November, 2008:

Mourners attend a lavish funeral for a Thai princess that shows the importance of the monarchy. ITN’s Nick Paton Walsh reports.

To the wail of conch shells and the thunder of cannon fire, crimson-clad soldiers have pulled a gilded chariot containing the body of the revered Thai king’s sister to a seven-story pyre where she was cremated.

Princess Galyani Vadhana, the elder sister of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, died of abdominal cancer 10 months ago at the age of 84.

More than 2,000 soldiers in dress uniform marched alongside the elaborate chariot containing the urn with the remains of the princess in a funeral procession from the glittering Grand Palace through the heart of old Bangkok, the capital.

Tens of thousands of Thais lined the route of the procession under clear skies to bid farewell to the late princess, while millions of others watched the procession on television.

Flanked by rows of drummers, trumpeters and conch-blowers, the slow-moving funeral train will end at the crematorium — a temporary complex of pavilions built by hundreds of Thai craftsmen over the past seven months. At the center is a four-sided castle, decorated with figures of heavenly beings at the base and a special seven-tiered white umbrella used only at royal events.

Members of the royal family performed the cremation at the pyre Saturday as guards from the three armed forces fire cannons and a group of court musicians performed classical Thai music.

In Buddhist temples around the country, Thais performed religious rites and burn sandalwood flowers in her honor.

The grand six-day funeral ceremony officially started Friday with saffron-robed Buddhist monks chanting prayers, launching a period of mourning that promises a temporary halt to the country’s divisive political conflict. 

The 80-year-old king led the royal family in Friday’s ceremony at the Grand Palace, where more than 100 specially chosen monks were in attendance. The king lit candles and incense, as his wife Queen Sirikit and their children looked on.

The ceremony will provide a brief break from the protest-fueled political sparring that has gripped Thailand since anti-government protests began in May. In the worst political violence in the country in 16 years, two protesters were killed and more than 470 injured when anti-government protesters and riot police clashed on October 7.

Protesters have promised to suspend their anti-government vitriol for the duration of the funeral.

The princess was noted for her interest in the arts, especially theater and classical music, a taste cultivated when — like the king — she was educated in Switzerland, where she spent much time until later life.

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