5. The Khmer Empire - Fall of the God Kings
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 พ.ค. 2024
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Deep in the Cambodian Jungle, a ruined city crumbles among the roots of banyan trees.
In this episode, we look at the Khmer Empire of medieval Cambodia, and the ancient mega-city of Angkor. I want to explore how this great civilization rose to a size and wealth virtually unprecedented in the world, how it overcame the challenges of its climate and landscape, and all the factors that led to its final, dramatic collapse.
** Fall of Civilizations the book is now available to pre-order: linktr.ee/fallofcivilizations **
Credits:
Sound engineering by Thomas Ntinas
Voice Actors:
Rhy Brignell
Lou Millington
Sebastian Garbacz
Music by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) Artist: incompetech.com/
Title theme: Home At Last by John Bartmann. johnbartmann.com/
** Special thanks to Tom Chandler, Brent McKee, Mike Yeates and Chandara Ung of SensiLab, Monash University Faculty of IT for kindly sharing their digital recreations of ancient Angkor. **
View their project here:
Project website: www.virtualangkor.com/
Simulating 24 hours at Medieval Angkor Wat: • Simulating 24 Hours at...
SOURCES
Aeusrivongse, Nidhi. ‘The Devarāja Cult and Khmer Kingship at Angkor.’ Explorations in Early Southeast Asian History: The Origins of Southeast Asian Statecraft, edited by Kenneth R. Hall and John K. Whitmore. University of Michigan Press, 1976, pp. 107-148.
Behnke, Alison. Angkor Wat. United States, Twenty-First Century Books, 2008.
Bergaigne, Abel Henri Joseph. Inscriptions sanscrites de Campa et du Cambodge. Paris, Imprimerie Nationale, 1893.
Briggs, Lawrence Palmer. The Ancient Khmer Empire. United States, American Philosophical Society, 1951.
Chandler, David. A History of Cambodia. Boulder, Westview Press, 1992.
Coedès, George and Pierre Dupont, ‘Les stales de Sdok Kak Thorn, Phnom Sandak et Prah Vihar,’ BEFEO, 43, 1943-46, pp. 63-64.
Coe, Michael D, and Damian Evans. Angkor and the Khmer Civilization. United Kingdom, Thames & Hudson, 2018.
DiBiasio, Jame. The Story of Angkor. Silkworm Books, 2013.
Diskul, M. C. Subhadradis. ‘Ancient Kingship in Mainland Southeast Asia.’ In A. L. Basham (ed.). Kingship In Asia and Early America. Colegio de Mexico, 1981, pp. 143-160.
Fletcher, R. ‘Angkor, food production, water management and climate change: The trajectory of urbanism in SE Asia to the mid-second millennium CE.’ Water and Society from Ancient Times to the Present: Resilience, Decline, and Revival, edited by Federica Sulas, Innocent Pikirayi. Oxford, Routledge, 2018, pp. 238-258.
Hall, Kenneth R. ‘Temples as Economic Centers in Early Cambodia.’ Maritime Trade and State
Hawken, Scott. ‘Designs of Kings and Farmers: Landscape Systems of the Greater Angkor Urban Complex.’ Asian Perspectives, vol. 52, no. 2, 2013, pp. 347-367.
Henley, David. ‘Ages of Commerce in Southeast Asian History.’ Environment, Trade and Society in Southeast Asia: A Longue Durée Perspective, edited by David Henley and Henk Schulte Nordholt. Brill, 2015, pp. 120-132.
Higham, Charles F. The Civilization of Angkor. United States, University of California Press, 2001.
-----. ‘The Origins of the Civilisation of Angkor.’ Proceedings of the British Academy, Volume 121, 2002 Lectures. United Kingdom, OUP/British Academy, 2003. pp. 41-90.
Jacques, Claude and Philippe Lafond. The Khmer Empire: Cities and Sanctuaries from the 5th to the 13th Century. Thailand, River Books, 2007.
MacDonald, Malcolm. Angkor and the Khmers. Singapore, Oxford University Press, 1987.
McCurry, Steve. Sanctuary: The Temples of Angkor. London, Phaidon Press, 2002.
Osborne, Milton. The Mekong: Turbulent Past, Uncertain Future. United States, Grove Atlantic, 2007.
