His Majesty Preah Bat Samdech

Preah Norodom Sihanouk,

King of Cambodia

Supplement

to the Phnom Penh Post in celebration of his 79th birthday, October 31, 2001

A royal coronation

The royal coronation of a Cambodian monarch can take place several days, months

or even years after the election of the sovereign. In effect, the king assumes functions

immediately after his election and the coronation is essentially a religious and

symbolic ceremony designed to bring divine blessings upon the elected monarch.

Following the election of the new king, the court astrologers are requested to

determine the most auspicious date for the coronation ceremony. In accordance with

the Kram Preah Reachea Prapdaphisek (Law on the Coronation of Kings, promulgated

in the second half of the 18th century) the appropriate date is chosen and the preparations

for the event begin.

The Appisek (Ceremonial Bath)

Following seven days of rites and ceremonies performed by the court Bakus, during

which the fire is blessed and water to be used for the ceremony purified, the sovereign

is solemnly presented to the people in the Throne Hall. A special, white, bathing

pavilion has been prepared in front of the Throne Hall; the sovereign takes off his

ceremonial robes and exchanges them for a light white bathing robe. The chiefs of

the Buddhist Order then proceed to drop the water previously purified and consecrated

on the Sovereign's head. A light shower is then released from a canopy above through

the petals of a golden lotus, giving celestial significance to the shower.

While the ceremonial bath is in progress the Bakus play their ceremonial music.

The sovereign then dons his ceremonial robes and addresses the Buddhist monks present

declaring that he is the servant and protector of Buddhism and that he will always

be loyal to Buddhism.

At the end of the Buddhist ritual, the Buddhist monks withdraw to allow the Brahman

ceremony to take place.

The Brahman Consecration

Three Bakus lead the sovereign to the audience hall within the Throne Hall and

ask him to be seated on the elevated throne, the symbolic representation of Mount

Meru. The king turns to each of the eight principal directions of the living space,

each represented by a Brahman priest, and then drinks from a conch shell, washes

his face with the reminder of the water and blows the shell to produce a sound like

a trumpet.

The sovereign then welcomes in his arms a statue of Shiva and one of Vishnu and

swears in front of the Brahman idols kept in the palace to maintain the ancient national

traditions. The king then receives his kingdom: earth, waters, mountains and forests

which the chief Baku presents to him on behalf of his people. The chief Baku then

places the crown or Mokot on the Sovereigns head, and the king dons the golden slippers

and symbolically takes possession of the other items of his regalia by touching them.

The Brahman ritual ends with the sovereign coming down from the elevated throne

and sitting on the ordinary throne, where he receives the function with sacred oil

from the chief Baku.

The Pradakshina (Circular Procession of the Nobles)

The last part of the coronation ceremony is the Pradakshina. The ladies of the

court, the princes and princesses, the mandarin and nobles, each bearing a lighted

candle circulate around the throne three times, keeping their right shoulder towards

the sovereign. Just before the end of the ceremony the mandarin and other senior

court officials place the insignia of their rank in front of the throne. The sovereign

will return them the following morning thus giving the officials a new mandate to

continue in their respective functions. The ceremony ends with the king travelling

in a royal cortege through the principal avenues of the capital, where the people

have their first contact with their new sovereign.

The consecration of the queen used to be held in private. Normally it took place

only in the presence of the ladies of the court and with their assistance. After

three days of chanting by Buddhist monks, on the third day the queen received the

lustral water and sacred oil from the king.

Cambodian royal regalia

THE ROYAL REGALIA together with the Cambodian court's ceremonial items are essential

parts of the Cambodian monarchy, which give stature to the office and bring home

to the people the high respect accorded to the Cambodian sovereign.

Among the ancient items of the Cambodian Royal Regalia which were used in former

times, we find the following: The Preah Moha Mokot Reach (The Great Crown of Victory),

The Preah Moha Svetrachhatr (The Great White Umbrella of State), The Preah Khan Reach

(The Sacred Sword ), The Preah Lompeng Chey (The Victory Spear), The Preah Soporbatea

(The Slippers), The Kriss, The Preah Veal Vichani (The Fan) and The Betel Nut Set,

The Receptacle, The Water Urn and The Libation Vessel.

The Preah Moha Mokot Reach

The Great Crown of Victory is the royal crown worn by all Cambodian sovereigns

since the time of the Angkor empire. As shown in the reliefs of Angkor Wat, this

kind of multi-tiered cone culminating in a tapering spire - symbol of the sacred

mountain Preah Meru, and made of solid gold and precious stones, was worn by the

sovereign for important state ceremonies.

The Preah Moha Svetrachhatr

The Great White Umbrella of State is a nine-tiered white silk umbrella with

gold thread which stands behind the throne. The tiers indicate the person's rank.

In the past, in Cambodia, the Uparaja or Deputy King used a five-tiered umbrella

and the King himself prior to his coronation used one of seven tiers, switching to

a nine-tiered umbrella after the coronation. Similar umbrellas are found in Burma,

Java and Thailand. They are said to be of Indian origin, where it appears the umbrella

had greater importance than the crown itself.

The Preah Khan Reach

The Sacred Sword is considered to be the "Safeguard of the Kingdom"

and was kept in a small pavilion called "Pavilion of the Sacred Sword"

within the Royal Palace near the Throne Hall, under the care of the court Brahmans,

known as the "Bakus", who are the descendants of chaplains from the Angkorean

era.

The sword is reported to have been crafted by Vishnu and Shiva in A.D. 70 at the

request of the God Indra, in order to be entrusted to the first Khmer king to ensure

prosperity of his kingdom.

The French scholar Georges Groslier wrote in his book: Research on the Cambodians,

"Because of its decor, I date this weapon as being from the neo-Angkorean period

and I would not be surprised if this is the same sword about which Chinese envoy

Chou Ta-Kuan wrote in the 13th century."

