Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn has stripped his 34-year-old consort Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi of all titles for being disloyal and ungrateful to the king, according to a royal command issued on Monday (Oct 21).
According to the two-page announcement, she was trying to sabotage the appointment of Queen Suthida and had overstepped in the affairs of the royal couple.
Here are some details about the two women:
Queen Suthida
1. High Lady
Born Ms Suthida Tidjai, Queen Suthida, 41, had long been rumoured to be romantically linked with King Vajiralongkorn but their relationship was not made public until earlier this year.
She was made Than Phu Ying, which means High Lady in 2017 before she was made Queen.
2. Appointed as Queen
Suthida was named Thailand's Queen on May 1, three days ahead of King Vajiralongkorn's coronation. The announcement was made in the Royal Gazette, which said the King had legally married the Queen.
Queen Suthida is the King's fourth wife.
3. Flight attendant, bodyguard
Queen Suthida was a former flight attendant for Thai Airways. In 2013, she entered the royal army and a year later, she was appointed as a deputy commander of King Vajiralongkorn's bodyguard unit.
The King made Queen Suthida a full general in December 2016, and the deputy commander of the king's personal guard in 2017.
4. International lifestyle
The Queen and King are known to spend most of their time shuttling between Thailand and Germany, where the monarch owns a US$12 million (S$16.3 million) mansion on the shores of Lake Starnberg in Munich.
Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi
1. Noble consort
Ms Sineenat was the first woman in nearly a century to receive the title "noble consort".
She was bestowed the honour less than three months ago by the King on his 67th birthday on July 28. This appointment took place just two months after the King's marriage to Queen Suthida, his fourth wife.
2. Pilot, nurse, bodyguard
She is a qualified pilot, having trained with the Thai Air Force in 2018.
She also trained as an army nurse, graduating from the Royal Thai Army Nursing College at the age of 23. After working as a nurse from 2008 to 2012, she joined the Royal Household Bureau as a staff member in the palace's handicraft store.
She has undergone several military training programmes including in jungle warfare, endurance courses, royal bodyguard training and parachuting.
She served in the King's royal bodyguard unit and was awarded the rank of major-general in May.
3. 'Koi'
Like most Thais, she is known by a nickname - hers is "Koi", which means little finger.
She was born Ms Niramon Ounprom in the northern province of Nan on Jan 26, 1985.
4. Volunteer squad
After she was appointed noble consort, she spearheaded the King's volunteer squad programme, which helps clean up public spaces and and man government events.
In September, she was photographed on several occasions in the squad's uniform of yellow scarf and blue cap, cleaning up a canal in Pathumthani province and greeting the locals in Bangkok.
Just last week, she was appointed by the King as head adviser for the winter festival expected to be held in Bangkok late this year.
Sources: AFP, Reuters, DPA, Khaosod
