Thailand’s royal family is mourning the death of Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol, King Vajiralongkorn’s eldest daughter, who died at the age of 47, the royal palace announced—more than three years after she was rushed to hospital following a sudden medical emergency.
The princess was hospitalised in December 2022 after she suddenly lost consciousness while visiting the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, with the palace saying the episode was linked to a heart condition.
Ms Bajrakitiyabha was flown by helicopter to the capital Bangkok for treatment.
She died yesterday evening after her health deteriorated amid an intra-abdominal infection, colitis, low blood pressure, arrhythmias, and blood clotting disorders, according to the palace statement.
Ms Bajrakitiyabha, popularly known as Princess Pa, was born on 7 December 1978, to the then Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn and his first wife, Princess Soamsawali.
A prominent public figure in Thailand, she built a reputation for hands-on work in public life, including efforts aimed at improving conditions for female prisoners, alongside a career in diplomacy.
Her education took her to Cornell University, where she studied law and earned both a Master’s degree and a Doctorate. She later worked as an attorney in the Thai Office of the Attorney-General from 2006 to 2011.
From 2012 to 2014, she represented Thailand abroad as ambassador to Austria, Slovenia and Slovakia, before returning to the attorney-general’s office in Bangkok.
Officials pay their respects in front of a picture of Princess Bajrakitiyabha after she was hospitalised
Beyond government service, she founded a charity focused on the rights of female inmates, with particular attention to those who were pregnant while in jail.
In 2017, the princess was appointed as the goodwill ambassador for the rule of law in Southeast Asia by the United Nations Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.
Her duties later extended into the military. She transferred to the army in 2021, received the rank of a general, and served as a chief of staff in the Royal Security Command.
The princess was one of King Vajiralongkorn’s three children who have formal titles and are eligible to take the throne under the constitution.
In October last year, Thailand’s Queen Mother passed away at 93.
The palace will hold royal funeral rites, while the government is expected to declare a period of national mourning.
