On the night of 79 years ago, on May 26, 1946 (Lunar Calendar 26 April 1946), Pompong inherited the throne of Thailand. Thai King Pompong Adud (left) and Queen Ligi in the Grand Palace at the heart of the capital, Bangkok. Pompong Adud, King of Thailand (Lama IX) inherited the throne in 1927, was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. The son of the former King Pompong (Lama V) and his father, Prince Mahatma Nathanka, died early in 1928 from the United States, and moved home to Lausanne, Switzerland in 1933. He studied natural science at the University of Lausanne. In 1945 he returned to his first country. In 1946, his brother, King Ananda (Lama VIII), was murdered, and he was widely honored by Pompong as