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Minor Reigns (1309 - 1431 A.D.)
Since the reign of Srindravarman, there
were very rare historical records, especially of those successive kings
following him in the 14th century. The last stele engraved in 1327 was
in Pali and there was no more inscription found for the next two
centuries. Perhaps the Khmer had changed their practice by writing on
the unendurable materials such as the latina leaves and animal's skin
rather than by engraving on the stones. Moreover, there were no more
major temples or monuments built during this period. Their newly adopted
religion of Theravada Buddhism could have played a major role here. As
the king was no longer regarded as the god-king or "deva-raja", it was
not necessary to build any massive mountain temple to house their gods
and to represent the heavenly residence.
During this period, the Khmers were not
able to maintain their vast and extensive irrigation systems
efficiently. Various dikes and canals were silted up. The rice crops,
previously used to be cultivated two to three times a year, dropped
drastically since the Khmers could not prevent floods in Monsoon, and
did not have enough water storage in the dry season. As productivity
dropped, the empire was weaken. Probably, the kings lacked absolute
power to mobilize sufficient laborers to maintain their irrigation
system.
The first Thai kingdom of Suhkothai,
emerged after the Khmers were driven out in the early 13th century, was
later absorbed by another Thai state which was established as the
Ayuthaya kingdom in 1351 by Ramathibodi I. The Ayuthaya kingdom became a
major threat to Angkor Empire with its first attempt to attack the
Angkor, but unsuccessfully in 1352. Several more attempts were made in
the following years. Not until 1431, the large Thai army marched on the
road, built by the last greatest Khmer king Jayavarman VII, from Chao
Phaya River Basin through Aranyapathet to attack right at the heart of
Angkor and sacked the city that same year. This marked the end of
Angkor Empire. |
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