Pym, Christopher. The Ancient Civilization of Angkor. United Kingdom, New American Library, 1968.
Rooney, Dawn and Peter Danford. Angkor: An Introduction to the Temples. Hong Kong, Odyssey, 1999.
Smith, Robert. The Kings of Angkor. Independently published, 2019.
So, Kenneth T. The Khmer Kings and the History of Cambodia. Thailand, Bangkok, Thailand, 2017.
Stargardt, Janice. ‘Water for the State or Water for the People?: Wittfogel in South and Southeast Asia in the First Millennium.’ Water Societies and Technologies from the Past and Present, edited by Yijie Zhuang and Mark Altaweel. UCL Press, 2018, pp. 256-268.
Stewart, Frank, et al., editors. Out of the Shadows of Angkor: Cambodian Poetry, Prose, and Performance Through the Ages. University of Hawaii Press, 2022.
Sutherland, Heather. ‘Geography as Destiny?: The Role of Water in Southeast Asian History.’ In: Peter Boomgaard (ed.). A World of Water: Rain, Rivers and Seas in Southeast Asian Histories. Brill, 2007, pp. 27-70.
My dad and I started on Episode 7: The Songhai Empire. We got 55 minutes in, we both looked at each other and said "I think we best pause this one and start from the beginning." For the last four and a half hours we have been engrossed in your podcast Fall of Civilizations. The abundance of unknown historical information we have just discovered is mind-blowing. The wealth of knowledge, the breadth of your research, your impeccable delivery in both audio and visual, and your spellbinding narration are award winning. Th-ANK-you for your tireless dedication to history; the accuracy and your enlightening insights coupled with the way in which you engage with the viewer. This series is brilliant. In every episode thus far, I have been able to imagine myself living within that civilization...the precariousness that must have been felt is overwhelming. WELL DONE!!! SUBSCRIBED!!
Thank you, really glad you both enjoyed!
You have a cool dad! I'm the only history nerd in my family.
@@franklindorrell4755 Thank you, from one history nerd to another!! :)
@@franklindorrell4755 same here...feel lonely...hahaha
@@TagJones18 honestly history is the only thing I have never gotten burnt out with. What is wrong with us? Lol
TH-cam history channels like this one have replaced the great void in TV history channels switching to reality shows. These stories are entertaining like a well written book and teaches educational things as well, unlike Hollywood history movies.
AMEN TO THAT
Do y’all have any channel recommendations?
Exatly..
Yep
I concur 110%. As an educator myself, I find these history documentaries perfect. I look forward to seeing more videos in the future.
I have worked in television and broadcasting for many years as a broadcast engineer. I am also an absolute nerd for knowledge and storytelling as well as a chemical engineer by education. You Sir, need to take a bow. This is extraordinary storytelling, buttressed with research and knowledge, careful expansion when facts become scarce and a sensitive, intuitive, simply beautiful narrative of the subject. I salute you and your team.
The narrative is a familiar one but flawed. One needs to take economics and religion in consideration which isn't historians strong suit. Usually they blame the decline of Ankgor on mismanagement of the irrigation that disturbed crop yield. Yet that's not WHY Ankgor declined. It declined because
1. Economics shifted from local to international. Trading with Japan and China oversees began to overtake local trade hence why Phnong Peng, a harbor city became the place to be and soon overtook Angkor as Capital. Angkor became more and more a rural city of less significance as merchants and traders migrated to the new Capital for business.
2. The religion changed from Hinduism to Buddhism which favored simpler art and began to see the old Hindu buildings as pompous (much as how protestants began to see Catholics as pompous) leading to further neglect of Ankgor. Hence why they didn't bother so much rebuilding it after the destruction from the Ayutthaya Thai.
When I heard Flash point History podcasts and TH-cam videos, I considered all other story telling, narrations without that American accent or with an English accent as obsolete. Then I heard Fall of civs Paul Coopers narratives and storytelling and now consider all other accents for storytelling as obsolete. I know it's an exaggerated view but it does conjure up that type of feeling with the experiencing of the Fall of Civilisations video series .
@@stijnvdv2 you make a better documentary then
@@clebfelm4170 rr n
2
Well, if seems to me maybe you should tell your television ppl to take a peak over here. That way they can see what people want when they turn on the history, learning, nova, national geographic, etc channels. If they played programs like this people might have continued to pay for cable.
