Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendira Debyavati, the Princess Rajasarini Siribajra ( th, พัชรกิติยาภา นเรนทิราเทพยวดี, , also known as Princess Pa or Patty, born 7 December 1978) is a Thai diplomat and princess of

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

, the first grandchild of

King Bhumibol Bhumibol Adulyadej ( th, ภูมิพลอดุลยเดช; ; ; (Sanskrit: ''bhūmi·bala atulya·teja'' - "might of the land, unparalleled brilliance"); 5 December 192713 October 2016), conferred with the title King Bhumibol the Great ...

and

Queen Sirikit Queen Sirikit ( th, สิริกิติ์; ; ); born ''Mom Rajawongse'' Sirikit Kitiyakara ( th, สิริกิติ์ กิติยากร; ; 12 August 1932) is the queen mother of Thailand. She was Queen of Thailand as the wif ...

, and the only one of the seven children of King Maha Vajiralongkorn born to his first wife Princess Soamsawali.

Early life and education

Princess Bajrakitiyabha was born on 7 December 1978 at

Amphorn Sathan Residential Hall The Amphorn Sathan Residential Hall or the Ambara Villa ( th, พระที่นั่งอัมพรสถาน: ''Phra Thinang Amphorn Sathan'') is a royal mansion situated inside Bangkok's Dusit Palace. It served as the primary residence ...

Dusit Palace Dusit Palace ( th, พระราชวังดุสิต, RTGS: ''Phra Ratcha Wang Dusit'') is a compound of royal residences in Bangkok, Thailand. Constructed over a large area north of Rattanakosin Island between 1897 and 1901 by King C ...

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

, She is eldest child and first daughter of Vajiralongkorn and his first wife princess

Soamsawali Princess Soamsawali, the Princess Suddhanarinatha ( th, โสมสวลี, , ), born '' Mom Luang'' Soamsawali Kitiyakara ( th, โสมสวลี กิติยากร; ; on 13 July 1957), is a member of the Thai royal family, and ...

, She studied at the all-girls

Rajini School Rajini School ( th, โรงเรียนราชินี, , lit. "Queen's School") is a private girls' school in Thailand, and one of the oldest in the country. It was founded in 1904 by Queen Saovabha Phongsri as a replacement for the recen ...

when she was in elementary and junior high school. She moved to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and began her secondary education first at Heathfield School in Ascot, finishing at the Chitralada School. Princess Bajrakitiyabha received a

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

degree from

Thammasat University Thammasat University ( Abrv: TU th, มธ.; th, มหาวิทยาลัยธรรมศาสตร์, , ) is a public research university in Thailand with campuses in Tha Phra Chan area of Phra Nakhon District near the Grand Pala ...

, as well a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree in International Relations from

Sukhothai Thammatirat University Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University or STOU () is the only open university in Thailand. History Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University was officially established by royal charter on 5 September 1978 as Thailand's eleventh state university to ...

, both in 2000. She subsequently obtained a LL.M. degree from Cornell Law School in 2002 and a J.S.D. degree from

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

in 2005. On 12 May 2012, she was awarded an honorary

LL.D. Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...

degree from IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law.

Career

On completion of her doctorate Princess Bajrakitiyabha worked briefly at the Thai Permanent

Mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

, in New York, before returning to Thailand. In September 2006, she was appointed Attorney in the Office of the Attorney General in

, and is then appointed to Office of the Attorney General of

Udon Thani Province Udon Thani province ( th, อุดรธานี, ) is one of Thailand's seventy-six provinces (''changwat'') which lies in upper northeastern Thailand, also called Isan. It is bordered by the provinces of Nong Khai to the north, Sakon Nakhon ...

. From 2012 to 2014, she was the Thai ambassador to

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, until she returned to a post at the Office of the Attorney General. The Coronation of King Rama X B

On 3 February 2021, the princess was transferred from her position as an attorney in the Office of the Attorney General to the

Royal Security Command The Royal Security Command ( th, หน่วยบัญชาการถวายความปลอดภัยรักษาพระองค์) is the king of Thailand's military household and is part of Thailand's royal court administ ...

in the position of Chief of Staff of The King's Close Bodyguard Command and bestowed the rank of general.

