In A.D. 1177, the Khmer Kingdom was invaded by the Cham people from what is now Vietnam, who sailed up the Mekong River to the great freshwater lake of the Tonlé Sap. They sacked the capitol of Yasodharapura and killed the reigning king before being driven back and defeated on land and lake by the future king JayavarmanVIII. Under his rule, the Angkor kingdom reached its highest peak.
(Ta Prohm Wat)
(Ta Prohm Wat)
Interestingly (and an unknown fact to me), the origins of the temples of Angkor were Hindu, not Buddhist as is now associated with this country. Over time, the religion changed and the temples changed with them - for example, Angkor Wat originally started as a temple dedicated to the god Vishnu, but was later transformed into a Buddhist temple.
(Ta Prohm Wat)
Another interesting sidenote is that in A.D. 1296, a diplomat from the Yuan dynasty of visited Angkor. The record of his visit is one of the few - if only - records we have of life in the Khmer kingdom by an eyewitness.
(Angkor Wat)
(Angkor Wat)
In A.D. 1431, the capitol was again sacked, this time by the kingdom of Ayutthaya (in modern day Thailand). The Khmer capitol relocated twice before finally locating in Phnom Penh in A.D. 1618.
(Angkor Wat)
The city was never really forgotten: the first European visitor, a Portugese Friar, visited in the 16th Century, and there were notable Japanese settlements along with the local Khmer residents in the 17th century.
(Angkor Wat)
It was not until the 19th century that city began to emerge from the forest and the restoration process started, which continues to this day.
(Angkor Wat)
Prior to 2020, approximately 2,000,000 visitors a year came to Angkor. That number, after decreasing, is starting to come back.
Thanks so much for sharing! I doubt I'll ever get to that corner of the globe, so nice to see.
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