A sea of black-clad mourners massed across Bangkok's historic heart Thursday as funeral rituals began for King Bhumibol Adulyadej, a revered monarch whose passing after a seven-decade reign left Thailand bereft of its only unifying figure.
As dawn broke an estimated 200,000 Thais had gathered around the Grand Palace to bid an emotional farewell to a monarch known as "father of the nation", silently packing the pavements, many clutching portraits of the beloved late king.