When is H.M. Queen Mother's Birthday?
This National Holiday in Thailand is held annually on August 12th. This holiday marks the birthday of Queen Sirikit, who died, aged 93, in October 2025..
If August 12th falls on a weekend, the holiday will be observed on the following Monday.
History of H.M. Queen Mother's Birthday
Sirikit was born on August 12th 1932. Sirkit met Rama IX in France in 1946 when he had already become the ruler of Thailand. The royal couple were married on April 28th 1950, a week before the King's official coronation.
Sirikit was the mother of Thailand’s reigning monarch, King Vajiralongkorn (or Rama X). The King has been on the throne since the death of his father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX), in 2016.
Across Thailand, buildings are decorated to honour their queen mother, with the most splendid being in Bangkok, where many buildings and streets are festooned with coloured lights, flowers, and portraits of the queen mother.
Thailand’s Queen Mother suffered a stroke in 2012 and has stayed mostly out of the public eye since.
Queen Sirikit died aged 93, on Oct 25th 2025. She had been out of the public eye since a stroke in 2012. The palace said she had been hospitalised since 2019 due to several illnesses and developed a bloodstream infection on Oct 17th before dying late on Oct 24th.
The Thai people wear blue throughout the month of August to honour her.
Mother's Day
Mother’s Day was first celebrated in Thailand in April 1950 in a similar fashion to the growing international celebration.
In 1976, the custom of Mother’s Day was changed to August 12th to commemorate the birthday of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit.
