AHC: Khmer Comeback

[GameBawesome]

Challenge: With a starting point from the 17th century to 1860s, make Cambodia, or the Khmer, come out of the Dark Ages, and become a regional power in South East Asia.

 

[Thon Taddeo]

I think this would require screwing Vietnam and keeping Saigon and its environs.

It would probably also require screwing Thailand. Maybe Thailand remains under Burmese rule for long time, and Burma adopts strict isolationist policies. This leaves Cambodia, including Saigon, as the only viable destination for East Asian and European traders in Southeast Asia.

Greater European influence slowly leads the kingdom out of isolation and European technology and ideas slowly filter in, allowing the kingdom to modernize.

 

[La Rouge Beret]

This is a very difficult proposal given the inherent weaknesses of the Khmer state at the time. As the earlier poster said the key issue IMHO will be requiring a stronger Burmese Empire to require the Siamese to remain focused on their Western border. Conversely, perhaps a stronger Champa Empire will slow down the Vietnamese inexorable march southwards. A couple of possible PODs would involve the Khmer state establishing stronger links with the Spanish Philippines or the Kanban trade to acquire firearms, combined with stronger diplomatic links with Burma and China to threaten Siam / Ayutthaya and Vietnam.

However, this would require a degree of strategic nous that was largely absent from OTL, but could be if Lovek remained unconquered by the Siamese.