Work on women in the penal system

The princess was instrumental in prodding the Thai government to submit a resolution to the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, a subsidiary body of the

UN Economic and Social Council The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC; french: links=no, Conseil économique et social des Nations unies, ) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields ...

, that detailed the vulnerability of women incarcerated in a system built principally for men. Her efforts were to lead to the UN adoption of the " Bangkok Rules", the first set of universal guidelines addressing the treatment of women in the justice system. Bajrakitiyabha runs the "Kamlangjai" or "Inspire" project, which reached out to incarcerated Thai women including pregnant inmates and their babies, and intends to assure those female and pregnant inmates are given adequate assistance to prepare them to reenter society upon release. She is also working on "Enhancing lives of Female Inmates" (ELFI), a project which proposes new rules for the treatment of women prisoners and non-custodial measures for women offenders as a supplement to the 1955 Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners

Health

In December 2022, the

Bureau of the Royal Household The Bureau of the Royal Household (BRH) ( th, สำนักพระราชวัง) is an agency of the monarchy of Thailand. In addition to a range of administrative and ceremonial responsibilities, the bureau also serves as a conduit for ...

announced that the Princess had been hospitalised following a collapse while out walking her dogs on 14 December. The palace confirmed that it was due to a heart condition. The princess was initially taken to Pak Chong Nana Hospital and then transferred to the

King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital (KCMH, th, โรงพยาบาลจุฬาลงกรณ์; ) is a public general and tertiary referral hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. It is operated by the Thai Red Cross Society, and serves as the ...

. She was reportedly training her dogs for the Thailand Working Dog Championship 2022 organised by the

Royal Thai Army The Royal Thai Army or RTA ( th, กองทัพบกไทย; ) is the army of Thailand and the oldest and largest branch of the Royal Thai Armed Forces. History Origin The Royal Thai Army is responsible for protecting the kingdom's ...

Honours and symbols

Royal decorations

* : Dame of

The Most Illustrious Order of the Royal House of Chakri The Most Illustrious Order of the Royal House of Chakri ( th, เครื่องขัตติยราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันมีเกียรติคุณรุ่งเรืองยิ่งมหาจัก� ...

* : Dame of the Ancient and Auspicious Order of the Nine Gems * : Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Chula Chom Klao, First Class * : Dame Grand Cordon of the

Order of the White Elephant __NOTOC__ The Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันเป็นที่เชิดชูยิ่งช้างเผือก; ) is an order of Thailand. It wa ...

* : Dame Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Crown of Thailand The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันมีเกียรติยศยิ่งมงกุฎไทย; ) is a Thai order, established in 1869 by King Rama ...

* : Dame Grand Cross of the

Order of the Direkgunabhorn __NOTOC__ The Most Admirable Order of the Direkgunabhorn ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันเป็นที่สรรเสริญยิ่งดิเรกคุณาภรณ์; ) was establi ...

* : King Rama IX Royal Cypher Medal (First Class) * : King Rama X Royal Cypher Medal (First Class) * : Recipient of the Commemorative Medal on the Occasion of the Coronation of H.M. King Rama X

Foreign honour

* : Grand Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria in Gold with Sash (7 October 2014) ;Symbols File:Royal Cypher of Princess Bajrakitiyabha.svg, Royal Monogram

Ancestry

References

External links

The Friend in need of "PA"'s website

Kamlangjai Project website

The Children's Foundation, Phramongkutklao Hospital's website

Na Bha Foundation under HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha's website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bajrakitiyabha 1978 births Living people Thai female Phra Ong Chao Thai people of Mon descent Mahidol family Cornell Law School alumni Knights Grand Cordon of the Order of Chula Chom Klao Dames Grand Cross of the Order of the Direkgunabhorn Thammasat University alumni Ambassadors of Thailand to Austria People educated at Heathfield School, Ascot Thai women diplomats Thai women ambassadors Children of Vajiralongkorn 21st-century Thai women 20th-century Chakri dynasty 21st-century Chakri dynasty