As a Cambodian, the last 15 minutes where they described the temples in its current state and its reminder of life and the end of the glory of the Angkor empire...really got me. My heart hurt and I started tearing up from all the sentiment.
It is just the past. Forget the empire thing if you don't want end up like Polpot and his Khmer Rough. Polpot tried to transform Cambodia to full Agrarian societies like in past. He destroyed manufacture and service sectors and made total blunder such as closing bank.
Me too Me too
@@NoOne-xd1gw People can look at history fondly and not glorify horrible modern policies...
The true glory of the empire lies in the fact that it's people are still alive and able to continue on. It's not the death of a parent that brings sorrow, it's the death of a child.
@@thelazy0ne this is such a lovely sentiment, thank you
Hi I'm Khmer really appreciate that you share our wonderful history with the world
My pleasure, I'm glad you enjoyed!
The Golden Key Animation You have an amazing ancestral history! 🙏
does khemer worship lord
vishnu?
@@ggeo1364 yes
Water management, as in now, flooding the three dams, for agricultural growth?.
I am an Indian and I had travelled to Cambodia, Siem Reap a few months back just before the lockdown due to Corona virus! Being an Indian, I could understand and relate to the rich Cambodian culture!
I found this wonderful video now and I am absolutely filled with regret! I wished I had found this before my trip!
This knowledge would have certainly enriched my Cambodian experience ! Everything I saw and learnt in person, was nothing compared to what I learnt from this wonderful documentary !
Thank u so much, this is so richly detailed and so clearly explained !
It is unfair to be watching all these wonderful videos for free !!
I hope they will do one on one of India's many empires.
@@TristanCleveland yes they should
@@TristanClevelandonly the islamic Moghul or Asoka of buddhism empires or British raj of India are great empire in India history.. other than this 3 all the rest of the kingdom are nothing great to be talk about
@@yuefei8696 Gupta Empire the golden age of India.
@@yuefei8696mauryan was not buddhist before ashok. Ashok destroyed it. India's golden age was Gupta empire. Then there as are Maratha and Sikh empires, Rashtrakut and Chola empires.
I married a Cambodian man who, while living in Cambodia, gave tours of this city to tourists amongst other things he did. Most amazing!
I watched a National Geographic one on Angkor recently and what a disappointment that was. There are so many of this type of production where it is more theatre really. Its cover is full of hollowed promise and the substance is half-baked. How awesome it is to have Paul Cooper's docu-series where history is presented in its totality and in a storytelling manner that draws you in. The narrative stays with you and challenges you to look closely at your place in this world in the context of the past. I have so much respect for his mastery.
I am a Cambodian 🇰🇭 I’m so proud and thankful for this beautiful document ❤️
Thank you, I'm so glad you think so!
i hear cambodian girls are fun.
@@OugaBoogaShockwave you hear, i know
Fall of Civilizations sir would you do one on the Champa kingdoms? There’s literally little to nothing on it on Youutube?
@@bobbyo3867 They Dont want people to know that there were seven Naggas that came out of America from the main serpent Wisdom. She lies here.
I honestly think this series is some of the best online documentary content ever created. It needs to be seen by everyone.
As a Cambodian, thank you for telling our history and keeping it alive
These are some of the best historic documentaries I've seen: poetic, beautiful and informative - and not patronising! (Also, a distinct lack of space aliens!)
Thank you, glad you think so!
MemoFromEssex it is exactly as what we learn in our khmer history book 😃
@@DEMONIKMINION well they deserved it
@@DEMONIKMINION
Wow I don’t hear that at all.(Hear because I listen while out walking.
I watch later for content done in sculpture or art.
no space aliens?! well, I'm out then ...
jk. I've been telling friends this is the best thing I've seen in a long time.
Started on Summerian, realized there was more to the series, went to the start. One of the best history walk throughs of different periods in differeint civilizations. So glad to have stumbled onto this.
*walk-throughs
It's never a mystery why people build cities, temples, monuments... but it's always fascinating why people abandon them!
Failures in History do not count , and see that every important building is surrounded by water to cool off look at high Towers they had .
This is so much better than the dumbed down documentary format that is used nowadays. You know the random interviews from "experts" that no one has ever heard of, the loud music and random cutaways. . . You know what I mean.
