King Ananda Mahidol (20 September 1925 – 9 June 1946) was the eighth monarch of Thailand from the House of Chakri. At the time he was recognised as king by the National Assembly in March 1935, he was a nine-year-old boy living in Switzerland. He returned to Thailand in December 1945, but six months later in June 1946, he was found shot dead in his bed. Although at first thought to have been an accident, medical examiners ruled it a murder and three royal pages were later executed following very irregular trials. The mysterious circumstances surrounding his death have been the subject of much controversy.