The Dragon King of Bhutan has confirmed he will attend King Charles’s Coronation on 6 May – becoming the latest foreign royal to do so. The first foreign royal to confirm his attendance was Prince Albert II of Monaco, who will be joined by his wife, Princess Charlene. King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain will also be in attendance, while King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden will be joined by his daughter, Crown Princess Victoria. Also involving the next generation are King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, who will bring their daughter and heir Princess Catharina-Amalia to the reception on the eve of the Coronation.
But what of the Bhutanese king? Charismatic, progressive and head of an extraordinarily photogenic family (his glamorous wife has been dubbed the ‘Kate Middleton of the Himalayas’), the father-of-two is revered in his home country and credited with modernising the mountain nation. Here, Tatler reveals everything you need to know about the Dragon King of Bhutan.
Prince Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck, the youngest Crown Prince in the world, is already preparing for a life on the throne
Born in 1980, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck is the eldest son of Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the fourth Dragon King, and his third wife, Tshering Yangdon (the polygamous king had a total of four wives; all sisters). He ascended to the throne in November 2008 after his father abdicated in his favour.
After studying at a Bhutan public school, the young prince was sent to the US: enrolling first at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts (the alma mater of Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush) then Cushing Academy in nearby Ashburnham. He remained in Massachusetts for college, completing a degree at Wheaton College, before undertaking the Diplomatic Studies Programme at Magdalen College, Oxford.
‘Crown to Couture’, which opens on 5 April, will feature creations worn by Lizzo, Lady Gaga – and Georgian courtiers
As crown prince, Jigme returned to Bhutan to support his father. A basketball player with an interest in photography and history, according to Vanity Fair, the prince was once besieged by female admirers on an official visit to Thailand and considered one of Asia’s most eligible bachelors. It was, however, Jetsun Pema, descendent of one of Bhutan’s oldest noble families, who won his heart.
The young Druk Gyalpo, or Dragon King, announced his engagement in May 2011 and the couple married that October (it was a bumper year for royal weddings with the Prince and Princess of Wales; Zara and Mike Tindall and Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco also tying the knot).
Describing his future bride, the king said: ‘Many will have their own idea of what a Queen should be like—that she should be uniquely beautiful, intelligent and graceful… For the Queen, what is most important is that at all times, as an individual she must be a good human being, and as Queen, she must be unwavering in her commitment to serve the People and Country. As my queen, I have found such a person and her name is Jetsun Pema. While she is young, she is warm and kind in heart and character. These qualities together with the wisdom that will come with age and experience will make her a great servant to the nation.’ The queen, a distant cousin who was educated in London, was only just 21 years old when the couple wed. The king and queen’s families are also closely related: the king’s half-sister, Princess Eeuphelma Choden Wangchuck of Bhutan, is married to Dasho Thinlay Norbu, the queen’s younger brother.
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Their eldest son, Prince Jigme Namgyel was born in Lingkana Palace in Thimphu, on 5 February 2016, displacing his uncle, Prince Jigyel Ugyen of Bhutan, as heir to the throne. His name was officially revealed two months later. Up until that point, he was known publicly as ‘the Gyalsey’ or ‘the prince’. Their younger son, Jigme Ugyen Wangchuck, was born in June 2020.
The king and queen – who attended the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in September and welcomed the then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to the country in 2016 – are popular at home and internationally, with the king known as the ‘people’s king’. He has overseen the decriminalisation of homosexuality, overseen the democratisation of Bhutan and has delivered speeches urging his citizens to strive for higher standards in education, business and civil service.
Next on the agenda: a high profile appearance at the Coronation of King Charles III.