In defence, the experts, if they are real, will not going to be able to explain, what they taught in one semester, in ten second sound clips They are there so that they can get more grant to their research. The TV production style "worked" for audience, at least, according to executives.
TH-cam passion project is different. The makers can read the experts opinions, and made it for people who are interested rather to keep coming back after a commercial.
I lived in Cambo for 10 years. I read everything I could find on Ankor. This doc. blows them all away~ Thank you !
🎯It's an high quality documentary, I agree ! 🤘😎🍻
Maybe you can help me understand- why do they carry umbrellas with 6 foot long handles? What could they possibly be protecting the carriers from?
All this story list in secondary school’s book in Cambodia 🇰🇭 it more detail than this video
I agree!
¹qqqqq+qqqqq+2eqq
As French, story link us with Cambodia during last 150 years. My father and grand father was living in Cambodia and they visited Ankor... today my sons go in Cambodia and visited ... they was fascinated by the people and the beauty... the fluent and complete story guide us in understanding how it come and how it gone... thank you so much for this beautiful job and presentation..
First and foremost I want to thank the the channel, fall of civilization, for telling the story of our Khmer people. This story has been beautifully narrated by many before you, but somehow, it feels like I just heard it for the first time. My eyes were glued to my TV screen and my ears were concentrated to the strong and soothing vocal of the narrator. I have enjoyed many documentaries before but this documentary is by far exceeded them. It was the intricate details that was described and contrast to other civilizations that allowed me to continue watching this video doc. It’s a great teaching moment for many English speaking Khmer people. This video pushed me closer to go back home where my heart 💜 belong. My question to Fall of Civilization channel is why the Bhutan was never colonize and got their land taken by their neighbors? It would be great to see a comparison and contrast between Bhutan and Cambodia. Thanks again for a great documentary
Thank you for your kind comment - I'm really glad you enjoyed! You're right this would make an interesting comparison, and I will have to think about it!
Because Bhutan is land locked and very difficult terrain prevented from colonisation, also as India was colonised , they got all thing which they could get from colonisation of difficult terrain of Himalayan nation Bhutan, infact the plains of Bhutan which is closer to india was under britishers
I think the answer is simple: Bhutan's strength is in its geography. Its terrain is too difficult to traverse for a successful invasion to occur.
It's wonderful that I, a Bangladeshi Bengali speaking Muslim can understand most of what these Khmer Sankskrit names mean after all these years.
Very well done! I lived in Cambodia for about 4 years and have spent a lot of time going to all the Khmer ruins in Cambodia and Thailand. What the Khmer achieved was amazing Thank you for making this. I have read a few books on this but to see it come to life like this is extraordinary.
Thanks Nathan, so glad you think so!
I love the endings of these documentaries, the whole "imagine you live in a crumbling empire" bit. I live in America, I don't have to imagine all that hard.
I feel you.
Sad, but oh so true.
I want Paul Cooper to do a documentary on America, as a lot of civilizations are lost due to the combination of infighting, bad leadership, a pandemic, and an invasion.
the difference is that America is just one bicep of the New World Empire.
@@adam1863 fair point, I'm in the bloated imperial beast of the USA
all of these stories sound like something out of a fairytale and i get so emotional hearing them, our world is really something incredible
I'm just discovering these... I'm so happy! I started with my Vikings since I'm from Viking DNA and going to the ones I knew about but never had too much information on. This one floored me, I thought it was Buddhist for 30 years of my life. Thank you for these...
As a Kinh Vietnamese, dare I say the fall of Champa itself is possibly worthy of coverage. If anything, the tales and literature it yields are no less fascinating, if a tad niche and research-intensive.
Lest we forget, a young prince who attempted to solve the dichotomy of what he witnessed, was in the end, a simple monk.
He is not forgotten.
This must be one of the best Chanel on TH-cam. This is no ordinary guy talking skim history. It’s well written, produced and historically unbiased. I majored in Southeast Asian studies in Bangkok and this episode is spot on.
We went to Angkhor in 2007, as Aussies working in Thailand, and were blown away by what we saw, leaving with many questions.
Thanks for this wonderful podcast, which answered many of those questions, and for your work on other episodes, which we are exploring.
