50 Facts About King Bhumibol Adulyadej

1. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was born in the United States and was taught in Switzerland.

2. King Bhumibol Adulyadej's designated heir to the throne was his only son, Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn.

3. King Bhumibol Adulyadej responded by persuading the generals to give up power.

4. On June 9, 1996, King Bhumibol Adulyadej celebrated his 50th anniversary on the throne, becoming Thailand's longest ruling monarch.

5. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was universally revered throughout Thailand and contributed greatly to his country's stability.

6. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was a symbol both of national unity and of modernity.

7. King Bhumibol Adulyadej handed over a garland from his van for an official to place before the statue.

8. King Bhumibol Adulyadej has almost disappeared from public life since he was hospitalized in September 2009 for what the palace called a lung inflammation.

9. In 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 the King Bhumibol Adulyadej spent much of his time in the hospital and has effectively been hospitalised since 2009.

10. King Bhumibol Adulyadej has owned several former strays and has pleaded with Thais not to harm such dogs.

11. King Bhumibol Adulyadej spends most of his time at the royal residence, Chitralada Palace, in Bangkok.

12. King Bhumibol Adulyadej is described as shy, earnest, intense, frugal and serious.

13. The King Bhumibol Adulyadej has travelled to all areas of Thailand, including the remotest parts with the most rugged terrain, talking to people to understand their ways of life and problems and find ways to help them.

14. King Bhumibol Adulyadej obtained one in 1993 for a waste water aerator named "Chai Pattana", and several patents on rainmaking after 1955: the "sandwich" rainmaking patent in 1999 and the "supersandwich" patent in 2003.

15. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was the only Thai monarch to hold a patent.

16. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was the patron of the Radio Amateur Society of Thailand.

17. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was a radio amateur with the call sign HS1A.

18. King Bhumibol Adulyadej produced several small sailboat designs in the International Enterprise, OK, and Moth classes.

19. King Bhumibol Adulyadej won a gold medal for sailing in the Fourth Southeast Asian Peninsular Games in 1967, together with Princess Ubol Ratana whom he tied for points.

20. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was the first Asian in both cases to be honored as such.

21. In 1964, King Bhumibol Adulyadej became the 23rd person to receive the Certificate of Bestowal of Honorary Membership on behalf of Vienna's University of Music and Performing Arts.

22. King Bhumibol Adulyadej performed with his band at Thai universities, composing anthems for the universities of Chulalongkorn, Thammasat, and Kasetsart.

23. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was an accomplished jazz saxophone player and composer, playing Dixieland and New Orleans jazz, and the clarinet, trumpet, guitar, and piano.

24. King Bhumibol Adulyadej kept a carbine, a Sten gun and two automatic pistols in his bedroom, and he and his elder brother, King Ananda Mahidol, often used the gardens of the palace for target practice.

25. King Bhumibol Adulyadej's visits to these projects were heavily promoted by the Sarit government and broadcast in state-controlled media.

26. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was involved in many social and economic development projects.

27. In 1954, King Bhumibol Adulyadej vetoed parliamentary-approved land reform legislation twice before consenting to sign it.

28. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was too ill to appear for the public celebration of his birthday on 5 December 2015, but made a televised appearance on 14 December, his first in several months.

29. King Bhumibol Adulyadej suffered minute subdural bleeding in the left frontal area of his brain for which he was treated in July 2012.

30. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was again admitted to Siriraj Hospital in September 2009, apparently suffering from flu and pneumonia.

31. King Bhumibol Adulyadej received treatment for various ailments including heart problems and was released after three weeks.

32. King Bhumibol Adulyadej suffered from lumbar spinal stenosis, and received a microsurgical decompression for the condition in July 2006.

33. On 20 July, King Bhumibol Adulyadej signed a royal decree endorsing new House elections for 15 October 2006.

34. King Bhumibol Adulyadej summoned Suchinda and the leader of the pro-democracy movement, retired Major General Chamlong Srimuang, to a televised audience, and urged them to find a peaceful resolution.

35. In 1992, King Bhumibol Adulyadej played a key role in Thailand's transition to a democratic system.

36. King Bhumibol Adulyadej chose Thanin as the most suitable premier, leading student protesters to flee to join the communists in the jungle.

37. King Bhumibol Adulyadej distanced himself from the Thai military after Thanom's fall.

38. King Bhumibol Adulyadej issued a proclamation appointing Sarit as "military defender of the capital" without anyone countersigning the proclamation.

39. King Bhumibol Adulyadej advised the field marshal to resign to avoid a coup.

40. King Bhumibol Adulyadej invited public criticism in a 2005 speech, but the lese majeste laws have not been revoked by the Thai parliament yet.

41. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was ordained by the Supreme Patriarch on 22 October 1956 at the Royal Chapel of the Emerald Buddha in the Grand Palace.

42. On 9 June 2006, King Bhumibol Adulyadej celebrated his 60th anniversary as the King of Thailand, becoming the longest reigning monarch in Thai history.

43. King Bhumibol Adulyadej selected for her a boarding school in Lausanne, Riante Rive.

44. King Bhumibol Adulyadej's was then 15 years old and training to be a concert pianist.

45. In 1942, King Bhumibol Adulyadej became a jazz enthusiast, and started to play the saxophone, a passion that he kept throughout his life.

46. King Bhumibol Adulyadej came to Thailand in 1928, after his father obtained a certificate from Harvard.

47. King Bhumibol Adulyadej had an older sister, Princess Galyani Vadhana, and an older brother, Prince Ananda Mahidol.

48. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was the youngest son of Prince Mahidol Adulyadej, the Prince of Songkla, and his commoner wife Mom Sangwan.

49. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was born at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States, on 5 December 1927.

50. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was generally highly revered by the people in Thailand—many even saw him as close to divine.