{"podcast":{"title":"The Khmer Empire's Sudden Collapse Explained — Fexingo History","slug":"the-khmer-empire-s-sudden-collapse-explained-fexingo-history-7829682","podcast_index_feed_id":7829682,"rss_url":"https://feeds.fexingo.com/history/the-khmer-empires-sudden-collapse-explained.xml","website_url":"https://www.fexingo.com/history/the-khmer-empires-sudden-collapse-explained/","image_url":"https://audio.fexingo.com/history/the-khmer-empires-sudden-collapse-explained/cover.png","author":"Fexingo","episode_count":166,"summary":"Built around the enigmatic ruins of Angkor Wat, the Khmer Empire once dominated Southeast Asia, but its sudden collapse in the 15th century remains one of history's great puzzles. Lucas and Luna guide listeners through the empire's rise under Jayavarman II, its golden age under Suryavarman II, and the gradual unraveling that followed. They examine the religious shift from Hinduism to Theravada Buddhism, the massive water management system that sustained Angkor, and the environmental stresses—droughts, floods, deforestation—that may have triggered its downfall. The show delves into the sacking by Ayutthaya in 1431, the abandonment of the capital, and the migration south to Phnom Penh. It also explores modern debates: was the collapse sudden or a slow decline? How did climate change and infrastructure failure intersect with foreign invasions? And what can the Khmer Empire's fate teach us about resilience and vulnerability in our own era of environmental change? #KhmerEmpire #AngkorWat #SuryavarmanII #JayavarmanII #Ayutthaya #TheravadaBuddhism #AngkorThom #SoutheastAsia #MedievalHistory #RiseAndFall #ClimateChange #WaterManagement #AncientCivilizations #Cambodia #History #WorldHistor…","last_synced_at":"2026-07-19T00:20:54.064403+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-khmer-empire-s-sudden-collapse-explained-fexingo-history-7829682"},"episode":{"title":"Angkor's Silver Trade: The Death Knell of an Empire","slug":"angkor-s-silver-trade-the-death-knell-of-an-empire","published_at":"2026-06-12T16:44:12+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-khmer-empire-s-sudden-collapse-explained-fexingo-history-7829682/angkor-s-silver-trade-the-death-knell-of-an-empire","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-khmer-empire-s-sudden-collapse-explained-fexingo-history-7829682","url":"https://audio.fexingo.com/history/the-khmer-empires-sudden-collapse-explained/episode-0095.mp3","audio_url":"https://audio.fexingo.com/history/the-khmer-empires-sudden-collapse-explained/episode-0095.mp3","summary":"In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how the Khmer Empire's shift from bronze to silver currency destabilized its economy and contributed to its collapse. They delve into the role of the Cham and Malay traders who controlled the silver routes, the impact of the Song dynasty's monetary policies on Angkor's wealth, and how the devaluation of silver under the Yuan dynasty caused inflation. They also discuss the mysterious figure of the 'silver merchant king' Jayavarman IX and the debasement of the Khmer coinage that led to a loss of trust in the devaraja. Featuring insights from Zhou Daguan's chronicles and recent archaeological finds at Preah Khan, this episode reveals a lesser-known economic trigger for the empire's fall. #KhmerEmpire #Angkor #SilverTrade #ZhouDaguan #JayavarmanIX #devaraja #YuanDynasty #SongDynasty #PreahKhan #Cham #Malay #Inflation #History #EconomicCollapse #FexingoHistory #SoutheastAsia #Numismatics #SilverCurrency Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo","meta_description":"In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how the Khmer Empire's shift from bronze to silver currency destabilized its economy and contributed to its collap…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":471,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-khmer-empire-s-sudden-collapse-explained-fexingo-history-7829682/episodes/angkor-s-silver-trade-the-death-knell-of-an-empire/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-khmer-empire-s-sudden-collapse-explained-fexingo-history-7829682/angkor-s-silver-trade-the-death-knell-of-an-empire.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}