As the world tries to come to terms with climate change, poorly in the case of Australia, it is a warning to reflect on how Angkhor, once the world's largest city, was ruined by a combination of invasion, inequality and a mini ice age.
Thank you, Paul, for your work and dedication to bringing these past civilizations to life. A fascinating and great documentary on my ancestors and the Rise and Fall of our Khmer Empire. There are millions of Khmer in Khmer Krom (today's South Vietnam) and millions more in Surin, Buriram, Chanthaburi, Maha Sarakham, Roi Et, Sa Kaew, Sisaket, Trat, and Ubon Ratchathani (today's Northern Thailand). The period of individual nations and national boundaries will one day fade away as long as the people, language, and culture survive.
That is a great wish...a flow of cultures rather than rigid boundaries. TY
Am currently in Cambodia from New Zealand for work. Just arrived over a week ago. This is great, and I cannot wait to explore Cambodia.
I came across this channel today. It made my day. Never seen a documentary that complete. Congratulation for this level of quality and the amount of work and dedication put into the making of this video /podcast.
Channels like this fill the void left by TV's shift to reality shows. They offer entertaining yet educational content, akin to a well-written book. Kudos to the team for their exceptional storytelling, backed by thorough research and sensitivity to historical narratives.
This is such a wonderful education for me at 83 yrs old. You do such a great job of not laying down any concrete narratives that are so often debunked, yet dominate the field for years as more insightful people are discouraged and humiliated.
I feel the same way. My dad, age 76, didn't know this wasn't Buddhist. We are both getting a great education.
The best documentary on Angkor I have seen.
I am lucky enough to have visited Angkor and I can say your narrative brings the city to life and gives a vibrancy to the remains which the guidebooks, while informative and helpful, in their dry facts never did. You have stirred memories from twenty years ago or more. What beautiful, visual story telling. A real treat.
We need to make a show out of this on Netflix!!!
Does anyone else cry at the intro? The piano, I don’t know how it does it, but it captures such a remorseful, contemplative, proud-but-defeated tone. It shakes me to my core. I worry for our future, and I certainly identify more with people at the end of their civilization than the people of the golden age.
It seems that for many of these civilizations, their death came down to a mismanagement of the natural world that rulers with short sights could not handle. What we are doing now makes the salinization of Sumer look like a joke.
If you're interested, the intro uses the Dorian mode (D Dorian to be precise), it has a minor 3rd which gives it a sad or melancholy feel, but it has a major 6th that gives that taste of sweetness and hope
@@nanakakitano9724 Thank you so much! I always appreciate it when someone else has and shared the technical knowledge to explain what I cannot explain with my own knowledge. Thank you!
The name of the music is (Home At Last) by John Bartmann.
Such a magical place. It's absolutely massive, I went there in 2001, spent a couple of weeks walking around Angkor Wat and the surrounding area. Beautiful people ❤️
Is every single episode in this series awesome?
This is the first time I've ever listened/watched a podcast 1.5 hours long. I'm loving this series.
Man these digital depictions of what the Khmer kingdom would have looked are beautiful. Like a tropical paradise
I’m Khmer’s people and I love the history of my country and also proud of my people! ❤️🇰🇭😇
I've watched multiple angkor documentary, this one is the best, you explain every little thing, that I haven't heard from others, thanks for your efforts
Thank you, so glad you think so!
I went to Siem Reap on a visa run while living in Thailand. I took a bus from Bangkok to Siem Reap. The tour agency scammed us once we reached Cambodia, so I was very nervous about getting ripped off and just kept to myself at my guesthouse for several days. I was feeling pretty low. I met a nice couple at a restaurant nearby while having breakfast and they really inspired me to go see Angkor Wat from their stories and pictures. I booked a tour with my guesthouse and hoped for the best. I had seen pictures, but had no idea what I was in for. I had been to many temples and didn't think this would be that much different. The experience completely blew my mind. I've been to Tiwanaku, Machu Picchu, and many ancient sites around the world, but nothing has affected me like Angkor Wat. I didn't have time to see everything, so I would love to go back some day and explore. It's well worth going if you are in that region.
