Wang Chan Kasem (วังจันทรเกษม)

Thai. ‘Happy Moon Palace’. Name of a royal mansion in Bangkok's Dusit area (fig.). Its construction was initiated in 1910 by King Chulalongkorn (fig.) and intended as a home for the then Crown Prince, Prince Wachirawut. However, King Rama V passed away before the palace was finished and −though it was completed during the reign of Rama VI− the latter, whose statue today stands in the front garden, never inhabited it. As the new king he moved into the Grand Palace instead. Thus, the mansion was used by other members of the Royal Family and later as a boarding school for the Theatre Department. When in 1940 the school moved, King Rama VIII in 1941, used the mansion to house the Ministry of Education, which up to present still has its head office in this former palace. Besides Wang Chan Kasem in Bangkok, there is also a Chasn Kasem Palace in Ayutthaya, which was a actually a Front Palace, known in Thai as Wang Nah. The latter's full name is hence Wang Nah Chan Kasem (map - fig.). Also spelled Wang (Na) Chankasem. See MAP. 回