(CNN) Thailand has crowned its new king in a $31 million three-day celebration that comes almost 69 years to the day since the last coronation.
The coronation of 66-year-old King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun kicked off on Saturday, more than two years after he ascended the throne following the death of his father King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who was widely beloved and revered.
King Vajiralongkorn received a white, nine-tier umbrella as part of an hours-long ceremony, which marked the moment he became a fully-fledged King. Only a consecrated king is allowed to sit on a throne under the umbrella, which represents the King's connection with heaven.
The King wore a 7.3 kilogram (16 lb) crown and was bathed with holy water during parts of the ceremony, which featured incense, yellow flowers and auspicious oils.
He also delivered his first royal command as King, saying, "I shall continue, preserve, and build upon the royal legacy and shall reign with righteousness for the benefit and happiness of the people forever."
In photos: Thailand crowns its new King
Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn is carried in a golden palanquin during a coronation procession in Bangkok on Sunday, May 5.
In this image, taken from video, King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida attend attend a ceremony that includes bestowing royal titles and granting ranks at the Grand Palace in Bangkok on May 5.
People gather for the coronation procession in Bangkok on May 5.
Thai well-wishers hold portraits of Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn outside the Grand Palace on May 5.
People gather to watch a procession with King Maha Vajiralongkorn on May 5.
Thailand's Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-Cha takes part in the coronation procession on May 5.
In this image taken from Thai TV, King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida attend a coronation ceremony that includes bestowing of the royal title and ranks to royals at the Grand Palace in Bangkok on Sunday.
Thai people make offerings to Buddhist monks near the Grand Palace on May 5.
Thai Royal Guards march along a street near the Grand Palace during the coronation of the Thai King on Saturday, May 4.
The chief brahmin prays before Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun after all royal regalia items have been presented to him during his coronation ceremony at the Grand Palace in Bangkok on May 4.
Thai officials stand outside the Grand Palace in Bangkok on May 4.
Royal bearers transport Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn on the royal palanquin during his visit to the Temple of the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok on Saturday, May 4.
King Vajiralongkorn anoints Queen Suthida at the Grand Palace on May 4.
The Thai monarch offers a donation to a senior Buddhist monk at the Grand Palace on May 4.
Well-wishers line up in front of a portrait of King Vajiralongkorn outside the Grand Palace in Bangkok on May 4.
In an image taken from Thai television, King Vajiralongkorn visits the Temple of the Emerald Buddha on May 4 to proclaim himself the royal patron of Buddhism.
A child holds a portrait of King Vajiralongkorn as she waits with others near the Grand Palace during the coronation on May 4.
King Vajiralongkorn sits on the throne before an audience of diplomats and dignitaries at the Grand Palace on May 4.
Thai Royal Guards fire a series of cannon salutes during the coronation in Bangkok on May 4.
King Maha Vajiralongkorn attends the anointment ceremony.
People in a beauty salon watch a live broadcast of the coronation ceremony.
King Maha Vajiralongkorn takes part in the royal purification ceremony at the Grand Palace. Holy water from symbolic vessels is poured over the King's back and into his hands. Some of the water vessels contain holy water collected from all 76 provinces around the country.
An official shields herself from the sun during the coronation.
A tablet displaying King Maha Vajiralongkorn undergoing a royal purification ritual is seen as a Buddhist monk prays during the King's coronation on Saturday.
King Maha Vajiralongkorn waves to onlookers as he arrives at the Grand Palace for his coronation.
Thai officials take their places on the roads near the Grand Palace before the arrival of the King.
A car carrying King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida makes its way to the Grand Palace.
Government officials stand outside the Royal Palace to await the arrival of King Maha Vajiralongkorn on May 4.
A woman waits near the Grand Palace before the coronation.
A banner is seen on a street during the coronation of King Maha Vajiralongkorn.
Royal Thai police stand guard near the Grand Palace in Bangkok on Friday, May 3, ahead of King Maha Vajiralongkorn's coronation.
A portrait of King Maha Vajiralongkorn hangs near Thailand's Royal Palace ahead of the coronation on May 3. The color yellow is associated with the day of the King's birth -- Monday. In Thailand, every day of the week corresponds to a color.
