He reigned 70 consecutive years after being crowned on June 9, 1946. For some perspective, the second longest serving monarch while the King of Thailand was alive was Elizabeth II who had been Queen of England for 64 years. The longest serving monarch in human history was King Sobhuza II of Swaziland, who served 82 years and 254 days from December 10, 1899 to August 12, 1982.
Also known as Rama IX, Bhumidol Adulyadej was born on December 5, 1927 in Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts USA. He was predestined to take the helm of the country, since he was the younger son of HRH Prince Mahidol Aduljadej and HRH Princess Srinagarindra. He is the ninth consecutive monarch in the Chakri Dynasty which dates back to 1782. This royal descendant was educated at the most prestigious schools worldwide, ranging from Massachusetts' Harvard University to Bangkok's Mater Dei school and Switzerland's Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Romande. As a ruler, Bhumidol Adulyadej has earned praise for a social-economic theory of self-sufficiency. He has also given numerous donations to various projects in Thailand, in areas including agriculture, environment, public health, occupational promotion, water resources, communications and public welfare. Commemorations of Bhumibol's contributions to Thailand are ever-present in the Thai media. The King of Thailand is respected and revered on nearly God-like levels by the Thai people., as well as he is legally considered "inviolable", i.e., an offense against the dignity of the monarch may be punished.
Bhumidol Adulyadej's $30 billion net worth comes from a wide variety of lucrative business interestes. First, through the Crown Property Bureau (CPB) King Adulyadej owns 3300 acres of real estate in central Bangkok as well as 13,200 acres of country land and property. Next, the King owns a 32% stake in Siam Cement. This stake alone is worth an estimated $13 billion. Next, the King owns 23% of Siam Commercial Bank – the largest bank in Thailand. He also owns stakes in an insurance company, the Shin Corporation – a conglomerate of telecommunication, media, aviation, advertising and finance companies.
