COVER N. 366 - THAILAND

Postmark: Thailand 2023 World Stamp Champioship  140th Thailand Post  30.11.10.2023

Posted on the 30th November; received on the 6th December 2023

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Some covers can be plebeian, some covers royal, BUT none as royal as the one Ravindra sent me from Thailand with no less than eight stamps illustrated with the members of the  Thai Royal Family....

Thanks a lot Ravidra, I appreciated it, even if I'm a diehard republican.  😀

King Maha Vajiralongkorn Phra Vajiraklaochaoyuhua, King Vajiralongkorn, or Rama X was born on the 28th July 1952, and he accepted the throne of Thailand on the 1st December 2016, after a period of mourning for his father's death, which occurred on the 13th October of the same year. Although his coronation ceremonies were held much later, between 4 and 6 May, 2019,  the Thai government ruled that his reign had started on the day of his father's death.

King Rama X,  according to Wikipedia, is also the wealthiest Royal in the world and I do remember him being every now and then in the news for not the best of reasons, regarding his family life...

Monarchies...I confess to finding them awkward in our times. The right to rule, even if in an emblematic way, just because of a name, a lineage... on what grounds? 

The first period of article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights" . can someone outside of the lineage of any monarchy in the world run for the throne? Or is the right to be royal, a....right apart? 

Stamps:

Marking the occasion of  King Rama X's 69th anniversary, the 28th July 2021, Thai Post issued a two stamp set, which can be seen on this cover occupying positions 1 and 7, clockwise from the upper left corner of the envelope. 

The 10 baht stamp shows King Rama X on the second day of his coronation on a golden palanquin on which he was carried on a procession through Bangkok’s historic heart.

The 5 baht stamp shows the Royal family at the time of the coronation: Rama X, Queen Suthida and  two daughters and a son from the King's previous marriages.

The 10 baht stamps in positions 2 and 3 were issued on the birthday of King Rama X in 2015 and 2017 respectively;

Position 4 is occupied by a 3 baht stamp with a photo of the King Rama X's grandmother, Princess Srinagarindra (1900-1995), issued on the day of the 120th anniversary of her birth, 21st December 2020;

Position 5 holds a 9 baht stamp with a photo of Quen Sirikit (1932 - ), mother of King Rama X, celebrating her  87th birthday, issued on 30AUG2019;

Position 6 is also occupied by a 9 baht stamp celebrating Qeeen Sirikit's birthday, this time her 86th. Issued on 31AUG2018;

Finally, in position 8 there is a 10 baht stamp issued on 04MAY2019, on the occasion of the crowning of King Vajiralongkorn as King Rama X.

The stamp is illustrtaed with a portrait of the king with the Royal Thai Palace on the background.

The postmark if rather blotched, but  a clearer one on the back of the cover, allows me to perceive that it was issued on the occasion of  the Thailand World Stamp Championship, which took place in Bangkok from the 27th November to the 2nd December 2023.