For the majority of Thai people, this weekend's coronation of the 10th Thai King will be the first they have witnessed. The late King Bhumibol was crowned on May 5, 1950. Small crowds braved the oppressive heat, wearing hats and sheltering in the shade as they watched the coronation unfold on large screens around the Grand Palace.
"In many ways (the coronation) begins a new chapter in Thai history," said Paul Chambers, from the College of ASEAN Community Studies at Thailand's Naresuan University. "It legitimizes him, and it commences the reign formally."
Although Thailand's monarchy hasn't held absolute power in 86 years, it remains an influential part of Thai life. Pictures of the royals are widely displayed around Thailand and the country's strict lese majeste laws make it illegal to defame, insult or threaten the king, queen, heir-apparent or regent.
Crowds gather near the Royal Palace to wait for the arrival of King Maha Vajiralongkorn on May 4, 2019 in Bangkok, Thailand.
The coronation comes amid an ongoing period of political instability in the country, which has had two coups in 13 years. In March, Thailand held a national election but its results remain unclear, with both major political parties claiming they are able to form a government.
"The coronation can be seen as an event that would distract Thai people from the current political problems," Chambers said. "People are very curious -- they haven't seen a coronation."
A multi-million dollar celebration
King Vajiralongkorn has already been presented with a gold 7.3-kilogram crown and undergone a royal purification ceremony using sacred water which was gathered from Thailand's 76 provinces, according to the Thai Government's public relations department.
From his ornate gold throne, the King granted an audience to key Thai leaders, including members of the Royal Family, the Privy Council, and the Cabinet, as well as other senior officials.
The three-day coronation will also involve a public audience and the King circling parts of the city on a royal palanquin.
In photos: Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn
Maha Vajiralongkorn, seen here in 2008, became Thailand's King after the death of his father in 2016.
The royal family of Thailand sits on the steps of Bangkok's Chitralda Palace in 1955. King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit are pictured with their children. Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn is on the left, next to Princess Ubol Ratana.
Vajiralongkorn sits with his mother, Queen Sirikit, in 1960. He's the only son of King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
Vajiralongkorn arrives in London in 1966. He was educated in the United Kingdom and Australia before officially being declared crown prince and heir apparent in 1972.
Vajiralongkorn and his parents take a photo at their private residence in Sunninghill, England, in 1966.
This undated photo shows Vajiralongkorn with his father.
Vajiralongkorn speaks at a news conference while visiting a hospital in Thailand's Kalasin province in 1987.
King Bhumibol is accompanied by his son during his 72nd birthday celebration in 1999.
Vajiralongkorn and his parents stand on the balcony of Anantasamakom Throne Hall in 1999.
Vajiralongkorn and his parents are seen together in Bangkok in 2000.
Vajiralongkorn sits next to his third wife, Srirasmi, in 2006. They are now divorced.
Vajiralongkorn arrives at an airport to greet foreign monarchs arriving in Thailand in 2006.
Vajiralongkorn reads a statement during the opening ceremony of the Universiade, an international sports competition that was held in Bangkok in 2007.
Vajiralongkorn is photographed in Paris in 2007.
Vajiralongkorn rides a bicycle in Bangkok in 2015.
Vajiralongkorn attends a ceremony in Bangkok in 2016.
Vajiralongkorn
married his fourth wife, Gen. Suthida Vajiralongkorn Na Ayudhya, in May 2019. It was just days before his formal coronation.
Vajiralongkorn is carried in a golden palanquin during his coronation procession in Bangkok in May 2019.
Authorities confirmed to CNN that one billion Thai baht ($31 million) was set aside for the coronation, about one third of the cost of the late King's funeral in 2017.
Although King Vajiralongkorn has already ruled for over two years, the coronation ceremony solidifies his role as a fully-fledged monarch. The almost three-year gap between the late King's death in October 2016 and the new King's coronation isn't unusual, said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a Thai political scientist at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. King Vajiralongkorn needed time to grieve his father and prepare for the event, he added. The late King Bhumibol reigned for four years before his coronation.
"The official enthronement will solidify kingship and enhance his aura as the new king," said Thitinan.
In the capital Bangkok, shops are selling portraits of the King as a young man and T-shirts in yellow -- the color associated with the monarchy -- emblazoned with the words: "Long live the King." The average price for the shirts is 100 to 200 Thai baht -- around $3 to $6. In Thai belief, each day of the week is assigned a color and both the current and late King were born on a Monday, which is associated with yellow.
