3.  Her Majesty Queen Sirikit is the daughter of His
Highness Prince Chandaburi Suranath (Mom Chao
Nakkhatra Mangkala Kitiyakara) and Mom Luang Bua
Kitiyakara (nee Mom Luang Bua Snidwongse).
 She was born on August 12, 1932. She attended
kindergarten class at Rajini School, but subsequently
went to St. Francis Xavier convent school at Samsen
District in Bangkok. Her father later on becameThai
Minister to France, then to Denmark and, ultimately,
Ambassador to the Court of St. James in England. Her
Majesty accompanied him and continued her general
education in the three countries and lastly in
Switzerland.

4.  It was while her father was stationed in Paris that she
first met His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who was
then studying in Switzerland but went now and then to
Paris.The chance meeting in Paris ripened into
friendship and understanding. When His Majesty met
with a very serious motor accident in Geneva,
Switzerland, and had to stay in a hospital at Lausanne,
Her Majesty was a frequent visitor. When His Majesty
was well again and left the hospital, he was graciously
pleased to arrange for Her Majesty to continue her
studies at Riante Rive, a boarding school in Lausanne. On
July 19, 1949,Their Majesties were quietly engaged in
Lausanne. On March 24, 1950,Their Majesties landed in
Bangkok by ship after a long absence. On April 28 of the
same year, the royal wedding took place at Pathumwan
Palace.

6.  Activities of Her Majesty the Queen
 President of theThai Red Cross Society
 Her Majesty has many public functions to perform. She became President of
theThai Red Cross Society on August 12, 1956, and her keenness in the work
has built up her popularity and aroused enthusiasm in the public for the cause
of the Red Cross. Later on, in 1979, upon learning of the influx of about 40,000
Cambodian refugees intoTrat province, Her Majesty Queen Sirikit flew to the
site to see the situation herself.Then, in her capacity as President of theThai
Red Cross Society, Her Majesty set up the Khao LarnThai Red Cross Center to
give shelter, food and medical care to those Cambodian refugees who were
mostly peasant families with small children and unaccompanied orphans.The
Center was a refuge for these displaced people for some years.
 When His Majesty entered the priesthood in 1956, Her Majesty became
Regent during that interval. She performed her duties so well and so
satisfactorily that, on the recommendation from the Government, Her
Majesty was given a title of higher distinction, “Somdech Phraborom
Rajininath.”
 Since August 10, 1961, Her Majesty has been Honorary President of the
Council of SocialWelfare ofThailand under His Majesty’s patronage.
 PromotingThai National Costumes


7.  Her Majesty the Queen is naturally endowed with artistic talents and is keenly
interested in the world of arts and culture, especially those ofThailand. Her
cultural promotion activities date back to 1960, when she accompanied His
Majesty the King on a state visit to Europe and the United States. She noticed
at the time that there were no national dresses forThai women, unlike the
Indian Sari or the Japanese Kimono, to name only two. She concluded it was
time to create such costumes for the sake of national identity.With this in
mind, Her Majesty made a research into traditional costumes thatThai
women had worn in different historical periods, from the Sukhothai and
Ayutthaya to the Rattanakosin (Bangkok) Periods.Then she set out to adapt
and modify these different modes intoThai national costumes for present-
day use. Initially, there were five designs, all worn with a long skirt.Three of
these have simple wrap-around skirts and the other two have a pleated fold
in the middle, running the entire length of the skirts.These five designs were
given such names asThai RuanTon,Thai Chitralada,ThaiAmarin,Thai Chakri
andThai Borom Phiman. Later on, more designs were gradually added to the
collection.These designs were launched by Her Majesty the Queen during the
course of the state visits and on subsequent occasions, until they are now
internationally recognized asThai national costumes.
 The promotion ofThai national costumes has had lasting consequences on
Thai traditional handicrafts and cottage industries, as the costumes are
particularly suited to hand-woven silk, plain, brocade or the patterned, tie-
dye silk, called the mud-mee.These costumes are further enhanced by
traditional handbags, which again are the products of delicate craftsmanship
in wickerwork.

11.  Mama thank you for who I am
Thank you for all the things I'm not
Forgive me for the words unsaid
For the times
I forgot
Mama remember all my life
You showed me love, You sacrificed
Think of those young and early days
How I've changed
along the way
And I know you believed
And I know you had dreams
And I'm sorry it took all this time to see
That I am where I am because of your truth
And I miss you,Yeah I miss you
Mama forgive the times you cried
Forgive me for not making right
All of the storms I may have caused
And I've been wrong
Dry your eyes
Mama I hope this makes you smile
I hope you're happy with my life
At peace with every choice I made
How I've changed
Along the way
'Cause I know you believed in all of my dreams
And I owe it all to you, Mama