The French control of Cambodia began in 1863, when the then current King Norodom signed an agreement allowing French control in return for a removal of being a vassal state of Siam (interestingly, one of the outcomes of this was that the King, who took the throne in 1860, could finally be crowned in A.D. 1864 as the royal regalia was returned by the Thai Kingdom). Cambodia became incorporated with the constituent parts of Vietnam (divided into Tonkin, Annam, Cochinchina) and Laos.
French Protectorate of Indochina -
Source
The French were in control of Cambodia; the King was retained as a figurehead to the point that France had a residence built directly on the royal palace grounds. In general, the French taxed, encouraged some form of agriculture, and had basic industry which forward processed local raw materials for export.
(French Embassy, Royal Cambodian Palace Grounds)
Cambodia in WW II was controlled by the Vichy Government and left largely untouched by the Japanese; the cry of Imperial Japan of "Asia for the Asians" had a certain local appeal. But things became difficult following the surrender of Japan: France attempted to regain her colonial presence, various factions in Cambodia began activities that would eventually lead to Civil War, and the then prince Sihanouk first negotiated a position of a free protectorate ("Fifty percent rule") and then in 1954, full independence under the now prince Sihanouk.
But it was not to last: the forces set loose during WW II and the postwar period continued to ferment, aided by the fact that elements of the Viet Minh used Cambodia as a rest and resupply area, which indirectly drew them into the Vietnam War. Sihanouk was dethroned in a coup in 1970. The resulting civil war (1970-1975) ended with Cambodia being taken over by the Communist organization of the Khmer Rouge.
(Tuol Sleng Prison Camp)
The Khmer Rouge in three years of rule (1975-1978) were responsible for the deaths of approximately 25% of then current population of Cambodia, estimated at 2,00,000 people. Their reign of terror was only stopped by the invasion of Cambodia in 1978 by Vietnam, responding to cross-border raids by the Khmer Rouge. The Vietnamese occupation lasted until 1993, when the previous prince Norodom Sihanouk returned as King under a constitutional monarchy with a multi-party parliament (replaced by his son, Norodom Sihamoni, as King in 2004 upon his death).
As a personal note to end this, it is a beautiful country and everyone we met was friendly. It is a shame the last century has been marred with such violence.
Too early to be typing TB........:) Yah, another "paradise" sought by Communists curtesy of of Pol Pot and the Killing Fields. Lots of unknown foreign place names when I was at university back in the first half of the Seventies.
ReplyDeleteNylon12 a lot of people would benefit from taking a tour of Tuol Sleng. Not only the ones that long for a workers paradise, but those that somehow think creating a civil war is the answer.
DeleteGrowing up, I didn't know a whole lot about world history but I knew enough to know that Cambodia equaled death, lots of it. Later as a teen, I remember seeing horrifying pictures of the violence in a Time Life picture book.
ReplyDeleteEd, I had heard of The Killing Fields - who had not, of a particular age and time. It is sad that this is what so many recall of Cambodia as it was quite beautiful and has a rich history and culture.
DeleteThese Brief History of Cambodia posts are interesting, TB. I see I was in my last years of highschool/first years of college during the rule of the Khmer Rouge. I'm sure the Khmer Rouge crossed my attention then - no doubt on the evening news, but as best as I can recall, I was largely ignorant of what was happening on the other side of the world. The Khmer Rouge, the Killing Fields... these are terms I've heard, but I have to admit I have no real knowledge of. You've explained more in these two short posts than I've heard or investigated in my whole adult live. My history-loving husband, on the other hand, could probably give me a short dissertation if I asked him to tell me what he knows about this time period. ;^) The Vietnam War draft ended four months before he turned 18, so I imagine his young adult mind was still tuned to all of this in the late 70's. It's not that I don't enjoy history, in general, but reading histories of wars always feels just beyond my brain's ability to fully absorb and hang onto. I admire those who either simply love or discipline themselves to the study of wars.
ReplyDeleteBecki, what a kind thing to say - if I have successfully covered Cambodian history to be able to give a coherent taste of it, I have done what I set out to do.
DeleteIn fairness to the world, I suspect much of the Khmer Rouge's activities came to light after they were driven from power. We have become (horribly) used to fallout after civil wars; what we were not used to was the severity of the Khmer Rouge.. It boggles the mind.
History is like a lot of things (math and science for me as an example): There is a lot of interesting things to learn, but a great many of them are not learned in school. It is only after we leave that we come to see the real world applications and find authors that make it interesting instead of textbookish.