If you are in Thailand there are hundreds of Khmer temples in the area as well
Because of this documentary I have planned to go there. Thank you
It's an amazing place for sure
I’m a Filipino myself but I love learning about the history of the whole of south east Asia. It hits closer to home and I feel a long, distant yet strong connection to everything ASEAN. Thanks for featuring the wonders and beauty of this side of the world! 🌍 Long live ASEAN! ❤️
I'm Filipino too and I highly recommend the article (Transforming Manila: China Islam and Spain in a Global Port City) by Ethan Hawkley. I think that you'll love it.
Also watch the lecture, (Philippine Gold: Treasures of Forgotten Kingdoms.) uploaded by the account named "I am no one" here or TH-cam.
@@dayangmarikit6860 Salamat po! 😍🥰🤩🥳
@@johnjosephaldecoa6282 - Walang anuman... by the way, the complete name of the video is (Philippine Gold: Treasures Of Forgotten Kingdoms, 'Lecture' At The Asia Society Museum, NYC - USA).
@@dayangmarikit6860 I actually got to see the gold displayed in the Ayala Museum! Nakakaproud talaga kase grabe ang finesse, mastery st details sa workmanship ng ancestors natin sa metallurgy 🌟
Paul Cooper and his team provide an unvarnished view of kingdoms, dynasties, and religions of the world. The Fall of Civilizations, original and thorough in presentation, gives such an astoundingly dynamic overview of the causes of such rising and falling of power throughout history - and beyond history, the links dissolving in Time.
I'm Cambodian Thanks for sharing my culture ❤️🇰🇭🇰🇭🇰🇭🇰🇭
Watching this series during a pandemic certainly makes the phenomena of the our fall of civilization that much more tangible.
Very poignant observation. It makes the opening segment that ponders the experiences of the people witnessing the dissolution of their civilization seem relevant to us today.
I literally listened to this last week and was like 'awww I wish it had video' was still epic, great detail of content, very rare.
Thank you! Really glad you think so.
Fall of civilizations is a highly relevant topic for our generation.
I watched this in my hotel room on vacation a few days ago. My sisters-who are pretty uninterested in history-watched along, fascinated. What an incredible video about a civilization that was so grand, yet one I'd never even heard of before! Thank you always for your incredible work!
He is a great storyteller and narrator, such a calming voice.
As with the other episodes, I have re listened to this many times, and it only gets better. Simply incredible!
The best new history channel by far
Thank you, I really appreciate it!
@@FallofCivilizations Would you talk about the decline of the First Bulgarian Empire??
@@diegoragot655 I'll have to look into this! Thanks for the suggestion.
Fall of Civilizations - Please do an episode on the Minoans.
I'd love to! I've spent a lot of time in Santorini
I’m a documentaries addict , this is amazing one , you’re such a great and a professional narrator, thanks 🙏
I spent 3 days in Siem Reap in 2010 & 9 Days in 2015. I've seen many of the world's great structures like the Pyramids & the Taj Mahal; but Angkor Wat is by far the most impressive structure in the world. See it before you die!
2 weeks ago would put your comment in the Plandemic of August 2020 ... Is it still possible to go ?
@@theprophylacticprotectagai2069 yeah, you can go most places..... just some weird policies once you get there in some places
Angkor Thom and the surrounding sites captivated me in a different way than the Wat did.
Amazing nonetheless, but it felt amazing to travel around the area and immerse myself in the beauty of it all.
Exactly! So why do the original central structures stand head and shoulders above anything anywhere for artistry and design of intricate structure if built by known people's as its builders??
Nan Madol is pretty impressive too
Visited Cambodia 10 years ago. I’d love to go back alone and explore the beautiful country at my own pace.
I get chills every time the title music starts on your videos. So glad youtube recommended your channel to me. Sometimes the algorithm smiles on you.
Thank you for listening!
The lesson here is forget paper, write everything in stone. Thanks for making this, I really enjoyed it. History is cool.
this might be the best channel on youtube
This videos shakes me, astonishingly beautiful, thank you for your labor of love! A son of Cambodia thanks you! saum arkoun 🙏🏽
Don’t thank Whitey!!!
You guys have stepped your videos up to an excellent level. Stick with this formula. I love it.
Thanks! Will do!
My father would tell me stories of our history when I was a child. I spent the better part of my life trying to find research to support his tales. Thank you so much for making this. I feel like I can use your doc. to teach my own sons. Thank you again.
im jealous. mind recounting a bit of them? i spent the better part of my life being brainwashed in school, and the rest is being spent making up for that lost time.
