Somdet Phra Chao Lan Ther Chaofa Thong-In Krom Phra Rajawang Boworn Sathan Phimuk (Thai: สมเด็จพระเจ้าหลานเธอ เจ้าฟ้าทองอิน กรมพระราชวังบวรสถานภิมุข, lit: His Royal Highness Prince Thong-In, the Deputy Viceroy of Siam) (28 March 1746 – 20 December 1806) was a Siamese prince and military leader. A nephew of King Phutthayotfa Chulalok (Rama I) the founder of the Chakri dynasty, he was appointed Deputy Viceroy or Rear Palace, the 3rd highest position in the kingdom. He was the only person to hold that title during the Rattanakosin Kingdom (1782–1932).
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Life
Thong-In (ทองอิน) was born on 28 March 1746 to an Ayutthayan aristocrat Phra Intraraksa (Seam) and Sa (later Princess Sister Thepsuthavadi; the eldest child of Thongdee and Daoreung). Sa was also the elder sister of Thong Duang, later Chao Phraya Chakri and in 1782 King Phutthayotfa Chulalok. Thong-In was the eldest child and had two younger brothers and one sister.
For a time Thong-In served in the army under King Taksin of Thonburi under the name Luang Ritnaiwair (หลวงฤทธิ์นายเวร). In 1780 he was raised to the rank of Phraya Suriyaphai (พระยาสุริยอภัย) and was appointed governor of Nakhon Ratchasima.
When his uncle ascended to the throne as King of the new Rattanakosin Kingdom in 1782, Thong-In was elevated to the rank of Chaofa (most senior rank of Prince). Soon he was appointed to the title of Krom Phra Rajawang Boworn Sathan Phimuk, or the Rear Palace, the Thai interpretation of the position of (Deputy Uparaja). This position made him the third most powerful individual in the Kingdom behind the Front Palace and the King. When the new capital was built at Bangkok, Prince Anurak Devesh built his residence (the actual Rear Palace) in Thonburi, directly across the Chao Phraya River from the Front Palace. Today the site is occupied by Siriraj Hospital.