Damrong Radhanuphab

Born 1862 in Bangkok; died there in 1943. Thai government figure, historian, and scholar. Prince; son of King Mongkut (ruled 1851–68).

Damrong Radhanuphab, who was minister of education in Thailand (1892–1932), studied educational systems in Europe and helped introduce their principles into the educational system of his own country. He was the first president of the Learned Committee of the National Library in Bangkok, which, on his initiative, collected Thai inscriptions on stone, manuscripts, and works of national art. He worked on the publication of national chronicles, and the multivolume series Collected Chronicles that was begun under his direction has been published to the present day. Damrong wrote works on the history of Thailand, on the history of Thai literature, on national customs, and on Buddhist monuments. He also compiled biographies of Thai government figures. From 1892 to 1915 he studied questions of local administration and the organization of the tax system. After the revolution of 1932, Damrong emigrated to Penang Island and returned to Thailand in early 1942.