- Sri Suriyendra
Somdet Phra Sri Suriyendra Boroma Rachini or Queen Sri Suriyendra (1767 - 1836) was the queen of
Siam , wife ofBuddha Loetla Nabhalai , who was her own cousin, and mother ofMongkut andPinklao . She was later named upon the coronation of her son Mongkut as Krom Somdet Phra Sri Suriyendramataya, the Royal Mother.Biography
Princess Bunrod was a daughter of Princess
Sri Sudarak (sister ofBuddha Yodfa Chulaloke ) and her Chinese husband [cite book|title=Chinese Society in Thailand: An Analytical History|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=5y0yAAAAIAAJ|year=1957|author=George William Skinner|publisher=Cornell University Press |pages=26|isbn=] . Princess Bunrod lived with her mother in the Grand Palace and became acquainted to the daughters of Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke (therefore her cousins).Princess Bunrod then had an affair with Prince Isarasundhorn, a son of Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke. The king them found out her 4-month pregnancy in 1801 and banished her out of the Grand Palace to live with her brother Prince Thepharirak. Prince Isarasundhorn then pledged his father to return the princess to the palace. The couple eventually settled themselves at the Old Palace (Thonburi Palace) and Princess Bunrod was raised as the prince's consort.
However, the baby died just after the birth. With Prince Isarasundhorn (future Buddha Loetla Nabhalai), she born three princes;
* A Prince, born in 1801, died just after the birth
* Prince Mongkut, or later King Mongkut, born in 1804.
* Prince Chutamani, or later King Pinklao, born in 1808.Following Prince Isarasundhorn's coronation as Buddha Loetla Nabhalai, Princess Bunrod was raised to Queen Sri Suriyendra. She was not the only queen as the Siamese monarchs could have many consorts according to the tradition. Sri Suriyendra shared her husband with Princess Consort Kunthon and a number of the king's concubines.
Her son, Prince Mongkut became a monk in 1824, the same year that Buddha Loetla Nabhalai died. It was her son Mongkut who was to be crowned according to the succession law. However, the nobility instead put Prince
Jessadabodindra , who was a son of concubine, on the throne. Mongkut then remained a monk to avoid court intrigues.Sri Suriyendra then left for the Old Palace to live with her son Prince Isaret (previously Prince Chutamani). She stayed there until her death in 1836 and didn't live to see her son Mongkut crowned.
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