Sihanouk, Norodom
(b. 1922), king of Cambodia. King Norodom Sihanouk is the enduring figure of modern Cambodian politics. Born in Phnom Penh, Sihanouk was an unlikely candidate for the Cambodian throne, which he first ascended to in 1941. A student at the LycÁe Chasseloup-Laubat in Saigon (Vietnam), he was selected by Cambodia's French colonial rulers to assume the throne after the death of his grandfather, Monivong. The French believed that Sihanouk would be a flexible and easily manipulated national leader. The passage of time has revealed the extent to which their judgment was wrong. Sihanouk quickly established himself as a shrewd and formidable politician, with his self-titled Royal Crusade for Independence providing the catalyst for the end of colonial rule in Cambodia.
Sihanouk's most surprising political move was his decision, in 1955, to fully immerse himself in popular politics by abdicating the Cambodian throne in favor of his father, Suramarit. He formed a political organization, the Sangkum Reastr Niyum (People's Socialist Community), which swept all before it in the 1955 national elections (and then again in 1958, 1962, and 1966). The National Assembly, whose members were all Sangkum politicians, became a rubber stamp for the prince and his policies. He tirelessly traveled throughout Cambodia, inaugurating new schools and hospitals and ingratiating himself among an adoring population.
By the late 1960s, as Cambodia became increasingly embroiled in the conflict in neighboring Vietnam, Sihanouk gradually lost his stranglehold over Cambodia's political system. In 1970, while the then prince was overseas, he was deposed by the National Assembly, which had become frustrated with the nepotism, corruption, and incompetence that characterized government in Cambodia. Sihanouk immediately aligned himself with his sworn enemies in the Khmer Rouge (Communist) movement. For the next five years, Cambodia was at war, with Sihanouk's Communist allies enjoying the ascendancy.
After the war was won, in April 1975, Sihanouk eventually returned to Phnom Penh. No longer of any use to the Communists, he was immediately placed under house arrest in the royal palace and would likely have been executed if it weren't for the support he had from China. When the Khmer Rouge regime was ousted by Vietnamese-supported defectors in 1979, Sihanouk fled to China. He eventually formed a non-Communist resistance movement along the Thai-Cambodian border and played a significant role in negotiations that led to peace agreements in 1991. After United Nations–sponsored elections in 1993, Sihanouk resumed his place on the Cambodian throne. Increasingly frail, he alternates between the royal palace in Cambodia, and China, where he receives ongoing medical treatment. He is also involved with film making and enjoys playing jazz.
Further Reading
Chandler, David. (1991) The Tragedy of Cambodian History: Politics, War, and Revolution since 1945. Bangkok, Thailand: Silkworm.
Martin, Marie. (1994) Cambodia: A Shattered Society. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press.
Osborne, Milton. (1973) Politics and Power in Cambodia: The Sihanouk Years. Camberwell, Australia: Longman.
Osborne, Milton. (1994) Sihanouk: Prince of Light, Prince of Darkness. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii Press.
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