Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
to stay united through the election campaign. The return of Cambodian National Rescue
Party (CNRP) leader Sam Rainsy from self-imposed exile saw his party come close to
victory over the CPP. For more on the election and recent events in Cambodia, see the
Cambodia Today chapter (
Click here
)
.
TIMELINE
4200 BC
Cave-dwellers capable of making pots inhabit caves around Laang Spean; archaeological
evidence suggests their vessels were similar to those still made in Cambodia today.
AD 100
The religions, language and sculpture styles of India start to take root in Cambodia with
the arrival of Indian traders and holy men.
245
The Chinese Wei emperor sends a mission to the countries of the Mekong region and is
told that a barbarous but rich country called Funan exists in the Delta region.
600
The first inscriptions are committed to stone in Cambodia in ancient Khmer, offering his-
torians the only contemporary accounts of the pre-Angkorian period other than from
Chinese sources.
802
Jayavarman II proclaims independence from Java in a ceremony to anoint himself a
devaraja
(god-king) on the holy mountain of Phnom Kulen, marking the birth of the Khmer Empire
of Angkor.
889
Yasovarman I moves the capital from the ancient city of Hariharalaya (Roluos today) to the
Angkor area, 16km to the northwest, and marks the location with three temple mountains.
924
Usurper king Jayavarman IV transfers the capital to Koh Ker and begins a mammoth build-
ing spree, but the lack of water sees the capital move back to Angkor just 20 years later.
