Thai Parliament Building in Dusit District

Brief Information

The parliamentary complex in Dusit arose from a very specific lack of space: the expanded parliament could no longer fit for its sessions in the Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall. Therefore, a separate plot was allocated next to the palace buildings, and a new working home for the National Assembly was built. From 1974 to 2018, sessions of the Thai parliament were held here, and the Democracy Museum operated inside, with exhibitions on the country’s political history.

The main shift in how this place is perceived is that it no longer functions as a parliament and has not survived as the former complex: by the end of 2018 the land was returned to the royal administration, in early 2019 the parliament was evicted, and the buildings were demolished. The details described are therefore important as the layout of a vanished political space that can be read through archival photographs and descriptions.

What to Notice First

It makes sense to compare the three main parts of the complex: the three-story session building, the seven-story working block, and the two-story club-canteen. The layout immediately separated the public political function from the parliament’s everyday operations: the taller block housed a printing office, a library, recreation areas, a museum, and offices.

The decoration at the entrance explained the building through symbols of the state and the order of the world. In front of the central entrance there was first a pond with a yellow metal flower of democracy; later, this place was occupied by a statue of King Rama VII. On either side of the entrance stood two female figures: one with a jug represented water, the other earth. Air and fire were added at the corners of the building: a marble bird and a separate sculpture of fire. Inside, the same principle continued in painting: the corridors and halls were decorated with pictures about the activities of Thai monarchs, and between the second and third floors there was a fresco with an image of hope for the future.