Savang Vadhana Sri Savarindira
Queen Sri Savarindira Queen Aunt and Queen Grandmother of the Thailand
Official photo of Savang Vadhana, c. 1879
Queen consort of Siam
Reign	1877 – 23 October 1910
Born	Phra Chao Luk Thoe Phra Ong Chao Savang Vadhana (1862-09-10)10 September 1862 Grand Palace, Bangkok, Siam
Died	17 December 1955(1955-12-17) (aged 93) Sa Pathum Palace, Bangkok, Thailand
Burial	22 April 1956 Wat Ratchabophit, Bangkok, Thailand
Spouse	Chulalongkorn (Rama V)
Issue	Maha Vajirunhis, Crown Prince of Siam Prince Isariyalongkorn Princess Vichitra Chiraprabha Sommatiwongse, Prince of Nakhon Si Thammarat Valaya Alongkorn, Princess of Phetchaburi Princess Sirabhorn Sobhon Mahidol Adulyadej, Prince of Songkla
House	Chakri Dynasty
Father	Mongkut (Rama IV)
Mother	Piam Sucharitakul
Signature

Sri Savarindira (Thai: ศรีสวรินทิรา; RTGS: Si Sawarinthira, 10 September 1862 – 17 December 1955), also known as Savang Vadhana (Thai: สว่างวัฒนา; RTGS: Sawang Watthana), was the royal wives and half-sister of Chulalongkorn (Rama V), but she was not the Rajini or supreme queen consort. After her first grandson's accession to power in 1935, she became known as Somdetch Phra Phan Vassa Ayika Chao (สมเด็จพระพันวัสสาอัยยิกาเจ้า; RTGS: Somdet Phra Phan Watsa Ai-yika Chao; "the Queen Grandmother").^[1] All her children died before her and she lived to see her grandsons Ananda Mahidol and Bhumibol Adulyadej take the throne.

Life

Savang Vadhana in 1879

She was the 27th daughter of King Rama IV (King Mongkut or Rama IV) and Princess Consort Piam and thus her husband's half-sister. Her marriage to Chulalongkorn produced the following children:

• Crown Prince Maha Vajirunhis (27 June 1878 – 4 January 1894)
• Prince Isariyalongkorn (4 September 1879 – 25 September 1879)
• Princess Vichitra Chiraprabha (21 April 1881 – 15 August 1881)
• Prince Sommatiwongse Varodaya, the Prince of Sri Dharmaraj (9 June 1882 – 17 June 1899)
• Princess Valaya Alongkorn, the Princess of Phetchaburi (16 April 1884 – 15 February 1938)
• Princess Sirabhorn Sobhon (19 July 1888 – 24 May 1898)
• Prince Mahidol Adulyadej, the Prince of Songkla, (posthumously The Prince Father of Thailand; 1 January 1892 – 24 September 1929), father of Princess Galyani Vadhana, King Rama VIII, and King Rama IX
• Unnamed princess (9 November 1893 – 12 November 1893)

In addition, the queen also adopted several of her husband's children and raised them as her own children:

• Yaovabha Bongsanid (28 August 1884 – 13 June 1934), first child of Chao Chom Manda Mom Rajawongse Nueng Sanidvongs
• Prabha Bannabilaya (13 August 1885 – 8 September 1948), first child of Chao Chom Manda Phrom
• Rangsit Prayurasakdi, the Prince of Chainat (12 November 1885 – 7 March 1951), second child of Chao Chom Manda Mom Rajawongse Nueng Sanidvongs, later served briefly as Regent of Siam for his nephew King Bhumibol Adulyadej
• Vapi Busbakara (25 June 1891 – 15 December 1982), fourth child of Chao Chom Manda Phrom

All of her biological children died before her death, including two of her sons first in line to the throne, Vajirunhis and Mahidol.

When King Prajadhipok (or Rama VII) abdicated in 1935, the son of Queen Savang Vadhana's youngest son, Prince Ananda Mahidol, acceded to the throne as King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII). She received the title of Queen Grandmother, having been renamed Sri Savarindira by King Prajadhipok while she was Queen Aunt.

Queen Sri Savarindira was also the grandmother of King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX). Although her son, Crown Prince Maha Vajirunhis did not survive to become king she lived to see two of her grandsons become king.

The Queen also helped establish a hospital in Si Racha District, Chonburi Province, known today as Queen Savang Vadhana Memorial Hospital, operated by the Thai Red Cross Society.

Death

She died on 17 December 1955, at the age of 93. Her ashes were interred in the Royal Cemetery at Wat Ratchabophit, Bangkok. A residence of the queen can be seen at the Bang Pa-In Royal Palace. She resided in latter years at Sa Pathum Palace, The Royal Private Residence, located behind Siam Paragon Shopping center in downtown Bangkok, where a museum dedicated to her is being constructed at the Tamnak Yai Mansion (Grand mansion) inside Sa Pathum Palace. Her state funeral was the first to be covered briefly on television by the young Television of Thailand channel.

Queen Savang Vadhana Foundation was founded on 27 October 2005 under the aegis of Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, her great-granddaughter.

Ancestors

Title, styles, honours and awards

Issue

See also

• King Ananda Mahidol
• King Bhumibol Adulyadej

References

External links

• Biography of Her Majesty Queen Savang Vadhana

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Savang Vadhana.