I'm always disappointed that there aren't more documentaries about the Khmer! It's an absolutely fascinating and beautiful place. Thank you for this.
The most eloquent. I’ll be visiting Angkor in a couple months. It’s right next to Machu Picchu on my list of ancient cities to visit. Your documentaries make them even more intriguing than they already are to me. Thank you!
The Baray are fascinating creating a hydraulic city 36:29 The family struggle w/trained Elephants 53:00 The deluge of climate 1:24:40 a cycle of where the rich become richer and the poor become poorer 1:34:44
Thank you for presenting my country. Cambodia 🇰🇭
These stories are amazing and help with sleeping so that you for that and you kind voice
I was Skimming through TV and watched a quick archeology documentary of Ankor Wat Empire and I quickly started reading up on it. Their documentary barely scratched the surface and THIS EPISODE BLEW ME AWAY!!!! Such beauty and detail. Thank you so much, I’ve never been to Asia however i find ancient Asia fascinating. I also didn’t know about India’s influence on the region back in the day. Wow, also climate is a BIG RED ALARM TODAY! So it sent chills down my spine when climate changed was listed as a factor in the destruction of the empire. I truly believe we will experience something very soon similar to what the Ankor went through.
Ugh… i loved every bit of this amazing work! 🙏🏾
Who are the 839 people who downvoted this video? Some people you can never make happy. Either someone who didn't watch the vid or possibly someone didn't like the mention of the disparity between rich & poor right at the very end there.
You're doing an amazing job & I'm dead set hooked on this series.
Ther are cham people probably 😃
One of the best series on or off TH-cam. I haven't been much of a history buff until now. Thank you for all the work you do and have done.
These help me fall asleep really nicely but the issue is I’ll wake up with the entire video finished and cant remember where i left off
this is the third time ive watched this one, not sure if i got past the intro yet
@Gazbanger I just found this channel and am super pumped for that one!
It's the cammeoruge ♨😎♨
These are great!
Absolutely haunting. I've watched a few episodes and already, I've learned more history here than during all my education. I never majored in history, but i have a feeling that even if I had, the outcome would be similar. I love the balance......and the beauty!
Just listened to this podcast yesterday without the visuals. I googled maps and photos of Angkor as I listened. Today this popped up in my notifications. So excited to see it again with the video! Absolutely outstanding.
Thank you Hyacinth! Sorry it didn't come a day earlier...
We here in West Australia have exactly the same it is known as THE HUTT. RIvER PROVENCE
Yes very Outstanding!
“Virtually nobody in Europe gave credit to the Cambodians for building the temple”
Me: laughs in Zimbabwe empire ruins that Europe accredited to the Greek and even Aliens!!
I love these documentaries, thank you.
Rhodesia.😡
I don't think the comparison is quite the same. While early Europeans initially failed to give Cambodians their due credit for building Angkor Wat, many Europeans at least recognized that the temple was built by an Asian civilization. They simply attributed it to the wrong Asian civilization such as the Thais, Chinese, and Indians. Once they realized their mistake, they promptly corrected it.
Great Zimbabwe was different. Not only did early Europeans fail to give the native Zimbabweans their due credit for building Great Zimbabwe, but they also refused to believe ANY black civilization could have built the city. Worse yet, when the Europeans realized that Great Zimbabwe was built by black people, they refused to correct their mistake and even went so far as to actively suppress the information by telling archaeologists to lie about their research.
@@jcdenton1635 That's called "selective racism" and "preferencial treatment."
Excellent, again.
Through these documentaries all these “lost” empires become part of this history of all humanity. Thank you.
Thanks
Joined this channel about a week ago. Man are these incredible!
Thank you, I appreciate it!
Agreed
They really are top notch
@@FallofCivilizations ⁰🍽
All credit goes to Indian...
,,,
I listen to this while in bed with my eyes closed. Very nice.
I woke up to this and was so confused about l was listening too😂
So do the rest of us lol
Whaaa? Im not the only one? Lol
me too hehe so relaxing
@@ZEYARProductions haha
I've finally seen Angkor for myself... it's a lot larger and grander in person.
The place is truly amazing!
