Her health deteriorated on October 17 and she was suffering from a blood infection.
Thailand’s Queen Mother Sirikit, who was known for helping the poor and for her actions to protect the environment, passed away on Friday following prolonged illness, the palace said on Saturday. She was 93 years old.
In a statement, the palace said Sirikit passed away in a hospital in Bangkok. “Her Majesty’s condition worsened until Friday and she passed away at 9:21pm … at Chulalongkorn Hospital at age 93,” the statement read.
Sirikit was the mother of Thailand’s current King Vajiralongkorn Her health deteriorated on October 17 and she was suffering from a blood infection, the palace said, adding that King Vajiralongkorn has ordered the Thai Royal Household Bureau to organise a royal funeral for her.
Till the funeral, her body will be kept at the Grand Palace’s Dusit Thorne Hall in Bangkok, the statement from the palace read.
Sirikit was married to Thailand’s longest-reigning monarch
Sirikit was married to King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who was Thailand’s longest-reigning monarch. Adulyadej passed away in 2016. The two had met in Paris, France, when Adulyadej was posted there as country’s Ambassador. The two married each other in April 1950, the same year in which Adulyadej was crowned as the king of Thailand.
The two had four children – current King Vajiralongkorn, and princesses Ubolratana, Sirindhorn and Chulabhorn.