Eleventh-Century Commercial Developments in Angkor and Champa

Cultural and societal differences distinguished the Khmer and Champa kingdoms from the earliest times, as well as ​‘each state’s internal strength’. To quote the author, ​“during the tenth century and the first half of the eleventh century, the Khmer state was successfully expanding both politically and economically. The construction of Angkor’s baray and the resulting extension of agriculture, as well as the ability of the Angkor state to make even the most remote areas of its domain subject to Khmer administration, reflects significant capabilities. 

“Champa’s tenth- and eleventh-century history, on the other hand, is marked by critical fluctuations. Its geographic position on the coast, as opposed to Angkor’s more protected position in the interior, seems to have contributed to Champa’s vulnerability. Cham rulers not only solicited the aid of foreign merchants and seafarers as a source of an expanded economic prosperity but also utilized the merchants’ navies for their coastal defences and expeditions of conquest.

“This relationship dictated that a strong leadership be provided by the Cham monarchy to keep these potentially disruptive forces in check. These maritime forces had traditionally assumed a double potential of either contributing to Southeast Asia’s prosperity or bringing about general disruption. We have seen the positive aspects of one relationship with these sea nomads as reflected in the seeming commercial prosperity generated by the expansion of Cham trade with China during the period being considered, but likewise there was the threat such merchant groups posed to the integrity of the state when these groups were able to establish their autonomy from central Cham authority. To maintain his state’s integrity and, as well, to demonstrate to the Vietnamese, Chinese, and his own subjects that he was quite capable of managing his domain, the Cham king intervened, taking decisive action to re-establish his firm control over Panduranga.”