Kingdom of Cambodia ព្រះរាជាណាចក្រកម្ពុជា Timeline: Cherry, Plum, and Chrysanthemum
OTL equivalent: Cambodia | ||||||
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Motto: ជាតិ រាស្ត្រ មនុស្ស (Khmer) ("Nation, People and Humanity") |
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Anthem: Nokor Reach |
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Location of Cambodia (in green)
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Capital | Phnom Penh | |||||
Official languages | Khmer | |||||
Ethnic groups | Khmer; Vietnamese; Chinese; Cham | |||||
Religion | Buddhism; Islam; Christianity | |||||
Demonym | Khmer; Cambodian | |||||
Government | Unitary state; Popular monarchy | |||||
- | King | Norodom Sihamoni | ||||
- | Prime Minister | Yim Sovann | ||||
Legislature | National Assembly of Cambodia | |||||
Establishment | ||||||
- | Independence from France | November 9, 1950 | ||||
Population | ||||||
- | estimate | 14,952,665 | ||||
Currency | Riel (KHR ) |
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Time zone | (UTC+7) | |||||
Internet TLD | .kh | |||||
Calling code | +855 |
Cambodia (Khmer: កម្ពុជា, Kampuchea), officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia (Khmer: ព្រះរាជាណាចក្រកម្ពុជា, Preăh Réachéanachâk Kâmpŭchea), is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. With a total landmass of 181,035 sq km (69,898 sq mi), Cambodia bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the northeast, Vietnam to the east, and the Gulf of Siam to the southwest.
With a population of over 14.8 million, Cambodia is the 68th most populous country in the world. The official religion is Theravada Buddhism, which is practiced by approximately 95% of the Cambodian population. The country's minority groups include Vietnamese, Chinese, Chams and 30 hill tribes. The capital and largest city is Phnom Penh, the political, economic and cultural center of Cambodia. Cambodia is a member of the French Community.
Politics and government[]
History[]
French Indochina[]
During 19th century, Cambodia had been reduced to a vassal state of Siam. In 1863, King Norodom of Cambodia then sought the French protection from the Siamese rule over his kingdom. Under the treaty, the Cambodian monarchy was allowed to remain, but power was largely vested in a French resident general Phnom Penh. France was also to be in charge of Cambodia's foreign and trade relations as well as provide military protection. Siam later recognized the protectorate after France ceded the Cambodian province of Battambang and recognized Siamese control of Angkor.
From 1867 to 1953, Cambodia was administered by the French as the part of French Indochina. Compared to its neighbors, infrastructure and urbanization in Cambodia grew at a much lesser rate than in Vietnam and traditional social structures in villages still remained. As result of these slower economic development and minimum social reform, the nationalist movement in Cambodia remained relatively quiet during much of French rule, mostly due to lesser education influence, which helped literacy rates remain low.
World War II[]
After the Fall of France, China launched an invasion to French Indochina on November 1, 1940. One month later, Thailand launched separate offensive, resulted to the French-Thai War. Joint invasions of the Chinese from the north and the Thais from the south driven the French out of Southeast Asia on February 4, 1941. Thailand invaded Cambodia and entered Phnom Penh on January 29, 1941. Cambodia was annexed into Thailand and divided into the provinces of Phra Tabong, Phibunsongkhram, Nakhon Champassak, Stung Treng, and Phnom Penh. King Sisowath Monivong was forced to abdicate by the Thai forces on February 5, 1941 and retired to Kampot before died two months later on April 24, 1941.
During the occupation, Thailand enforced the policy of Thaification upon the Khmers. The teaching of Thai became obligatory in schools and the daily use of Khmer was condemned.
Monivong's son, Sisowath Monireth, was bestowed the title of Somdet Phra by Thailand as a symbolic gesture of the incorporation of Khmer royalty into the Thai noble rank.
An underground domestic resistance was formed by Prince Norodom Sihanouk and Lon Nol who established contacts both with the French in French India and the Japanese. On January 20, 1945, the resistance led by Sihanouk launched a coup against the Thai. Sihanouk became the interim head of government in which he nullified the military alliance with Thailand and China and then declared Cambodia as a "neutrally independent country" by February 1945.
French return[]
On March 3, 1945, Sihanouk passed over his position as the prime minister to Lon Nol. Nol, assumed the post of Foreign Minister as well, then established formal communique with the Free French Forces in French India. Either Sihanouk and Nol believed the return of French forces to Indochina should be followed by gradual efforts toward full independence of Cambodia. Both of them perceived with the defeat of French in 1941, the French protection over Cambodia was over, thus making Cambodia a de facto independent country already. The return of French forces, then could be only count as temporary military administration, instead of the reinstatement of old colonial structure.
In January 1946, the French opened talks with the governments of Cambodia and Laos in forming a new federation between three Indochinese states. Those political arrangement was jointly rejected by the nationalist movements in the three states which believed the union would be unproductive on achieving complete independence. In order to force the scheme, the French forced King Monireth to approve this scheme by threatening to dethrone him for his part in supporting the Chinese during the war. Monireth reluctantly accepted the union scheme and on March 6, 1946, the Union of Indochina was formed as the part of French Union with Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia became its constituent states.
Under the union, the governments of constituent states in fact lost their autonomy. Real federal authority was in the hand of Governor-General in Da Lat. Lon Nol then organized an opposition for this union scheme and accused King Monireth as a colonial puppet. For his participation on the opposition, Nol was removed as the prime minister by King Monireth (whose pressured by the French) on March 27, 1946. By 1947, there was a growing movement among the Cambodian nationalists to replace Monireth with Sihanouk as the country's monarch.
Union of Indochina[]
After the 1946 elections, there were three main political groups represented in the the Consultative Assembly. The largest group was the left-leaning Democratic Party led by Prince Sisowath Youtevong with 35 of 67 seats in the Assembly. The second group was the national democratic Unity Party led by Prince Norodom Sihanouk. The smallest group was the Liberal Party, led by Prince Norodom Norindeth, represented the interests of the old rural elites.
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