- Ubol Ratana
Princess Ubol Ratana of Thailand ( _th. ทูลกระหม่อมหญิงอบลรัตน์ฯ,; Full name: ทูลกระหม่อมหญิงอุบลรัตนราชกัญญา สิริวัฒนาพรรณวดี, "Tunkramhom Ying Ubolratana Rajakanya Sirivadhana Phannavadi"), born
April 5 ,1951 inLausanne ,Switzerland , is the eldest child of HM KingBhumibol Adulyadej and HM QueenSirikit ofThailand .Education
After finishing her secondary school education, the Princess left for the United States for her tertiary education. She studied at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.) majoring in Mathematics, and later at theUniversity of California at Los Angeles . It was while at M.I.T. that she first met the man she would marry,Peter Ladd Jensen . She graduated with a Masters degree inpublic health from theUniversity of California at Los Angeles .Marriage and family
Princess Ubol Ratana married
Peter Ladd Jensen in 1972. She relinquished her royal title and settled in the United States with her husband. Their first child, a daughter,Ploypailin Jensen was born in 1981; followed by a son,Bhumi Jensen (affectionately known as Khun Poom) in 1983 and another daughter,Sirikitiya Jensen in 1985. After years of rumored marital problems, their divorce was officially announced in1998 . Princess Ubol Ratana and her children lived inSan Diego, California until 2001, when they relocated back to Thailand. Princess Ubol Ratana acts in a semi-official capacity as "public relations princess".Her son,
Khun Bhumi, was born withautism . Bhumi's autism improved as he grew. He attended school and later university, where he majored in physical education.Khun Bhumi Jensen drowned onDecember 26 ,2004 in the2004 Indian Ocean tsunami disaster, while riding a jet-ski off Kao Lak, Phrang-Nga Province, on holiday with his mother. HM KingBhumibol Adulyadej granted Khun Bhumi a royal funeral, which was attended by the royal family.Royal title
Princess Ubol Ratana was born with the titles of "Her Royal Highness" and "Princess
Chao Fa ", but gave these up on her marriage to an American citizen, Mr.Peter Ladd Jensen . Her title, "Chao Fa " was lost because she married a commoner. She had previously held the royal title "Chao Fa Ubolratana Rajakunya". She still retains the style of "Tunkramom Ying", which alludes to the status of "Chao Fa", but she does not officially hold the "Chao Fa" title at present.Since her return to Thailand, she has increasingly taken part in royal ceremonies, though not to the extent of her royal siblings.
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