- CountryCambodia
- Town:Pnom Penh
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Year of creation:1875
- Rider(s):Norodom I
(1834 –1904) ruled as king of from 1860 to 1904. He was the eldest son of King Ang Duong, who ruled on the behalf of Siam. Norodom was considered to be the first modern Khmer king. He was credited with saving Cambodia from disappearing altogether. In 1863, to prevent the two powerful neighbours, Vietnam and, from swallowing Cambodia altogether he was invited by France to make Cambodia its protectorate. However, he sent many letters to Siam claiming French Admiral de la Grandière had forced him into signing a false treaty. Many Cambodians believed that this brilliant act and his shrewdness did actually save Cambodia from disappearing.
(source: Wikipedia)
- Sculptor(s):Eude, Jean-Louis Adolphe
(1818-1889) was a French sculptor.
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Photos by Sybren Kalkman
The story that this statue originally was a statue of Napoleon III whose head had been replaced by that of King Norodom is most probably incorrect. The statue has been gifted by France to King Norodom in 1876. Napoleon III died in exile in 1873, having been overthrown in 1870 following France’s disastrous defeat against the Germans. Therefore it is unlikely that a statue of Napoleon III would have been commissioned in 1875 to Adolphe Eude, who casted the statue in 1875. (source: Michelle Vachon, 2016)
