Rajendravarman II ( km, រាជេន្ទ្រវរ្ម័នទី២) was the king of the Khmer Empire (region of

Angkor Angkor ( km, អង្គរ , 'Capital city'), also known as Yasodharapura ( km, យសោធរបុរៈ; sa, यशोधरपुर),Headly, Robert K.; Chhor, Kylin; Lim, Lam Kheng; Kheang, Lim Hak; Chun, Chen. 1977. ''Cambodian-Engl ...

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...

), from 944 to 968 AD. Rajendravarman II was the uncle and first cousin of Harshavarman. His principal monuments, located in the

region of

Siem Reap Siem Reap ( km, សៀមរាប, ) is the second-largest city of Cambodia, as well as the capital and largest city of Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia. Siem Reap has French colonial and Chinese-style architecture in the Old F ...

province, are

Pre Rup Pre Rup (; km, ប្រែរូប, ) is a Hindu temple at Angkor, Cambodia, built as the state temple of Khmer king RajendravarmanHigham, C., 2001, The Civilization of Angkor, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Higham, C., 2014, Early Mainland ...

and

East Mebon The East Mebon ( km, ប្រាសាទមេបុណ្យខាងកើត) is a 10th Century temple at Angkor, Cambodia. Built during the reign of King Rajendravarman, it stands on what was an artificial island at the center of the now dr ...

.Higham, C., 2001, The Civilization of Angkor, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Higham, C., 2014, Early Mainland Southeast Asia, Bangkok: River Books Co., Ltd., The king claimed links to the royal line of the

Chenla Chenla or Zhenla (; km, ចេនឡា, ; vi, Chân Lạp) is the Chinese designation for the successor polity of the kingdom of Funan preceding the Khmer Empire that existed from around the late sixth to the early ninth century in Ind ...

state that had its capital at Bhavapura (the city's location is debated) and predates the start of the Khmer empire in 802 AD. Inscriptions say that the Khmer empire under his tutelage extended to southern

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...

, Laos and much of

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

and as far north as southern China. An inscription at Pre Rup relates that Rajendravarman II was a great warrior, his sword frequently blood-stained, his body as hard as a

diamond Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, ...

. Though the king punished the guilty, the inscription says, he had an ocean of compassion for the innocent. Other inscriptions depict him as organizer of state religious ritual. In one text, he gives an order for the collection of holy oil, in the form of butter, for use in temples. The king ruled from a great palace designed by his minister Kavindrarimathana. Many scholars believe that Rajendravarman II instituted a system of centralized administration, establishing more direct control over a collection of princes who had been largely independent at their estates in the provinces. Construction at

Banteay Srei Banteay Srei or Banteay Srey ( km, បន្ទាយស្រី ) is a 10th-century Cambodian temple dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. Located in the area of Angkor, it lies near the hill of Phnom Dei, north-east of the main group of temple ...

, the ornate temple of pink sandstone located north of the main Angkor complex, began during the king's reign. Inscriptions from 946 AD say Rajendravarman II had victories over Ramanya and

Champa Champa ( Cham: ꨌꩌꨛꨩ; km, ចាម្ប៉ា; vi, Chiêm Thành or ) were a collection of independent Cham polities that extended across the coast of what is contemporary central and southern Vietnam from approximately the 2nd ...

. Historians believe Ramanya was the area of the

Mons Mons (; German and nl, Bergen, ; Walloon and pcd, Mont) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the province of Hainaut, Belgium. Mons was made into a fortified city by Count Baldwin IV of Hainaut in the 12th century. ...

of Eastern

Dvaravati The Dvaravati ( th, ทวารวดี ; ) was an ancient Mon kingdom from the 7th century to the 11th century that was located in the region now known as central Thailand. It was described by the Chinese pilgrim in the middle of the 7th cent ...

. Rajendravarman II led fighting against the rival state of Champa in the east, and in 946 AD seized as booty a gold statue in the temple of

Po Nagar Po Nagar is a Cham temple tower founded sometime before 781 and located in the medieval principality of Kauthara, near modern Nha Trang in Vietnam. It is dedicated to Yan Po Nagar, the goddess of the country, who came to be identified with the ...

there.Maspero, G., 2002, The Champa Kingdom, Bangkok: White Lotus Co., Ltd., During his reign, the Khmer Empire had 24 cities or

pura Pura may refer to: Places * Pura, Kushtagi, a village in Koppal district, Karnataka, India * Pura, Iran, a village in Mazandaran Province, Iran * Pura, Tarlac, a municipality in the Philippines * Pura, Switzerland, a municipality in Ticino, S ...

.Hall, K. R. (2019). Maritime Trade and State Development in Early Southeast Asia. United States: University of Hawaii Press. Rajendravarman II was succeeded by his 10-year-old son, who reigned as Jayavarman V.

References

* Mabbett, Ian and Chandler, David. ''The Khmers''. Blackwell Publishers 1996. 10th-century Cambodian monarchs Khmer Empire Year of birth missing 968 deaths {{Cambodia-royal-stub