Thailand's Princess Bajrakitiyabha, king's eldest child, dies at 47

Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn (R) and Princess Bajrakitiyabha meet supporters in Bangkok, Thailand on Nov. 1, 2020. (AP/Kyodo)

Thai Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol shakes hands while meeting supporters in Bangkok, Thailand, Nov. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn, File)

A person holds a picture of the late Thailand Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Peoples hold pictures of Thailand's Princess Bajrakitiyabha in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, June 12, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

BANGKOK - Thailand's Princess Bajrakitiyabha, the eldest child of King Maha Vajiralongkorn, has died following a long illness after spending more than three years in a coma, the palace said Friday. She was 47.

According to the Royal Household Bureau, the princess, who died on Thursday, had been hospitalized since December 2022 after collapsing due to a heart illness and losing consciousness while on a provincial trip. She had been in a coma ever since.

Princess Bajrakitiyabha is one of three of the king's children who have formal titles. The 73-year-old king has yet to appoint a royal heir since he assumed the throne in 2016.

Born on Dec. 7, 1978, the princess is the only daughter of King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his former wife, Princess Soamsawali. The couple divorced in 1991.

Popularly called "Princess Bha," she had served as the Thai ambassador to Austria, Slovakia and Slovenia, and had also engaged in work with the United Nations on protecting women. She had a master's degree and a doctoral degree in law from Cornell University in the United States.