Khmer Empire

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Khmer Empire

With control over an area that once encompassed parts of modern Thailand, Cambodia, the Malay Peninsula, and the Lao People's Democratic Republic, the Khmer empire flourished in Southeast Asia between the sixth and mid-fifteenth centuries. Arising from lands originally ruled by the Kingdom of Chenla (550–800 CE), when Cambodia was called both Funan and Chenla, the Khmer empire reached its apex during the rules of Jayavarman II (802–850 CE), Yasovarman I (889–910 CE), Suryavarman I (1002–1049 CE), Suryavarman II (1112–1152 CE), and Jayavarman VII (1181–1201 CE).

Characterized by cultural expansion and conquest, the Khmer rulers were strongly influenced by Hindu traders from India. Jayavarman II originally established the Kingdom of Kambuja in honor of Kambu, the legendary first-century founder of the Kingdom of Funan, and the root of the current English term "Cambodia." After declaring his independence in 802 CE from the Javanese who controlled Cambodia, Jayavarman II climbed atop Phnom Kulen (Lychee Mountain) in northern Cambodia, where he proclaimed himself a devaraja (god-king). Identifying himself with the Hindu god Shiva, he then asserted power over rainfall and soil fertility, and began construction of a "temple mountain" to symbolize the holy mountain at the center of the universe. Both acts were to be repeated over the next four hundred years by Cambodian kings ascending the throne.

From their capital at Angkor, a city that encompassed nearly 120 square kilometers (75 square miles) of fertile plains north of the Tonle Sap (Great Lake), the Khmer leaders presided over a civilization that was one of the strongest and most advanced in the Greater Mekong subregion between the ninth and twelfth centuries. However, frequent infighting among rivals, as well as wars with Champa (a kingdom of southern Vietnam) and the Annamese of northern Vietnam left the Khmer weakened, and the empire eventually succumbed after repeated invasions by the Thais in the mid-1400s.

The longevity and success of the Khmer empire can be attributed, in part, to its location near the Tonle Sap and the major trade routes connecting the Bay of Bengal to southern China, as well as the ability of its leaders to regulate seasonal variations in the water supply through the use of huge canals and reservoirs, or baray. These made it possible to irrigate crops and to feed the population during the dry season. In addition, most of the Khmer kings appear to have ruled wisely, building schools, libraries, and roads that connected cities with rice-growing areas. Several rulers were also noted for their patronage of the arts.

The power of the Khmer empire is also a reflection of the artistic and religious significance of Angkor itself. Yasovarman I founded and relocated the Khmer capital from the banks of the Mekong to an island near the present-day provincial capital of Siem Reap, where it remained until 1431 CE. According to temple inscriptions, Yasovarman I thought so highly of his skills that it was as if he had created the arts and sciences.

Suryavarman I, known as the "King of the Just Laws," reunified and expanded the Khmer empire into Thailand and Laos. Consolidating his power by requiring all four thousand local officials to swear allegiance to him, he also continued construction of Angkor's irrigation system, building a huge baray near the current site of Angkor Wat. Nearly 8 kilometers long and 1.6 kilometers wide, the reservoir was capable of holding more than 567 million liters of water. Suryavarman I also made Buddhism the state religion, though people were permitted to continue worshiping Hindu gods if they wished.

Suryavarman II came to power in the twelfth century. Like Suryavarman I, he was an outsider who killed a rival in a battle for the throne. He also succeeded in uniting the kingdom through wars in Vietnam, Myanmar (Burma), and Champa. But Suryavarman II is best remembered as the king who commissioned Angkor Wat, a temple-mountain designed to represent Mount Meru, the mythical dwelling place of the Hindu kings. Characterized by extensive bas-relief statues of Khmer warriors, dancing girls, and mythological creatures from the Ramayana, the construction of Angkor Wat took thousands of laborers and artisans more than thirty years to build.

For much of the three decades following Suryavarman II's death, internal conflicts over succession and continuous warfare with Champa plagued the Khmer people. In 1177 CE, Angkor was captured by a Cham army and its inhabitants slaughtered. Demoralized by the loss of their capital, the Khmer empire nearly collapsed. However, Jayavarman VII, a relative of Suryavarman II and a devout Buddhist living in exile, rallied his people and not only drove the Chams out of Cambodia, but also conquered Champa and much of present-day Laos, Thailand, and Malaysia.

Jayavarman VII's reign marked the largest construction program in Cambodia's history; he built Angkor Thom as his new capital. Larger and more magnificent than the capital it replaced, Angkor Thom was surrounded by a stone wall with four-sided stone images facing in each direction. In the city's center, Jayavarman VII placed his own temple-mountain, the Bayon. One of the most photographed structures in Cambodia, the Bayon contains fifty towers of varying heights, each bearing stone faces and eyes that appear to stare straight at the viewer. Equally remarkable, the bas-relief walls depict ordinary Cambodian scenes from the twelfth century rather than the religious and royal icons depicted on every other Khmer building.

Following the capture of Angkor by a Thai army in 1431 CE, the Khmer rulers abandoned the site and relocated their capital to Phnom Penh, where it remains today. For the next four hundred years, Angkor remained buried in the jungle until it was "rediscovered" by the French explorer Henri Mouhot in the late nineteenth century. While much of the statuary and carvings have disappeared, the five towers of Angkor Wat are portrayed on the Cambodian flag, and the temple complex—the most visited tourist site in Cambodia— is considered a World Cultural Heritage site.