Been there three times worth the trip
Visited Angkor in 2015, magical and spiritual place! Though the best part of the trip was the kind and beautiful Cambodian people!!
I had the amazing opportunity of going here as a child.... I have a family next to one of these shots... Cambodian history is amazing Thankyou!!!
I never manage to not cry at the conclusion of one of these episodes. I love how each one delivers a consistent structure, and themes of why these civilizations might have fallen keep recurring. The inclusion of a poem or a piece of music adds to the impact of this audio adventure and this sensory stimulus supplements my visualization of the time and place you present. Your story-telling, synthesized from the historical and archaeological record and scientific analysis, is both accessible and sophisticated. I'm so grateful I somehow stumbled on this. I have even parted with my money and become a patron, huge for me. Thank you.
Simply the best, the most thoroughly reasearched historical series I have come across. Paul's gentle and even pitched voice lends it the convincing authority
Watched this earlier on Patreon and I gotta say that your channel has to be one of the most high quality documentary channels on this site.
Thank you, I'm really glad you think so! And thanks for the support also.
Foogi, Lord of Kitsunes absolutely agree. The guys doing this are incredibly talented.
It’s in my top three
On that note drop pateron before its too late.... the lawsuit against them will hurt the creators as Pateron quickly runs out of Finances.
I am Thai. I remember myself crying seeing a couple of Khmer bronze statues at the Mahamuni temple in Mandalay, Myanmar. They must have been brought there by the army that sacked and looted Ayutthaya over 200 years ago. Your trophies would one day become someone else's. Empires rise and fall, yet today's super powers still deny the obvious and continue to resort to wars. Will we ever learn?
I've lived on and off in Asia for many years, and now I find myself retiring here in Thailand. This production is the best I have ever come across to help me join the various dots together in my limited understanding and knowledge of the history of this great region and that of its peoples. I really want to sincerely thank the team for making this, it must have been a labour of love...kop kun maak.
Even the piano score is amazing. Thank you a million times for your awesome work!
I’m Cambodia 🇰🇭 (Khmer) 🇦🇺 . Very interesting. Great work buddy.
Your opening song is on point. It's the musical manifestation of how I experience melancholy when I walk into aged homes and experience history.
Your statement about the music is on point. Perfectly described.
This is by far, the best documental I've seen on this topic. Bravo!
One thing that is interesting about Angkor Wat is that, although Cambodian civilization had by early modern times been eclipsed by Siam and Vietnam, the language - in both its spoken and written forms - and something of the identity survived. And the fact that there was still a small Buddhist presence in Angkor Wat suggests that people hadn't quite forgotten about it.
True! It's a place for worship and solitude, not a tourist spot, but then how will the Europeans say they discovered places 😅, like how Vasco da Gama discovered India..
Dear human we were already there before the Europeans came.
@@anupamadarsh742 We have to be careful in dividing these documentaries between people who forgot who they were or died off and people who continued to live with their identities, but in a diminished state. The Fall of Civilizations documentary about Han China, for example, is about the fall of a dynasty, but it was one dynasty in a cultural-political entity that survives to this day as one of the oldest and most resilient civilizations.
@@anupamadarsh742you are right, but I think we say discovered as in meeting people we didn't know from our own perspective at the time, in places we never been to. Cheers.
Really enjoying this series - you've got a real skill in telling the story of these civilizations and your narration is excellent.
I'm loving this series. Seriously.
Thanks!
I spend more time on history youtube than I’d like to admit, and you’re genuinely doing some of the best work I’ve ever seen on this website. Thank you for all the hard work, you’ve earned a subscriber and admirer.
Thank you Johnny, much appreciated!
Thank you for yet another amazing episode! I am currently watching this in Cambodia and about to visit Angkor Wat tomorrow. This has been on my bucket list for 25+ years. I'm so excited!!
On my way to Cambodia to see Angkor Wat as well.
I'm glad I watched 'The Khmer Empire'. These stone cities are amazing. The waterways and the infrastructure built throughout Cambodia are hard to accept easily they're so grandiose. I've subscribed because I want to discover more. Production is excellent!
Always amazing how a civilization can suddenly rise from nowhere and then suddenly go back to nothing after having so much. One leader, one battle, one thing could influence so much
There is nothing more fascinating than the history of civilizations. It really makes one think, puts things into perspective.