The first privy council in Siam was established by a royal decree on 8 May 1874, by King Chulalongkorn (or Rama V). The king, educated by Westerners, was keen on copying the system of government of the absolute monarchs of Europe. At first he created two councils: the "Privy Council of Siam" (; ) (49 members) and the "Council of State" (; ) (12 members, name later changed to "Council of Ministers" (; )). The privy council was created to deal with legislative affairs while the latter became an early version of the cabinet.