On November 29, 1951, the military Coup Group that had dominated Thailand since 1947 carried out the Silent Coup, also called the Radio Coup, consolidating army control by simply announcing over the radio the dissolution of parliament and the reinstatement of the more authoritarian 1932 constitution in place of the democratic 1949 charter. The move came while King Bhumibol Adulyadej was en route back from Switzerland, timed so the generals could act before he resumed his royal duties. Prime Minister Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram, who had resisted the group's demands to remove civilians from government, was disregarded along with the king, though he agreed to stay on as prime minister the next day.
The new charter eliminated the Senate, created a part-appointed unicameral legislature, and let serving officers hold ministerial posts. Police chief Phao Sriyanond gained the most from the coup.
Researched Details
Researched
Independent research, added record by record. Hover any label for what it means.
Target identified in Coup Atlas research: Plaek Phibunsongkhram, Prime Minister of Thailand (retained as premier but sidelined; the elected 1949 order was abolished)
RESEARCHED NAME
Key figures
Plaek Phibunsongkhram (prime minister, kept on but sidelined)
Phao Sriyanond (police chief, chief beneficiary)
Phin Choonhavan (Coup Group leader)
Sarit Thanarat (Coup Group leader)
King Bhumibol Adulyadej (returning monarch the coup was timed around)
Sources
Thailand's Silent Coup of 29 November 1951, also known as the Radio Coup, consolidated the military's hold on the country, reinstating the 1932 constitution, eliminating the Senate, and allowing serving military officers to hold ministerial portfolios.
On 26 November the Coup Group proposed reverting to the 1932 constitution; Phibun rejected it, and that evening, while the king was en route from Singapore to Bangkok, they announced the dissolution of parliament, reinstatement of the 1932 constitution, and a provisional government, with Phibun re-signing as prime minister the next morning.
In November 1951 military and police officers announced in a radio broadcast that the 1949 constitution was suspended and the 1932 constitution was in force, citing the danger of communist aggression; King Bhumibol was then called back to Thailand.
SOURCE REVIEWEDGlobalSecurity.org, "Thailand - November 1951 Coup"open source ↗
On 29 November 1951, in the coup known as the Radio Coup, the military took over a radio station and announced suspension of the 1949 constitution and reinstatement of the 1932 constitution to consolidate power.
SOURCE REVIEWEDTour Bangkok Legacies, "Phibun Songkhram - the master of the coup d'etat"open source ↗
Editorial Note
Sources agree on the date (29 November 1951), the radio-announcement method, the reinstatement of the 1932 constitution, and the timing around King Bhumibol's return. This was a self-coup by the ruling Coup Group that kept Phibun as prime minister, which matches the Cline dataset's leader fate of 'not physically harmed.' Two Wikipedia-derived and two other reference sources were read directly. Note this shares the 29 November 1951 date coincidentally with Syria's separate Shishakli coup.
Cross-Reference
Datasets agree. At least two of the three reference datasets we check against carry this event, and none of them disagrees about its date or its result.
Identifiers for finding this same event in the other datasets:
Coup Atlas research identifies the target as: Plaek Phibunsongkhram, Prime Minister of Thailand (retained as premier but sidelined; the elected 1949 order was abolished).
Baseline coding: Incumbent executive removed from power. Recorded leader fate: deposed; not physically harmed. The baseline file does not name individual targets; researched names are kept in a separate layer.
Baseline Dataset Citation
Cline Center Coup d’État Project Dataset, v2.2.2
Peyton, Buddy, Joseph Bajjalieh, Michael Martin, and Andrea Gerald. 2026. Cline Center Coup d’État Project Dataset. Cline Center for Advanced Social Research. V.2.2.2. February 17. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. doi: 10.13012/B2IDB-9651987_V10
“Premier Pibul Ousted in Thailand, Only to Head Successor Regime Old Cabinet Is Overthrown as Failing to Suppress Reds and Fight Inflation Cabinet Members Listed Regime Held Ineffective Parliament Seen Target,” November 30, 1951
This is the citation trail carried by the baseline dataset, grouped by outlet and rejoined from the line-wrapped original. Coup Atlas has not independently re-checked every document; read the original before citing a specific claim. URLs the import damaged beyond safe repair are shown as plain text and listed in citations-report.md. How this list is built →