Khmer Empire Timeline

In the first decade of the 11th century, Kambuja came into conflict with the kingdom of Tambralinga in the Malay Peninsula.

Image source: Tambralinga

In 1074, conflict arose between Harshavarman III, the younger brother and successor of Udayadityavarman II, and the Champa king Harivarman IV.

The 12th century was a time of conflict and brutal power struggles within the Khmer Empire.

In 1114, Suryavarman II sent a mission to Chola and presented a precious stone to the Chola emperor Kulottunga I.

Image source: Kulottunga I

In the east, Suryavarman II's campaigns against Champa and Dai Viet were unsuccessful, though he sacked Vijaya in 1145 and deposed Jaya Indravarman III. The Khmers occupied Vijaya until 1149, when they were driven out by Jaya Harivarman I.

Image source: Khmer–Cham wars

In 1177 the capital was raided and looted in a naval battle on the Tonlé Sap lake by a Cham fleet under Jaya Indravarman IV, and Khmer king Tribhuvanadityavarman was killed.

Image source: Fall of Angkor

Kambuja was threatened externally in 1283 by the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty.

Image source: Mongol invasions and conquests

Jayavarman VIII avoided war with general Sogetu, the governor of Guangzhou, China, by paying annual tribute to the Mongols starting in 1285.

After the death of Jayavarman VII, his son Indravarman II (reigned 1219–1243) ascended to the throne.

In 1220, under mounting pressure from the increasingly powerful Đại Việt and its ally Champa, the Khmer withdrew from many of the provinces previously conquered from the Chams.

Indravarman II was succeeded by Jayavarman VIII (reigned 1243–1295).

Jayavarman VIII's rule ended in 1295 when he was deposed by his son-in-law Srindravarman (reigned 1295–1309).

The last Sanskrit inscription is dated 1327 and describes the succession of Indrajayavarman by Jayavarmadiparamesvara.

By the 14th century, Kambuja had suffered a long, arduous decline. The Black Death had affected Asia: the plague first appeared in China around 1330 and reached Europe around 1345. Archaeologists also noted that historical inscriptions were lacking from the 14th to 17th centuries.

Image source: Black Death

Angkor was besieged by the Ayutthayan king Uthong in 1352, and following its capture the next year, the Khmer king was replaced with successive Siamese princes.

Image source: 2025 Cambodian–Thai border crisis

Then in 1357, the Khmer king Suryavamsa Rajadhiraja retook the throne.

Image source: Khmer Empire

A Javanese source, the Nagarakretagama canto 15, composed in 1365 in the Majapahit Empire, claimed Java had established diplomatic relations with Kambuja together with Ayutthaya, Champa, Annam and other polities, describing how the rise of Ayutthaya had taken its toll on Cambodia.

Image source: Nagarakretagama

In 1393, the Ayutthayan king Ramesuan besieged Angkor again, capturing it the next year.

Finally, in 1431, the Khmer king Ponhea Yat abandoned Angkor as indefensible and moved to the Phnom Penh area, marking the traditional end of the Khmer Empire, although scholars still debate the reasons for its collapse.

Image source: Ponhea Yat

Under the rule of Khmer king Barom Reachea I (reigned 1566–1576), who temporarily succeeded in driving back Ayutthaya, the royal court was briefly returned to Angkor, and there is evidence of further use of Angkor after the 15th century.

Inscriptions from the 17th century testify to Japanese settlements alongside those of the remaining Khmer. The best-known inscription tells of Ukondayu Kazufusa, who celebrated the Khmer New Year in Angkor in 1632.