Continued from part one.....
The Events Leading to the Yukanthor Affairs
The treaty signed between King Norodom and the French officials to establish the protectorate in 1863 accorded the Cambodian monarch greater say and control over the affairs of the kingdom. But by 1884, lacking the financial resources in which to continue their effective colonisation of Cambodia, the French began to demand a series of administrative reforms that would give the French Protectorate greater control the affairs of the kingdom. Among the reforms were the abolition of slavery, the transfer of financial controls, such as tax collections and customs service, to the French as they need to generate revenue to cover the cost of the Protectorate. The French demanded that the king and his government should meet the cost of the protectorate over Cambodia. The king was of the view that the cost of the protectorate should not be the duty of Cambodia. King Norodom was concerned that the transfer of customs control to the French would destroy his prestige within the kingdom. With unanimous advice from his officials against the French proposals he adamantly refused to sign the treaty. When pressed by Charles Thomson, the governor of Cochinchina of the reasons, King Norodom insisted that he was acting in accordance with the 1863 treaty. In his letter setting forth his reasons King Norodom referred to the 1863 treaty by writing that “In the beginning I concluded a treaty of alliance and friendship with the French government and the high French officials; I was directed to observe this treaty faithfully.
Now the Cambodian government sees that this new affair (the customs convention) is going to diminish the prestige of the Cambodian authority.”
Enraged with Norodom’s refusal to sign the treaty, Governor Thomson retorted that the French protection applied “less to the person of the king than to the kingdom of Cambodia.” Thomson’s implication was clear: he will be removed as king if he continue to resist the French authority. But in his new mood of firm obstinacy King Norodom did not weaken his resolve.
In the face of the king’s refusal to negotiate, Thomson felt that his honour and as that of France’s has been diminished. Enraged, Thom returned to see the king on the 5th and 7th of 1884. King Norodom refused to see him, stating that he was unwell. Enraged, he called for troop reinforcements and summoned three French gunboats from Saigon on the 13th of June. Thomson’s intention was to remove King Norodom from the throne and replace him with his half brother, Sisowath. If by any chance Sisowath refused to follow Thomson’s way, Thomson noted that he would arrange for a council of officials to rule the country until the question of the throne was resolved.
At one o’clock in the morning of June 17, Thomson stormed the palace, demanding to see the king. Santhor Mok, the king’s secretary, tried to stop Thomson. Thomson pushed his way in by kicking Santhor Mok in the groin. Santhor Mok later wrote a poem condemning Thomson’s arrogant behaviour by saying “Oh, you old miserable Frenchman, you dare to lift your foot to kick the king’s secretary. ( A Barang A Barak, A Barang Apleak, Hean Theak Aleak Sdach”.
When he reached the king’s chamber Thomson read aloud to the king the text of the convention that would have transformed Cambodia from a protectorate to something like a colony. Hearing the term of the new convention, the king’s secretary and his interpreter, Col de Monteiro, cried out to the king, “Sire, this is not a convention that is proposed to your majesty, this is an abdication”. Monteiro was then thrown out of the room by Thomson. King Norodom, left alone and shaken by Thomson‘s aggressive behaviour, had no choice but to sign. Thomson commented, “Gentlemen, here is a page of history.”
By historical accounts, Thomson had also threatened to arrest King Norodom and lock him up in one of his gunboats. During the exchanges with King Norodom inside the king’s chamber Thomson was quoted as saying that if Norodom continue to refuse to sign the convention he would be confined aboard one of the gunboats lying off the palace. Norodom bravely asked Thomson: “What would you do with me aboard the Alouette?” Thomson replied: “That is my secret”.
The accounts also reported that, as Thomson was forcing Norodom to sign the convention inside the king’s chamber, Sisowath waited in the wings. Before Thomson entered the king’s chamber Sisowath had already told Thomson that he was at the disposal of the French authorities. After Thomson had succeeded in forcing King Norodom to sign the convention, Sisowath congratulated him and again reiterated that he was ready to serve the French cause. Norodom never forgave Sisowath for this betrayal.
Under terms of the first article of the convention, the king was obliged to “accept all the administrative, judicial, financial, and commercial reforms in order to facilitate the accomplishment of the French Protectorate”.
