Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida would appear on the Grand Palace balcony to greet the public on Monday, the last day of his three-day elaborate coronation.

The much-delayed coronation, with an estimated cost of up to 31 million dollars, came two-and-a-half years after Vajiralongkorn ascended the throne when his late father king Bhumibol Adulyadej died in 2016.

It was Thailand’s first coronation in nearly 70 years, the first and probably the only such event in most Thais’ lifetime.

The king crowned himself with a 7.3-kilogramme multi-tiered crown made of gold and diamonds dating back over 200 years on Saturday.

The crown was carried on a palanquin in a colourful seven-hour-long parade around Bangkok’s old town late Sunday to greet over 200,000 people lining the streets.

Although the queen’s appearance on Monday is not listed in the official coronation schedule, the Thai government confirmed that she is to be by the king’s side, in their first official public appearance as the king and queen of Thailand.

The couple were scheduled to appear at 4:30 pm (0930 GMT).

In an unanticipated and swift move, the 66-year-old king married his bodyguard, 40-year-old General Suthida Vajiralongkorn na Ayudhya, and named her the new queen of Thailand on May 1, three days before he was crowned.

A former Thai Airways flight attendant, Queen Suthida had long been rumoured to be romantically linked with Vajiralongkorn since he was the crown prince, but their relationship was never publicly announced until recently.

NAN