page_title: Norodom of Cambodia
section_title: Norodom's early life
hierarchical_section_title: Norodom of Cambodia / Rule / Norodom's early life
caption_attribution_description: Norodom, the King of Cambodia Iconographic Collections Keywords: J. Thomson; Cambodia; John Thomson
context_page_description: Norodom, born Ang Voddey, was the King of Cambodia from 1860 to his death in 1904. He was the eldest son of King Ang Duong and was a half-brother of Prince Si Votha and King Sisowath. In 1863, he invited French protection to fend off Annam and Siamese aggression. He was elected to the throne in 1860 but would not be crowned king until 1864 due to missing royal artefacts. He has been credited with saving Cambodian sovereignty, but the country would remain under French rule for almost a century. His reign of 43 years and 188 days is the longest in the modern era. He was succeeded by his brother after his death.
  When he was born, Cambodia was threatened by Siam and Annam. However his father, King Ang Doung had closely relation with the Royal Family of Siam at Bangkok. His father sent him to study in Bangkok, where he studied Thai language, politics, military, Buddhist scriptures and the ancient Pali language.
context_section_description: Norodom was the eldest son of Ang Duong. In 1850, he and his half-brother Prince Sisowath were sent to study in Bangkok by their father Ang Duong, where they grew up in close proximity to members of the Siamese royal family. In 1857, Norodom (Prince Phrom Borirak) served in the Royal Siamese Army as a military adviser, for which later he was awarded the Order of the White Elephant.
  In 1860, when King Ang Duong died, Norodom became his successor but remained uncrowned because the Siamese royal court refused to release the Cambodian royal regalia. Therefore, he was unable to be crowned as the rightful successor.
  At the same time, there was a major rebellion in Kampong Cham province by the Cham minority group. In 1861, Norodom half-brother Sivotha rebelled and Norodom abandoned the capital of Oudong and fled to safety in Bangkok. The Siamese court returned him to Phnom Penh early in 1862, and in 1863 he signed a treaty with the French placing himself under French protection. The Siamese eventually returned the royal regalia and his coronation followed in 1864.
caption: Norodom in 1866
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