Phuntsho Choden

This name uses Bhutanese naming customs. Bhutanese people have two given names, neither of which is a surname or family name unless they are descended from royal or noble lineages.

Phuntsho Choden

Phuntsho Choden in 1926
Queen consort of Bhutan
Tenure 26 August 1926 – 30 March 1952
Coronation 14 March 1927[1]
Predecessor Ngodrup Pemo
Successor Kesang Choden
Born 1911
Wangduchholing Palace, Bumthang
Died (aged 92)
Dechencholing Palace
Spouse Jigme Wangchuck
Issue Jigme Dorji Wangchuck
Full name
Gayum Angay Phuntsho Choden [fn 1]
House Wangchuck (by marriage)
Father Jamyang, Chumed Zhalgno
Mother Decho Dorji
Religion Buddhism

Ashi Phuntsho Choden was the queen consort of Bhutan.[2]

Early life

From an early age, Ashi Phuntsho Choden received a traditional education, including lessons on Buddhism. She received teachings, empowerment, and reading transmissions in the Drukpa Kargyu, Karma Kargyu, Dujom, Peling, and Nyingthig traditions from renowned Buddhist lamas.

Marriage and Family

She married Bhutan’s second king, Jigme Wangchuck, in 1923 when she was 12 years old. They were second cousins. Ashi Phuntsho Choden was the half-sister of the grandfather of the current Queen of Bhutan Jetsun Pema, and she was the great grandmother of the fifth king of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. She made sure that her only child Jigme Dorji Wangchuck learned both English and Hindi in early childhood to prepare him for Bhutan’s escalating involvement in foreign diplomacy.

Her younger sister, Ashi Pema Dechen (1918-1991), was the second wife of her husband since 1932 when she was 14 years old.[3]

Royal duties

She was very religious. Phunstho Choden played an important role in maintaining and strengthening Bhutan’s rich Buddhist heritage. She built a legacy of religious institutions, established spiritual learning centres, and preserved the rich imagery that formed a core of Bhutan’s religious history.

She created the monument National Memorial Chorten in Thimphu which she built in memory of her son, His Majesty Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, for the well being of the nation and the people.

Death

She died on 13 August 2003. Her body was ceremoniously laid out for 49 days and was taken to places she had been to when she was living.

Titles, styles and honours

Titles and styles

Honours

References

  1. ↑ Royal Ark
  2. ↑ "Central Tibetan Administration Mourns the Demise of Bhutanese Gayum Phuntsho Choden". Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  3. ↑ Royal Ark
  4. ↑ Royal Ark
  5. ↑ Royal Ark
  1. ↑ Women in Bhutan retain their names upon marriage.
Phuntsho Choden
Born: 1911 Died: 24 August 2003
Bhutanese royalty
Preceded by
–		 Queen Grandmother of Bhutan
1972–2003 		Succeeded by
Kesang Choden
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