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Recommended: the influence of the caste system in India

The mysterious and powerful Khmer Empire was evolved by more than a strict and enforced political system. Kings such as Jayavarman II who established an empire that would stand for over six centuries, did so with religious power and privilege. This allowed rulers rise above fellow kingdoms to control their states. With a large, dedicated and mobilised military along with the strategic position of Angkor in a secluded and shielded area further developed the area of Angkor the Khmer Empire.
Along with many civilisations, religion was a crucial component to the advancing of the Khmer Empire. The founding king Jayavarman II developed the social structure based on the Indian ‘caste’ system. This allowed him to be referred to as a god-king or deva-raja and later known as the chakravartin/universal monarch. These titles gave the king power over all aspects of his empire and allowed him to rule with divine and absolute power. Before his rise to power, he took control of the kingdom of Chenla and united rival kingdoms. He granted himself prestige titles after his achievements. The authority he gained permitted him to form alliances with fellow civilisations. The expansion of the empire however, was partially control by his religious counsellors, devoted to both the king and the gods, the Brahmins. The king was surrounded by his religious bureaucrats, the Brahmins. Despite his position, the king could not deny the opinions and solutions of the Brahmins. They offered the king their wisdom and vast knowledge, which would be administered into running the civilisation, thus allowing the empire to expand and grow stronger.

The Khmer kings continued to progress the growth of the empire with their outstanding military, spanning across the Khmer r...

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...rrigation for rice crops and means for transport. The Tonle Sap Lake acted as a reservoir for the Mekong River, also providing the population with supplies of fish. These factors were a crucial contribution to the development of the civilisation. Without its strategic placement, the Khmer empire would have crumbled rather than withstand six centuries of undefeated rule.

The political system of the empire was one of the highest priorities of the king to maintain. It led to the rise of a kingdom unopposed for six centuries developed by a single king. The religious power handed to the king over his superiors gave him the ability to increase control over neighbouring kingdoms. The king’s immense armed forces and the hidden fortified location of Angkor contributed additionally to the expansion and growth of an empire possibly stronger than the likes of the Roman Empire.

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