page_title: Pridi Banomyong
hierarchical_section_title: Pridi Banomyong
caption_attribution_description: ไทย: ปรีดี พนมยงค์ ใน ปี ค.ศ. 1947
context_page_description: Pridi Banomyong, also known by his noble title Luang Praditmanutham was a Siamese/Thai politician and professor. He was a Thai Regent, prime minister and senior statesman of Thailand; he also held multiple ministerial posts. He was a leader of the civilian wing of Khana Ratsadon, founder of University of Moral and Political Sciences and Bank of Thailand.
  Born to a poor family of farmers in Ayutthaya Province, he nonetheless received good education. He became one of the nation's youngest barristers in 1919, at the age of nineteen. In 1920, he won scholarship to study in France, where he graduated from University of Caen with a master's degree, and completed his doctorage from University of Paris in 1927. In the same year, he co-founded Khana Ratsadon with the same-minded Siamese overseas students. After returning to Siam, he worked as a judge, judicial secreteriat, and professor. In the aftermath of 1932 Siamese Revolution, he played an important role in drafting two of the country's first constitutions, and proposed a socialist economic plan. The stark reaction to the plan made him briefly self-exiled. He then took many ministerial posts in Khana Ratsadon's governments.
context_section_description: Pridi Banomyong (Thai: ปรีดี พนมยงค์, RTGS: Pridi Phanomyong, [prīː.dīː pʰā.nōm.jōŋ]; 11 May 1900 – 2 May 1983), also known by his noble title Luang Praditmanutham (Thai: หลวงประดิษฐ์มนูธรรม) was a Siamese/Thai politician and professor. He was a Thai Regent, prime minister and senior statesman of Thailand; he also held multiple ministerial posts. He was a leader of the civilian wing of Khana Ratsadon, founder of University of Moral and Political Sciences and Bank of Thailand.
  Born to a poor family of farmers in Ayutthaya Province, he nonetheless received good education. He became one of the nation's youngest barristers in 1919, at the age of nineteen. In 1920, he won scholarship to study in France, where he graduated from University of Caen with a master's degree, and completed his doctorage from University of Paris in 1927. In the same year, he co-founded Khana Ratsadon with the same-minded Siamese overseas students. After returning to Siam, he worked as a judge, judicial secreteriat, and professor. In the aftermath of 1932 Siamese Revolution, he played an important role in drafting two of the country's first constitutions, and proposed a socialist economic plan. The stark reaction to the plan made him briefly self-exiled. He then took many ministerial posts in Khana Ratsadon's governments. His significant contributions include, but not limited to, modernizing of Thai legal codes, laying foundation for the country's local government system, negotiation to cancel unequal treaties with the West, and tax reform.
  He then diverged from Plaek Phibunsongkhram after his tendency for dictatorship, he was made a reagent during 1941 to 1945, a post deemed powerless, and leader of domestic Free Thai Movement during World War II. His move to legitimate Phibun's declaration of war against the Allies proved fruitful and after the war, the King revered him as a senior statesman.
  He became a Prime Minister for a brief period in 1946. His political opponents painted him as the mastermind behind the assassination of King Ananda Mahidol. The coup in 1947 cost him his political power. An attempt to stage a counter coup in 1949 was failed and he continued to live in exile since. He died in Paris, France in 1983. His ash was brought to Thailand in 1986.
  His image ranged from a anti-monarchist democrat to a republican. His branding as a communist and a mastermind of a King's death was a political dirt which his opponents continued to weaponsize even after his death. However, he won every libel lawsuit in Thailand filed against those who advertise it. He became a symbol of resistance against military dictatorships, as well as a symbol of liberalism, and Thammasat University. The centenary of his birth was celebrated by UNESCO in 2000.
caption: Pridi Banomyong in 1947.
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