During the last period of King Bhumibol’s reign, the establishment found its hold over the country challenged as never before by the emergence of Thaksin Shinawatra, an autocratic telecommunications magnate whose parties won every election since 2001 on the back of huge support in rural areas. That political awakening led supporters of the old guard to resort to a mixture of legal gerrymandering, sometimes violent civil disobedience and two military coups — both signed off by the palace.