Prince Yukanthor later confirmed and asserted that his father only agreed to sign the convention because Governor General Doumer threatened to dethrone him. He never forgave his uncle, Sisowath ,for the latter’s betrayal of his father. He had also accused some officials, particularly prime minister Um, of being the active participants in facilitating Governor Thomson’s successful forcing of the king to sign the new convention. Prince Yukanthor was very bitter toward the French and some palace officials as well as his uncle, Sisowath. This event was not the only event that caused King Norodom much distress. The many appointments of the officials without King Norodom’s approval was another factor that caused the king’s and Yukanthor’s outrage. King Norodom strongly objected to the appointments of Thioun, the great-grandfather of Thioun Thioeun, Thioun Mum, Thioun Chum and Thioun Prasith who were prominent members of the Khmer Rouge regime, as secretary general of the council of ministers, and the appointments of Poc as minister of justice and Col de Monteiro as the Kralahom (minister of defence). And the French authority had dismissed many of his favourite confidant such as Ouk and Nguon.
Enraged and angry with the French treatment of his father and Cambodia in general Yukanthor, probably with the blessing of his father, in 1900, embarked on a campaign of publicity tour to France to win the French public opinion over the French actions in Cambodia which was known as the Yukanthor Affairs. Yukanthor and, to a certain extent, King Norodom, should have known full well that the same course of actions taken by ones of his sons, Prince Duong Chacr, seven years earlier had failed miserably. Prince Duong Chacr, like his half brother, Prince Yukantor and his uncle, Prince Si Vothat, viewed the imposed 1884 convention as French oppression on the person of a king as well as Cambodia as a whole. In 1893, Prince Duong Chacr (also spelled Duongchak), who was very active against the French in the uprising of 1885-1886 instigated by his uncle, Prince Si Votha, embarked on a mission to France to complain to the French government about the mistreatments and brutalities perpetrated by the French authorities in Cambodia. Instead of heeding his appeal, the French government ordered him arrested and exiled him to Algeria until his death in 1897. //To be continued on part three..
The Events Leading to the Yukanthor Affairs
The treaty signed between King Norodom and the French officials to establish the protectorate in 1863 accorded the Cambodian monarch greater say and control over the affairs of the kingdom. But by 1884, lacking the financial resources in which to continue their effective colonisation of Cambodia, the French began to demand a series of administrative reforms that would give the French Protectorate greater control the affairs of the kingdom. Among the reforms were the abolition of slavery, the transfer of financial controls, such as tax collections and customs service, to the French as they need to generate revenue to cover the cost of the Protectorate. The French demanded that the king and his government should meet the cost of the protectorate over Cambodia. The king was of the view that the cost of the protectorate should not be the duty of Cambodia. King Norodom was concerned that the transfer of customs control to the French would destroy his prestige within the kingdom. With unanimous advice from his officials against the French proposals he adamantly refused to sign the treaty. When pressed by Charles Thomson, the governor of Cochinchina of the reasons, King Norodom insisted that he was acting in accordance with the 1863 treaty. In his letter setting forth his reasons King Norodom referred to the 1863 treaty by writing that “In the beginning I concluded a treaty of alliance and friendship with the French government and the high French officials; I was directed to observe this treaty faithfully.
Now the Cambodian government sees that this new affair (the customs convention) is going to diminish the prestige of the Cambodian authority.”
Enraged with Norodom’s refusal to sign the treaty, Governor Thomson retorted that the French protection applied “less to the person of the king than to the kingdom of Cambodia.” Thomson’s implication was clear: he will be removed as king if he continue to resist the French authority. But in his new mood of firm obstinacy King Norodom did not weaken his resolve.
In the face of the king’s refusal to negotiate, Thomson felt that his honour and as that of France’s has been diminished. Enraged, Thom returned to see the king on the 5th and 7th of 1884. King Norodom refused to see him, stating that he was unwell. Enraged, he called for troop reinforcements and summoned three French gunboats from Saigon on the 13th of June. Thomson’s intention was to remove King Norodom from the throne and replace him with his half brother, Sisowath. If by any chance Sisowath refused to follow Thomson’s way, Thomson noted that he would arrange for a council of officials to rule the country until the question of the throne was resolved.
