Khmer Empire

The Khmer Empire is a former Hindu-Buddhist empire which served as a precursor to the modern Kingdom of Cambodia. From its inception in 802 CE to its collapse in the 15th century, the empire's territory encompassed most of Indochina in Southeast Asia. The city of Angkor served as its capital from the late 9th century until its fall.

History

Assassin expedition

In 1524, a group of Italian Assassins were tasked with stopping a renegade former member that had been terrorizing the local people along the Mekong delta. Aided by the Chinese Assassin Shao Jun, the expedition members braved the Khmer Kingdom's jungles and explored villages and temples along the river, before stopping their adversary and destroying her Apple of Eden, an artifact that had been warping and corrupting the land, its fauna, and its flora.

Search for Angkor

In the early 18th century, the long-collapsed Khmer Empire became the subject of rumors around Southeast Asia concerning an alleged Isu temple located within the "lost city" of Angkor. After the Dutch East India Company navigator Hendrik found the temple during his travels and wrote down clues to its location in his sea log, various factions, including the Assassins and Templars, sought to acquire the sea log and locate Angkor so they could retrieve the Piece of Eden it housed.

Behind the scenes

"Khmer Empire" is a term used in modern western historiography denoting the period between 802 CE and 1431 CE. 1431 marked the fall of Angkor, which is traditionally accepted as the main factor that led to the Khmer Empire's decline. However, the empire did not collapse immediately, as the ruling monarchy retained its sovereignty, albeit with less influence and having to abandon Angkor.

The period in Cambodian history after Angkor's fall and prior to the establishment of the French protectorate of Cambodia in 1863 is nominally known as the Middle or Post-Angkor period. However, the Apocalypse expansion pack for the tabletop role-playing game Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood of Venice, set in Cambodia in 1524, still uses the "Khmer Empire" name to describe the region.

Similarly, the webtoon Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple, set in 1725, refers to Angkor as "the lost city of the Khmer Kingdom", when in reality the city was not "lost" at the time and would have been part of the Kingdom of Cambodia. While masked by the dense jungle and difficult to find, Angkor remained populated even after the Khmer Empire's collapse, and was visited by a number of foreign explorers until the late 19th century, when the French government started a long restoration process of the city.

Gallery

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  An Assassin in the Khmer Kingdom
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  A map of the Khmer Kingdom in the 16th century

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple (first mentioned)
• Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood of Venice – Apocalypse (first appearance)