Chronological table showing important events throughout the recent history of Cambodia
|
Date
|
Description
|
| 1863 |
Cambodia becomes a protectorate of France. French colonial rule lasts for the next 90 years. |
| 1941 |
Prince Norodom Sihanouk becomes king, later Cambodia is occupied by Japan during World War II. |
| 1945 |
The Japanese occupation ends in Cambodia. |
| 1946 |
France re-imposes its protectorate. A new constitution denies Cambodians form forming political parties. Communist guerrillas begin an armed campaign against the French. |
| 1953 |
Cambodia wins its independence from France. Under King Sihanouk, it becomes the Kingdom of Cambodia. |
| 1955 |
Sihanouk abdicates to pursue a political career. His father becomes king and Sihanouk becomes prime minister. |
| 1960 |
Sihanouk's father dies and Sihanouk becomes head of state. |
| 1965 |
Sihanouk breaks off relations with the US and allows North Vietnamese guerrillas to set up bases in Cambodia in pursuance of their campaign against the US-backed government in South Vietnam. |
| 1969 |
The US begins a secret bombing campaign against North Vietnamese forces on Cambodian soil. |
| 1970 |
Sihanouk is deposed in a coup while abroad. The prime minister, General Lon Nol, assumes power. He proclaims the Khmer Republic and sends the army to fight the North Vietnamese in Cambodia. Sihanouk, in exile in China forms a guerrilla movement. |
| Early 1970s |
Cambodian army faces two enemies: the North Vietnamese and Sihanouk's guerrillas, which he calls the Khmer Rouge. Gradually, the army loses territory. |
| 0 |
Cambodian Year Zero |
| 1975 |
Lon Nol is overthrown as the Khmer Rouge led by Pol Pot occupy Phnom Penh. Sihanouk briefly becomes head of state, the country is re-named Kampuchea. All urban dwellers are forcibly evacuated to the countryside to become agricultural workers. Money becomes worthless, basic freedoms are curtailed and religion is banned. The Khmer Rouge coin the phrase "Year Zero". Hundreds of thousands of the educated middle-classes are tortured and executed in special centres. Others starve, or die from disease or exhaustion. The total death toll during the next three years is estimated to be at least 1.7 million. |
| 1976 |
The country is re-named Democratic Kampuchea. Sihanouk resigns, Khieu Samphan becomes head of state, Pol Pot is prime minister. |
| 1977 |
Fighting breaks out with Vietnam. |
| 1978 |
Vietnamese forces invade in a lightning assault. |
| 1979 January |
The Vietnamese take Phnom Penh. Pol Pot and Khmer Rouge forces flee to the border region with Thailand. The People's Republic of Kampuchea is established. Many elements of life before the Khmer Rouge take-over are re-established. |
| 1981 |
The pro-Vietnamese Kampuchean People's Revolutionary Party wins the elections to the National Assembly. The international community refuses to recognise the new government. The government-in-exile, which includes the Khmer Rouge and Sihanouk, retains its seat at the United Nations. |
| 1985 |
Hun Sen becomes prime minister. Cambodia is plagued by guerrilla warfare. Hundreds of thousands become refugees. |
| 1989 |
Vietnamese troops withdraw. Hun Sen tries to attract foreign investment by abandoning socialism. The country is re-named the State of Cambodia. Buddhism is re-established as the state religion. |
| 1990 |
An uneasy peace |
| 1991 |
A peace agreement is signed in Paris. A UN transitional authority shares power temporarily with representatives of the various factions in Cambodia. Sihanouk becomes head of state. |
| 1993 |
General election sees the royalist Funcinpec party win the most seats followed by Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party (CPP). A three-party coalition is formed with Funcinpec's Prince Norodom Ranariddh as prime minister and Hun Sen as deputy prime minister. The monarchy is restored, Sihanouk becomes king again. The country is re-named the Kingdom of Cambodia. The government-in-exile loses its seat at the UN. |
| 1994 |
Thousands of Khmer Rouge guerrillas surrender in government amnesty. |
| 1996 |
Deputy leader of Khmer Rouge Ieng Sary forms a new party and is granted amnesty by Sihanouk. |
| 1997 |
Hun Sen stages a coup against the prime minister, Prince Ranariddh, and replaces him with Ung Huot. The coup attracts international condemnation, and Cambodia's membership of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) is delayed. The Khmer Rouge put Pol Pot on trial and sentence him to life imprisonment. Pol Pot is filmed and interviewed by a western journalist. |
| 1998 |
Ranariddh is tried in his absence and found guilty of arms smuggling, but is then pardoned by the king. Pol Pot dies in his jungle hideout. Elections in July are won by Hun Sen's CPP, amid allegations of harassment. A coalition is formed between the CPP and Funcinpec. Hun Sen becomes prime minister, Ranariddh is president of the National Assembly. |
| 1999 |
Two Khmer Rouge leaders arrested and charged with genocide. They have yet to come to trial. |
| 2001 |
Cambodia's Senate approves a law to create a tribunal to bring genocide charges against Khmer Rouge leaders. The law still requires approval by the Constitutional Council, King Sihanouk and the UN. Hun Sen says he expects the tribunal to start work later in 2001. |
| 2001 June |
International donors, encouraged by Cambodia's reform efforts, pledge $560 million in aid for the impoverished country at a donor conference in Tokyo.
Five Cambodians, three of them US citizens, are sentence to life in prison for their involvement in an armed attack by the US-based Cambodian Freedom Fighters (CFF) on government buildings that sparked a bloody shootout in Phnom Penh in 2000. At the end of the terrorism trial, the CFF said it would continue its campaign to overthrow Prime Minister Hun Sen. |
| 2002 February |
Official results in Cambodia's first multi-party local elections give victory to the ruling Cambodian People's Party in all but 23 out of 1,620 communes. |
Design™