In 1946, when King Bhumibol Adulyadej was crowned, it would have been easy to imagine Thailand's monarchy going the same way as some others in Asia: reduced to a mere symbol, as Japan's was after the war; or perhaps even replaced by a republic, as Laos's was in 1975 and Nepal's may imminently be. A military-backed revolution in 1932 had already ended the absolute rule enjoyed by most of Bhumibol's ancestors in the Chakri dynasty. Re-establishing the crown's authority and popularity was a daunting task for the American-born teenager, who had spent most of his childhood in exile.
展开▼
