Nguyen Lords - Wars Over The South

Wars Over The South

In 1714 the Nguyễn sent an army into Cambodia to support Keo Fa's claim the throne against Prea Srey Thomea (see also the article on the Dark ages of Cambodia). Siam joined in siding with the Prea Srey Thomea against the Vietnamese claimant. At Bantea Meas the Vietnamese routed the Siamese armies but by 1717 the Siamese had gained the upper hand. The war ended with the negotiated enthronement of the Siamese candidate but the Nguyễn Lords wrested more territory from the weakened Cambodian kingdom.

Two decades later (1739) the Cambodians attempted to reclaim to the lost coastal land. The fighting lasted some ten years, but by end, the Vietnamese fended off the Cambodian raids and secured their hold on the rich Mekong Delta.

With Siam embroiled in war with Burma, the Nguyễn mounted another campaign against Cambodia in 1755 and conquered additional territory from the ineffective Cambodian court. At the end of the war the Nguyễn had secured a port on the Gulf of Siam (Hà Tiên) and were threatening Phnom Penh itself.

Under a new king Phraya Taksin, the Siamese reasserted its protection of its eastern neighbor by coming to the aid of the Cambodian court. War was launched against the Nguyễn in 1769. After some early success, the Nguyễn forces by 1773 were facing internal revolts and had to abandon Cambodia to deal with the civil war in Vietnam itself. The turmoil gave rise to the Tây Sơn.