King Of Siam Rama V

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Family

Thai royalty, the son of King Rama IV. He became regent at 15 when his dad died and ascended the throne as King in 1873. Tutored by an Englishwoman, Anna Leonowens (born 11/04/1834), he was made famous by the story "Anna and the King of Siam." He was the first legitimate son of Mongkut's first wife, and he had 85 siblings from his father's many wives. Chulalonghorn proved to be every bit as capable as his dad, Mongkut. Many of his royal decisions reflected lessons he had learned from Anna, for whom he had formed a deep attachment. His first act as king was to abolish the custom of prostration before royalty that had so irritated her, and he kept his promise of long ago to abolish slavery in his country. Rama V established Siam's first hospital and helped move Siam into the modern age. Chulalonghorn died on 10/23/1910, Bangkok. Link to Wikipedia biography