Sisowath Monipong

Sisowath Monipong
10th Prime Minister of Cambodia
In office 30 May 1950 – 3 March 1951
Predecessor Norodom Sihanouk
Successor Oum Chheang Sun
Monarch Norodom Sihanouk
Ambassador of Cambodia to France
In office 3 March 1955 – 31 August 1956
Born 25 August 1912
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Died 31 August 1956(1956-08-31) (aged 44)
Paris, France
Burial Cremated
Phnom Oudong, Kampong Speu, Cambodia
Issue 13 children
House House of Sisowath
Father Sisowath Monivong
Mother Norodom Kanviman Norleak Tevi

Sisowath Monipong (Khmer: ស៊ីសុវត្ថិ មុនីពង្ស; 25 August 1912 – 31 August 1956) was the second son of the King of Cambodia Sisowath Monivong and of Queen Norodom Kanviman Norleak Tevi.[1] He took part in Cambodian politics during and after World War II.

Biography

He began his studies in Cambodia, before being sent to France, in Grasse then in Nice, from 1927, under the control of the Governor of Indochina, François Marius Baudoin. Back to Cambodia in 1930, he spent a whole year at the monastery of Vatt Botum Vaddey in Phnom Penh.

The year after, the prince went back to France,[2] where he eventually entered the prestigious academy of École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr-Coëtquidan. In 1939, he joined the French Air Force[3] and took part in military operations until June 1940. After his father's death on 23 April 1941, his nephew, King Norodom Sihanouk, nominated him as "Preah Ang Krom Luong" on 2 May 1941.[4]

From 1941 on, Prince Sisowath Monipong participated actively in Cambodian politics. He was appointed Royal Delegate for Health, Sports and Economy and in 1946,[5] he was designated Minister of National Education in the government[6] led by his eldest brother, Prince Samdech Krom Preah Sisowath Monireth. In May 1949, he was made Director General of Services in the Royal Palace and, in November 1949, represented Cambodia in Paris for the signature of the first treaty between France and Cambodia, as part of the Union Française.[7] Eventually, in 1950, he was appointed Prime Minister (1 June 1950 – 3 March 1951).

Prince Sisowath Monipong's ashes rest in the same stupa as those of his father Sisowath Monivong in Oudong.

In 1955, after the abdication of Norodom Sihanouk and the nomination of King Norodom Suramarit and of Her Majesty Samdech Preah Mahaksatriyani Queen Sisowath Kosamak Nearirâth Serey Vatthana, his elder sister, prince Sisowath Monipong was appointed Ambassador of Cambodia in Paris,[8] where he died of a heart attack on 31 August 1956. His funeral took place in Phnom Penh a couple of years after, following the ancient tradition of the Khmer monarchy. His ashes were deposited by his eldest son, Prince Sisowath Samyl Monipong in the stupa of king Sisowath Monivong, on the holy hill of Phnom Preah Reach Troap[9] in Oudong.

Private life

Prince Sisowath Monipong had 5 wives and 13 children:[10]

References

  1. ↑ Nepote, Jacques & Sisowath, Ravivaddhana Monipong, Etat présent de la Maison Royale du Cambodge, Institut de la Maison Royale du Cambodge, Paris, 1994
  2. ↑ John Tully, France on the Mekong: A History of the Protectorate in Cambodia, 1863-1953. Lanham-New York-Oxford: University Press of America, 2002, ISBN 0-7618-2431-6
  3. ↑ http://www.khmerairforce.com/AAK-KAF/AVRK/P-DEBUT.html
  4. ↑ article "Biographie de S.A.R. SISOWATH MONIPONG" in Le Sangkum, mai 1967, Phnom Penh
  5. ↑ Souvenirs doux et amers, Prince Norodom Sihanouk, Hachette, 1981 ISBN 2010076567, 9782010076565
  6. ↑ fr:Premiers ministres du Cambodge
  7. ↑ SIHANOUK NORODOM CHRONIQUES DE GUERRE...ET D'ESPOIR ISBN 2010067541. HACHETTE/STOCK. 1979.
  8. ↑ Souvenirs doux et amers, Prince Norodom Sihanouk, Hachette, 1981 ISBN 2010076567, 9782010076565
  9. ↑ Private interview of prince Sisowath Samyl Monipong, Paris, February 2012
  10. ↑ "Etat nominatif des Membres de la Famille Royale du Cambodge", Registre du Palais Royal, Phnom Penh, 1967
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