Thousands gather to say goodbye to Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej as motorcade enters palace

Thousands of mourners have lined the streets for a last glimpse of Thailand's revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej during a funeral procession that also marked an important moment of image building for his presumed heir.

The late king’s body was received by Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn at a Bangkok hospital, which the ailing monarch had made his virtual home for years before his death at the age of 88 was announced on Thursday.

The funeral cortege then headed toward the ornate Grand Palace to perform the ritual bathing of the body in accordance with Buddhist tradition. Bhumibol, the world’s longest-serving monarch, was on the throne since 1946 and was the only king that most Thais had ever known.

Along the route in central Bangkok, mourners dressed in black sat quietly clutching photos of the dead monarch in his military uniform or posing with his two dogs, as municipal workers passed out juice in the blazing heat.

“My heart is broken,” said Suprajit Rattanawong, 39, a fourth-grade teacher. She began weeping again when she spoke of the man she considered a father figure and inspiration. “We all feel the same.”

A pall hung over the South-east Asian nation of nearly 70 million. Television stations played sombre biographies of King Bhumibol, who remained a beloved figure to the Thai people for his tireless work ethic, paternal aura and willingness to aid the rural hinterlands.

“Truly the King of Hearts,” said a headline in the English language daily The Nation.

The solemn task of memorial and succession began with the removal of the king’s body from the Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok, where in recent years he had been treated for a lung infection, kidney disease and other ailments. He had not made a public appearance in months before his death was announced.

As the country launched into an extended period of mourning that will last a year, fears remained that the king’s death could further fracture Thailand’s political system and disrupt a plan for elections to be held in 2017. The country has been riven by conflict for over a decade and has been run by a military junta since 2014.

As per law, the country’s parliament was supposed to have officially named a successor within 24 hours, but the crown prince told the country’s prime minister on Thursday that he wanted to fully grieve his father’s death before taking over as king. The National Legislative Assembly was set to meet again today to discuss the investiture of the new king.

The prince, 64, who has spent much time abroad and is thrice-divorced, does not carry the popularity and respect of his father. But many Thais expressed hope he would live up to his father’s legacy.

“Maybe he has a different style, but hopefully everything will get better and not worse,” said Chana Karn, 43, an event planner from Bangkok.

The royal dynasty, dating to the late 18th century, includes King Mongkut (1804-1868), whom Yul Brynner portrayed as an autocrat in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The King and I, and his grandfather King Chulalongkorn (1853-1910), a revered figure credited with modernising government and society.

Bhumibol was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on 5 December 1927, making him the only king from any country born in the United States. His father, Prince Mahidol, was studying at Harvard Medical School at the time and died two years later of kidney and liver ailments. His mother was a Thai commoner.

Washington Post