Thai King Dismisses Royal Consort As She Reportedly Tried To Sabotage The Queen

Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi, 34, was bestowed the title of 'Chao Khun Phra', or royal noble consort, on 28 July, the first woman to be given the rank in nearly a century.

According to CNN, Sineenat was a former army nurse who served in the king's royal bodyguard unit, and held the military ranking of major general.

The palace released images and a biography of Sineenat after her appointment as royal consort, including candid and action-packed photos of her aiming a weapon on a firing range, piloting a plane, and even holding hands with the king.

It was a rare and intimate glimpse into the private life of King Vajiralongkorn, also known as Rama X of the Chakri dynasty, reported New Straits Times.

King Vajiralongkorn was crowned in May, taking the throne following the death of his father in 2016, who reigned for 70 years.

According to The Star, just days before his coronation, he named the deputy head of his personal bodyguard unit queen.

Queen Suthida, previously a flight attendant, joined the palace guard in 2013 before becoming the commander of the king's security unit. She is now the fourth wife of the monarch.

Sineenat had breached a code of conduct for courtiers and was "disloyal to the king", the two-page palace statement said, reported ABC.

"Royal Noble Consort Sineenat is ungrateful and behaves in ways unbecoming of her title," the statement said, "She is also not content with the title bestowed upon her, doing everything to rise to the level of the queen."

"They caused division among the royal servants and led to misunderstanding among the public. These amount to acts of sabotage against the country and the monarchy," the notice said.

"She lacks the understanding of the good traditions of the royal court. She displays disobedience against the king and the queen."

According to CNN, under the King's orders, Sineenat has now been removed from the position of civil servant within the military, and has had all military ranks recalled.