A woman browses through yellow shirts in honor of Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn being sold in Bangkok on April 25, 2019, ahead of his royal coronation.
In some ways, Thitinan said the celebrations are likely to be relatively "modest" compared with those for the late King's 60th anniversary in 2006, when the Sultan of Brunei, the Emperor of Japan, and Queen Elizabeth's son Prince Andrew traveled to Bangkok for the occasion.
This time, no foreign dignitaries have been invited.
Who is King Vajiralongkorn?
King Vajiralongkorn studied in Australia and the United Kingdom and has fathered two daughters and five sons.
On Wednesday, days before the coronation began, the King announced he had married his fourth wife, General Suthida Vajiralongkorn Na Ayudhya.
This screengrab from Thai TV Pool video taken on May 1, 2019 shows a ceremony in which Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn (L) "legally married" Suthida Vajiralongkorn na Ayudhya in Bangkok.
Since he became King, billions of dollars worth of assets held by the Thai Crown have been transferred to him, vastly increasing his personal wealth.
Earlier this year, King Vajiralongkorn spoke out about the importance of the royal family staying "above politics" after his 67-year-old sister Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya announced she would stand as the prime ministerial candidate for the Thai Raksa Chart Party (Thai Save The Nation, or TSN).
The party was aligned with populist former leader Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted by the military in a 2006 coup.
King Vajiralongkorn called the move "extremely inappropriate." In March, the country's Constitutional Court dissolved TSN and ruled that nominating the princess was "hostile to the monarchy institution."
A tough act to follow
King Vajiralongkorn's father Bhumibol reigned for 70 years, making him the world's longest reigning monarch at the time of his death.
He was seen as a unifying force in the country, and became immensely popular as he worked hard and dedicated himself to Thai people, Thitinan said.
Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej dies at 88
A Thai cyclist prays in front of the Grand Palace in Bangkok on October 16, 2016. Thousands of Thai men and women gather daily in the vicinity of the palace to pray for the late Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej after his death Thursday.
A Buddhist monk stands next to line of mourners waiting to pay their respects to the body of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej at the Grand Palace in Bangkok, October 15, 2016.
Devotees light candles for the late Thai King at Mahabodhi temple in Bodhgaya on October 14.
A Thai man carries high an image of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej as a large crowd floods the streets leading to the Royal Palace on October 14, 2016.
A van carries the body of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej's to his palace in Bangkok on October 14.
Thais gathering outside of Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok hold up baht notes with a portrait of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej on Friday, October 14, in Bangkok, Thailand, following news of his death the previous day.
A flag flies at half-staff outside a government hospital on October 14 in Chiang Mai, Thailand. According to a palace statement, all government buildings will fly the Thai flag at half-staff for 30 days starting on Friday.
Thai Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-o-cha attends a traditional funeral bathing ceremony for the King at the Grand Palace in Bangkok on Friday.
The Prime Minister arrives to pay respects to the late King at the Grand Palace on October 14.
Dignitaries participate in a ceremony commemorating the King at Wat Phra Singh on Friday in Chiang Mai.
Buddhist monks line up to offer condolences at the Grand Palace in Bangkok on Friday.
People dressed mostly in black wait outside the Grand Palace to pay respects to the King on October 14.
The Thai Royal Guard marches in honor of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej on Friday.
Amid a procession of vehicles, a van carries the body of the King to his palace in Bangkok on Friday.
Mourners shade themselves under umbrellas while they await the procession of the King's body to the palace in Bangkok on October 14.
A woman passes out after an official statement announces the death of the king.
People react to news of the King's death outside Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok on Thursday.
A women cries after learning of the King's death on October 13 in Bangkok.
When he died, Thailand had a year-long mourning period for the late King, who is also known as King Rama IX. During his elaborate funeral ceremony in 2017, a sea of mourners clad in black lined the streets.
But the twilight years of his reign were marred by political conflict -- the military coups of 2006 and 2014. Since then, the military junta has passed two constitutions shoring up its power and weakening its rivals.
"The new king inherits this protracted conflict and polarization," Thitinan said. "He's not as popular as his father, but he has an opportunity to build popularity."
CNN's Kocha Olarn, Paul Devitt and Karla Cripps in Bangkok and Mohammed Elshamy in Atlanta contributed to this report.