Jetsun Pema Wangchuk

After marriage, Jetsun Pema joined the king on several trips abroad to India, Singapore, Japan, and the UK.

Jetsun Pema accompanied Jigme Khesar during his several royal visits to various parts of Bhutan before the wedding, and as the Queen of Bhutan accompanied him on all such trips. A royal visit on the way across the country includes meeting and talking with as many local people, students and government employees as possible.

Jetsun Pema is an environmental advocate and patron of the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature. She is also the UNEP Ozone Ambassador. Her Majesty works closely with various organizations working with children with special needs as a patron of the Bhutan Aptitude Society. She is a patron of the Bhutan Kidney Association (Jigten Wangchuk Chogpa) and the Bhutan Kidney Foundation.

Since 2016, she has been president of the Bhutan Red Cross Society (BRCS).

Jetsun Pema was born on June 4, 1990 at the Jigme Dorji Wangchuk National Hospital in Thimphu. Her father, Dhondup Gyalchen, is the grandson of two Trashigang Dzongpon, Tinli Topgai and Ugyen Tsering (governors of Trashigang). Her mother, Aum Sonam Chuki, is from the Bumthang Pantei family (one of Bhutan's oldest noble families). Sonam Chuki's father was the half-brother of the spouse of the two queens of Bhutan, Funtsho Choden (great-grandmother of the current king) and her sister Pema Dechen.

Her ancestor is also the 48th Druk Desi and the 10th Penlop from Trongs Jigme Namgyal (father of King Ugyen Wangchuk and her great-great-grandmother Asha Yeshay Choden). The king and queen of Bhutan are distant relatives.

Jetsun Pema is the second of five children. Among her four brothers and sisters: two brothers, Tinlai Norbu and Jigme Namgyel, and two sisters, Serchen Doma and Yeatso Lhamo (the eldest, who is the wife of the king’s brother, Prince Gyaltshab Jigme Dorji Wangchuk).

The early education of Jetsun Pema took place in Thimphu at the School of Little Dragon, at the School of Sunlight (1995-1996) and, finally, at Changankh High School (1997-1998). She was then educated at St. Joseph's Monastery in Kalimpong, West Bengal, India, from 1999 to 2000. She continued her secondary education at Lungtenzampa Thimphu High School from 2001 to 2005 and in April 2006 she moved to Lawrence School, Sanawar, in Solana, Himachal Pradesh, India. She joined Lawrence as a student of class XI and decided to study English, history, geography, economics, and painting. She graduated on March 31, 2008. She then began her higher education by entering Regent's College in London, where she graduated from international relations with psychology and the history of art as secondary subjects.

On May 20, 2011, during the opening of the seventh session of parliament, the king announced his engagement, saying

  “As a king, I have to get married.  After much thought, I decided that the wedding will be this year. ”

Describing Jetsun Pemu, he said

  “Now many will have their own idea of ​​what the queen should be like - that she should be uniquely beautiful, smart and graceful.  I think that with experience and time you can turn into a dynamic person on any life path with the right effort.  For the queen, the most important thing is that she must always be a good person, and as a queen she must be unshakable in her desire to serve the people and the country.  Like my queen, I found such a person, and her name is Jetsun Pema.  While she is young, she is warm and kind in heart and character.  These qualities, together with the wisdom that comes with age and experience, will make her a great servant of the nation.  "

The couple married on October 13, 2011 in Punakha Dzong. The royal wedding ceremony took place first in Punakha, and then in Thimphu and Paro. During the ceremony, the king awarded her the crown of Druk Gyaltsuen, officially declaring her Queen of the Kingdom of Bhutan.

The wedding was held in a traditional style with the "blessing of the guardian deities." Although Bhutan allows polygamy, the king said that he would never marry another woman, and that Jetsun Pema would be his only wife in the future. At their wedding, the Netherlands sent tulips to the royal couple and named one “Queen of Bhutan” in honor of her.

The queen's interests include art, painting, and basketball. She led her school basketball team and still maintains her interest in sports. Her other activities during her school days included participation in school groups and dance programs. In addition to Dzongkhi, the national language of Bhutan, she is fluent in English and Hindi. On November 11, 2015, it was announced that she expects their first child, a son, to be born in early 2016. She gave birth on February 5, 2016 to the Lingkana Palace. The king was present at the birth of Gyalsi. His name was announced on April 16, 2016.

King Jigme Singhier's 60th Birthday Badge

• Official Style - Her Majesty
• Spoken Style - Your Majesty
• Alternative Style - Druk Gyaltsuen

• June 4, 1990 - October 12, 2011: Ashi Jetsun Pema

• October 13, 2011 - present: Her Majesty the Queen of Bhutan

• Royal wedding announced . BBS (May 20 2011). Date of treatment January 10, 2013. Archived January 22, 2013.