Editing Vajiravudh (section)

==Administration, economy, infrastructure==
[[File:King Vajiravudh in barrister-at-law gown.jpg|thumb|upright=1|King Vajiravudh wearing the ''[[khrui]]'' of a barrister-at-law]]
Rama VI inherited his father's plan of building a modern nation although he was more skeptical of outside methods. Disagreements occurred incessantly with "old aristocrats", many of whom were his relatives such as the celebrated [[Prince Damrong]], his uncle, who took charge of the Ministry of Interior. As more and more corruption in the newly created provinces was reported, Rama VI created a viceroy system. Viceroys, appointed directly by the king, were sent to supervise provincial governors and local officials.

In 1912, Vajiravudh announced the change in the [[Thai solar calendar#Buddhist Era|solar calendar era]] from the [[Rattanakosin Era (calendar era)|Rattanakosin Era]] (R.S.) designated by Chulalongkorn to the [[Buddhist Era]] with the year beginning 1 April 2455 BE (1912 CE).

In 1913, Siam faced a financial crisis as the Chinese-Siamese Bank went bankrupt.<ref>Edward Van Roy. "Siamese Melting Pot", (2018).</ref>

In 1914, Vajiravudh, having determined that the act providing for the invocation of [[martial law#Thailand|martial law]], first promulgated by his father in 1907, was not consistent with modern [[laws of war]] nor convenient for the preservation of the external or internal security of the state, changed to the modern form that, with minor amendments, continues in force.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.thailawforum.com/laws/Martial%20Law.pdf|title= Martial Law, B.E. 2457 (1914) unofficial translation|access-date= May 30, 2014|author= Pakorn Nilprapunt|date= April 2, 2012|orig-year= 2006|website= Thailand Law Forum|publisher= [[:th:สำนักงานคณะกรรมการกฤษฎีกา (ประเทศไทย)|Office of the Council of State (Thailand)]]|quote= Reference to Thai legislation in any jurisdiction shall be to the Thai version only. This translation has been made so as to establish correct understanding about this Act to the foreigners.|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130416100156/http://www.thailawforum.com/laws/Martial%20Law.pdf|archive-date= 2013-04-16|url-status= dead}}</ref>

Also in 1914, the construction of [[Don Mueang International Airport|Don Mueang Airport]] began. In the same year the Siamese government borrowed from the [[Federated Malay States]] to extend railways to the south. In 1915, Vajiravudh himself visited the southern provinces to oversee railway construction. The Bangkok railway station at [[Hua Lamphong]] was then established as a center of Siamese railroads. Prince Damrong eventually left the Ministry of Interior in 1915. In 1916, Vajiravudh appointed his half-brother, [[Purachatra Jayakara|Prince of Kamphang Phet]], as the Head of the Railway Department.

The king continued his father's [[rice varieties]] competition. He also continued the overall royal encouragement of [[plant breeding|development of rice varieties]], founding the Rangsit Rice Experiment Station in 1916 (now called [[Pathum Thani Rice Research Center]] and run by the Ministry of Agriculture).<ref name="Thai-Min-Ag-hist">{{cite web | title=History | trans-website=[[Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (Thailand)|Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives]] | website=กระทรวงเกษตรและสหกรณ์ | url=http://www.moac.go.th/moaceng-history | access-date=2021-08-30 | archive-date=2021-11-17 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211117010531/https://www.moac.go.th/moaceng-history | url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="FFTC-AP-rice-breeding">{{cite web | title=Rice Breeding and R&D Policies in Thailand | website=[[Food and Fertilizer Technology Center]] Agricultural Policy Platform (FFTC-AP) | date=2018-04-26 | url=http://ap.fftc.org.tw/article/1278 | access-date=2021-08-30}}</ref>

In 1917, Vajiravudh established the Nakorn Sri Thammarat Regiment as his personal guard. In the same year Vajiravudh founded Chulalongkorn University, the first university in Siam, named in honor of his father. In 1918, Vajiravudh founded the [[Dusit Thani]] near [[Dusit Palace]] as an experimental site for democracy. The democratic institutions were imitated including elections, parliament, and the press. Vajiravudh himself acted as one of the citizens of Dusit Thani, yet the city was criticized by others{{who|date=November 2021}} as another of Vajiravudh's theatrical conceits.

During 1918–1919 the price of rice soared. The government faced public criticism due to its tepid response. The major cause of the problem was the hoarding of rice. Chinese millers and rice merchants bought huge amounts of rice from farmers for export to Singapore, the largest rice market in the region. Price speculation was rampant. The government imposed a ban on rice exports. At the same time, public servants asked for higher wages due to the rising cost of living. The public, mainly the urban "middle-class", and Chinese traders became more and more unhappy with the government.