History

History

The history of Cambodia: the early kingdoms, the Khmer Empire, the French protectorate, the Khmer Rouge period, the years since 1979 and oral histories.

Watercolor of palm-leaf manuscript bundles, an oil lamp, a krama and a river map on the veranda of a stilt house over a wide river

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History of CambodiaEvery period in order, from the first states to today.
Khmer EmpireThe kingdom of Angkor, its kings and its temples.
French protectorateFrench rule from 1863 to independence in 1953.
Khmer RougeThe movement that ruled Cambodia from 1975 to 1979.
People's Republic of KampucheaThe state that governed Cambodia from 1979 to 1989.
Oral historiesRecorded voices and the collections that keep them.37 recordings

Also in History: Influences on Khmer civilization · Historical figures

A place to begin

Jayavarman VII

Jayavarman VII

Historical figureA king of Angkor who came to the throne in the early 1180s and was still alive around 1218.
Sisowath Youtevong

Sisowath Youtevong

Historical figureA Cambodian prince who founded and led the Democratic Party in the 1940s.
Independence Day

Independence Day

TraditionCambodia marks the end of French rule on November 9 each year, the day of full independence in 1953.
Paris Peace Agreements

Paris Peace Agreements

HistoryThe treaty that Cambodia and 18 other states signed in Paris on October 23, 1991, to end the Cambodian conflict.

More in History

  • Communist Party of Kampuchea: the party behind the Khmer Rouge, which ruled Cambodia from April 1975 to January 1979.
  • Ieng Sary: one of the founders of the Khmer Rouge and Democratic Kampuchea's Deputy Prime Minister for Foreign Affairs.
  • Ieng Thirith: Democratic Kampuchea's Minister of Social Affairs and the highest-ranking woman in the Khmer Rouge regime.
  • Killing Fields: sites where people were buried under the Khmer Rouge, in nearly every province of Cambodia, among them Choeung Ek outside Phnom Penh.
  • Sangkum Reastr Niyum: the movement Norodom Sihanouk founded in 1955, which won the elections of 1955, 1958 and 1962.

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This page was last edited on 14 November 2026, at 18:14.