At one o’clock in the morning of June 17, Thomson stormed the palace, demanding to see the king. Santhor Mok, the king’s secretary, tried to stop Thomson. Thomson pushed his way in by kicking Santhor Mok in the groin. Santhor Mok later wrote a poem condemning Thomson’s arrogant behaviour by saying “Oh, you old miserable Frenchman, you dare to lift your foot to kick the king’s secretary. ( A Barang A Barak, A Barang Apleak, Hean Theak Aleak Sdach”.
When he reached the king’s chamber Thomson read aloud to the king the text of the convention that would have transformed Cambodia from a protectorate to something like a colony. Hearing the term of the new convention, the king’s secretary and his interpreter, Col de Monteiro, cried out to the king, “Sire, this is not a convention that is proposed to your majesty, this is an abdication”. Monteiro was then thrown out of the room by Thomson. King Norodom, left alone and shaken by Thomson‘s aggressive behaviour, had no choice but to sign. Thomson commented, “Gentlemen, here is a page of history.”
By historical accounts, Thomson had also threatened to arrest King Norodom and lock him up in one of his gunboats. During the exchanges with King Norodom inside the king’s chamber Thomson was quoted as saying that if Norodom continue to refuse to sign the convention he would be confined aboard one of the gunboats lying off the palace. Norodom bravely asked Thomson: “What would you do with me aboard the Alouette?” Thomson replied: “That is my secret”.
The accounts also reported that, as Thomson was forcing Norodom to sign the convention inside the king’s chamber, Sisowath waited in the wings. Before Thomson entered the king’s chamber Sisowath had already told Thomson that he was at the disposal of the French authorities. After Thomson had succeeded in forcing King Norodom to sign the convention, Sisowath congratulated him and again reiterated that he was ready to serve the French cause. Norodom never forgave Sisowath for this betrayal.
Under terms of the first article of the convention, the king was obliged to “accept all the administrative, judicial, financial, and commercial reforms in order to facilitate the accomplishment of the French Protectorate”.
Prince Yukanthor later confirmed and asserted that his father only agreed to sign the convention because Governor General Doumer threatened to dethrone him. He never forgave his uncle, Sisowath ,for the latter’s betrayal of his father. He had also accused some officials, particularly prime minister Um, of being the active participants in facilitating Governor Thomson’s successful forcing of the king to sign the new convention. Prince Yukanthor was very bitter toward the French and some palace officials as well as his uncle, Sisowath. This event was not the only event that caused King Norodom much distress. The many appointments of the officials without King Norodom’s approval was another factor that caused the king’s and Yukanthor’s outrage. King Norodom strongly objected to the appointments of Thioun, the great-grandfather of Thioun Thioeun, Thioun Mum, Thioun Chum and Thioun Prasith who were prominent members of the Khmer Rouge regime, as secretary general of the council of ministers, and the appointments of Poc as minister of justice and Col de Monteiro as the Kralahom (minister of defence). And the French authority had dismissed many of his favourite confidant such as Ouk and Nguon.
Enraged and angry with the French treatment of his father and Cambodia in general Yukanthor, probably with the blessing of his father, in 1900, embarked on a campaign of publicity tour to France to win the French public opinion over the French actions in Cambodia which was known as the Yukanthor Affairs. Yukanthor and, to a certain extent, King Norodom, should have known full well that the same course of actions taken by ones of his sons, Prince Duong Chacr, seven years earlier had failed miserably. Prince Duong Chacr, like his half brother, Prince Yukantor and his uncle, Prince Si Vothat, viewed the imposed 1884 convention as French oppression on the person of a king as well as Cambodia as a whole. In 1893, Prince Duong Chacr (also spelled Duongchak), who was very active against the French in the uprising of 1885-1886 instigated by his uncle, Prince Si Votha, embarked on a mission to France to complain to the French government about the mistreatments and brutalities perpetrated by the French authorities in Cambodia. Instead of heeding his appeal, the French government ordered him arrested and exiled him to Algeria until his death in 1897. //To be continued on part three..
To read part three click:http://khmerization.blogspot.com/2008/02/biography-of-prince-norodom-arun_05.html
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