French protectorate of Cambodia
The French protectorate of Cambodia (Khmer: ប្រទេសកម្ពុជាក្រោមអាណាព្យាបាលបារាំង; French: Protectorat français du Cambodge) refers to the Kingdom of Cambodia when it was a French protectorate within French Indochina, a collection of Southeast Asian protectorates within the French colonial empire. The protectorate was established in 1863 when the Cambodian King Norodom requested the establishment of a French protectorate over his country, meanwhile Siam (modern Thailand) renounced suzerainty over Cambodia and officially recognised the French protectorate on Cambodia.
| 1863–1945 1945–1953 | |||||||||||||||
Flag
(1863–1948) Coat of arms
| |||||||||||||||
| Status |
| ||||||||||||||
| Capital | Oudong (1863–1865) Phnom Penh (1865–1953) | ||||||||||||||
| Common languages | |||||||||||||||
| Religion | Theravada Buddhism Roman Catholicism | ||||||||||||||
| Demonym(s) | Cambodian | ||||||||||||||
| Government | Elective absolute monarchy under French colonial administration (1863–1947) Unitary dominant-party parliamentary elective constitutional monarchy within the French Union (1947–1953) | ||||||||||||||
| Monarch | |||||||||||||||
• 1863–1904 | Norodom | ||||||||||||||
• 1904–1927 | Sisowath | ||||||||||||||
• 1927–1941 | Sisowath Monivong | ||||||||||||||
• 1941–1953 | Norodom Sihanouk | ||||||||||||||
| Resident-Superior | |||||||||||||||
• 1863–1866 (first) | Ernest D. de Lagrée | ||||||||||||||
• 1953 (last) | Jean Risterucci | ||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | |||||||||||||||
• 1945 (first) | Norodom Sihanouk | ||||||||||||||
• 1953 (last) | Penn Nouth | ||||||||||||||
| Legislature | None (rule by decree) (until 1947) Parliament (since 1947) | ||||||||||||||
| Historical era | New Imperialism | ||||||||||||||
| 11 August 1863 | |||||||||||||||
• Part of French Indochina | 17 October 1887 | ||||||||||||||
• Franco-Siamese Treaty | 13 February 1904 | ||||||||||||||
• Franco-Siamese Treaty | 23 March 1907 | ||||||||||||||
| Oct 1940 – Jan 1941 | |||||||||||||||
| 13 March 1945 | |||||||||||||||
• French restoration | 16 October 1945 | ||||||||||||||
• Constitution | 6 May 1947 | ||||||||||||||
| 9 November 1953 | |||||||||||||||
| 21 July 1954 | |||||||||||||||
| Population | |||||||||||||||
• 1931 | 2,803,000 | ||||||||||||||
| Currency | tical (until 1875) franc (1875–1885) piastre (from 1885) | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
| Today part of | Cambodia | ||||||||||||||
Cambodia was integrated into the French Indochina union in 1887 along with the French colonies and protectorates in Vietnam (Cochinchina, Annam and Tonkin). In 1946, Cambodia was granted self-rule within the French Union and had its protectorate status abolished in 1949. Cambodia later gained its independence. The day was celebrated as independence day on 9 November 1953.