ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Family tree of Thai monarchs

Okay, let's imagine that you have a big family tree with lots of branches. But instead of your family, let's talk about the family of the rulers, or monarchs, in Thailand.

At the top of the family tree, we have the current king or queen, who is called the monarch. But the family tree goes back many, many years to show all the kings and queens who have ruled Thailand in the past.

Now, the family tree has many branches because the monarchs have children, who then become kings and queens themselves. So each new king or queen is like a new branch on the tree.

Let's start with the very first king, which is called King Rama I. He was the leader of Thailand a long, long time ago. He had children, and one of them became the next king, called King Rama II. And this went on and on, with each new king or queen having children and passing the rule to them.

But here's where it gets a little bit complicated. Sometimes, the king or queen didn't have any children, or maybe their children couldn't become the next ruler for some reason. In those cases, they had to find another royal family member to become the new king or queen. This could be a brother, a cousin, or even a niece or nephew. So, you see, it's not always the direct children who become the next ruler.

Over the years, the family tree grew bigger and bigger, with more and more branches. And as time went on, some royal families from other countries married into the Thai royal family, which means people from different families became part of the tree too.

Now, let's fast forward to today. The current king of Thailand is King Maha Vajiralongkorn, who became the monarch when his father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, passed away. And like we said earlier, he has children, who are the next generation in the family tree.

So, to sum it all up, a family tree of Thai monarchs shows all the kings and queens who have ruled Thailand throughout history, starting from the very first king. The tree has many branches, with each new ruler passing the rule to their children or other family members. It's like a big family with lots of kings and queens in it!