Info on King Mongkut (Rama IV)

Mongkut (October 18, 1804- October 1, 1868) was king of Siam from 1851 to 1868. Historians have widely regarded him as one of the most remarkable kings of the Chakri Dynasty. For his role in introducing Western science and scientific methodology to Siam, Mongkut is still honored to this day in modern Thailand as the country's "Father of Modern Science and Technology".

Prince Mongkut was born on 18th october 1804, the son of King Rama II and his first wife Queen Srisuriyendr, whose first son died at birth in 1801. Prince Mongkut was five years old when his father succeeded to the throne in 1809. According to the law of succession, he was the first in line to the throne; but when his father died, his influential half-brother, Nangklao, was strongly supported by the nobility to assume the throne. Mongkut entered a monastery shortly before the ascension of Nangklao and spent about 27 years in the Buddhist priesthood, before mounting the throne as king; this was an experience unique in the history of the Thai monarchy which, in turn, gave him unique insights into the lives of ordinary people.

He was the first Thai king to learn the English language and entered into correspondence with foreign rulers, in particular Queen Victoria, the Pope and the American President. He ordered the nobility to wear shirts while attending his court; this was to show that Siam was no longer barbaric from the Western point of view. Mongkut's tactful diplomacy and unique personality left its stamp on his country- his keen mind and his quest for knowledge led him into encounters and situations which no Thai king had experienced before. He conducted theological discussions with American missionaries living in Bangkok, delighting in argung with them about the differences in belief of the Christian and Buddhist religions. King Mongkut periodically hired foreign instructors to instruct his sons and daughters in the English language, one of them being an English woman named Anna Leonowens.

Mongkut himself undertook the study of Western science, his favorite subject being that of astronomy. He invited Sir Harry Or, the British Governor of Straits Settlements from Singapore, as well as a party of French astronomers and scientists, to watch the total solar eclipse of 18 August, which King Mongkut himself had calculated two years earlier, at (in his own words) "East Greenwich longitude 99 degrees 42' and latitude North 11 degrees 39'." The spot was at Wakor village (Sam Roi Yad) in Prachuap Khiri Khan province, south of Bangkok. Mongkut's calculations proved accurate, but the choice of site proved to be infested with mosquitoes, and thus Mongkut and his oldest son Chulalongkorn were infected with malaria. Mongkut's condition worsened upon his return to Bangkok, and he died 6 six weeks later on 1st October 1868. He was succeeded by Chulalongkorn, who survived the malaria.