However, the sword's existence was only confirmed in the 16th century and costumes

of the figures decorating its sheath appear to indicate that it could not have been

crafted before then.

The blade, inlaid with gold and silver, was regularly checked by the Bakus of the

Royal Palace, who were in charge of its safety. Should the blade show any traces

of rust, evoking the colour of blood, it was interpreted as being a disastrous omen

for the country.

The Sacred Sword left its pavilion on only one occasion-for the coronation of

a new Cambodian king. The Sword and the Preah Moha Mokot Reach (Great Crown of Victory)

were the principal insignia of Cambodia's royalty.

Following a Siamese invasion in 1783, the Preah Khan Reach was taken away to Bangkok.

It was solemnly given back to Cambodia in 1864, on the occasion of the coronation

of King Norodom.

King Rama I of Siam ordered the creation of a sword similar to the Cambodian one

for use by the Siamese monarch. It was first used in his own coronation in 1785.

The following chronology of Cambodian kings has been compiled from different sources,

mostly works by French scholars and explorers, which are duly acknowledged in the

bibliography of this book.

From the end of the Mahidharapura period the record of subsequent Cambodian kings

becomes rather confused and the documents available give contradictory accounts of

the reigns of some of them, while the dates of their rule do not appear to be accurate.

It is known that Angkor ceased to be the capital in 1431 following a Siamese invasion.

This period of the Cambodian monarchy was marked by the interference of Cambodia's

two close neighbours, Siam and Annam, in the selection and appointment of monarchs

and by conflict among the Cambodian rulers themselves.

The author of this book has reconstructed this period as best as he could from the

little information available, but he is unable to give precise dates of the rule

of the monarchs that followed the fall of Angkor:

Chronology of Cambodian Kings

 

Fu-Nan Period

 

Kaundinya

c. 400-420

Jayavarman

c. 480-514

Rudravarman

c. 514-539

Chen-La Period

 

Bhavavarman I

c. 550-N.A.

Sitrasena

c. 600-616

Isanavarman I

c. 616-635

Bhavavarman II

c. 635-656

Jayavarman I

c. 657-681

Jayadevi

c. 713-N.A.

Jayavarman II

c. 770-834

.layavarman III

c. 834-870

Indravarman

c. 877-889 (Builder of the Temples of Pra Koh and Bakong)

Angkor Period

 

Yashovarman I

c. 889-910 (Establishment of Yashodharapura or Angkor as capital.)

Harshavarman I

c. 911-923

Isanavarman II

c. 923-928

Jayavarman IV

c. 928-941

Harshavarman II

c. 942-944

Rajendravarman II

c. 944-968

Jayavarman V

c. 968-1001

Udayadityavarman I

c. 1001-1002

Jayaviravarman

c. 1002-1010

Suryavarman I

c. 1011-1050

Udayadityavarman II

c. 1050-1066 (Builder of Baphuon Temple.)

Harshavarman III

c. 1066-1080

Mahidharapura Period

 

Jayavarman Vl

c. 1080- 1107 (Builder of Phimai.)

Dharanindravarman

c. 1107- 1113

Suryavarman II

c. 1113- 1150 (Builder of Angkor Wat.)

Dharanindravarman lI

c. 1150-1160

Yashovarman II

c. 1160- 1166

Tribhuvanadityavarman

c. 1166- 1181

Jayavarman VII

c. 1181 - 1219 (Builder of Angkor Thom.)

Indravarman II

c. 1219-1243

Jayavarman VIII

c. 1243-1295

Indravarman III

c. 1295-1308

Srey Soryopor

N.A.

Chey Chettah II

N.A.

The Regent Outey

N.A.

Ponhea To

N.A.

Ponhea Nou

N.A.

Ang Nou

N.A.

Ang Non I

N.A.

Chan

N.A.

Batom Reachea

c. 1660-1672

Chey Chettah III

c. 1672-1673

Ang Chei

c. 1673-1674

Chey Chettah IV

c. 1675-1691

Outey

c. 1691-1695

Ang Em

c. 1699-1701

Thommo Reachea II

c. 1702-1703

Thommo Reachea II (2nd rule)

c. 1706-1710

Ang Em (2nd rule)

c. 1710-1722

Satha II

c. 1722-1736

Thommo Reachea II (3rd rule)

c. 1736-1747

Thommo Reachea III

c. 1747

Ang Thong

c. 1747-1749

Chey Chettah V

c. 1749-1755

AngTong

c. 1755-1758

Outey II

c. 1758-1775

Ang Non III

c. 1779

Ang Eng

c. 1779-1796

Ang Chang

c. 1796-1834

Queen Ang Mey

c. 1835-1841 (Only female ruler appearing in records, never crowned.)

Truong-Minh Giang

c. 1841-1847 (Foreign ruler.)

French Protectorate

 

Ang Duong

c. 1841-1859 (Unified Kingdom & reformed administration)

Norodom (Ang Voddey)

c. 1860-1904 (Established capital in Phnom Penh and began construction of Royal Palace.)

Sisowath (Ang Sar)

c. 1904-1927

Monivong

c. 1927-1941

Norodom Sihanouk (1st rule)

c. 1941-1955 (Obtained independence from France.)

Post-colonial Period

 

Norodom Suramarit

(The Cambodian monarchy was abolished on 9 October 1970 after the coup d'etat and

restored in 1993 after UN-supervised elections.)

c. 1955-1960

Norodom Sihanouk (2nd rule)

c. 1993-

Text and chronology from:

"The Royal Palace of Phnom Penh and Cambodian Royal life"

- by Julio A. Jeldres & Somkid Chaijitranit