Battambang Province

Battambang is Cambodia’s second-largest city and the capital of Battambang Province, which was founded in the 11th century. It is the former capital of Monton Kmer and lies in the heart of the Northwest of Cambodia. Until the war years, in which almost every infrastructure was destroyed, it was the leading rice-producing province of the country.

The name Battambang or Batdambang, literally means “loss of stick” referring to a legend of the Preah Bat Dambang Kranhoung (Kranhoung Stick King). The population today is around 250,000 people . It is a riverside town that boasts some of the best-preserved French colonial architecture in the country.

Until recently Battambang was off-limits for travelers, but the city and province have recently improved their infrastructure and it makes a great base for visiting the nearby temples, such as Phnom Banon and Wat Ek Phnom, as well as the many nearby historic villages.

It’s a secondary hub on the overland route between Thailand and Vietnam, and when National Highway No 5 from Poipet to Pursat and Phnom Penh is complete it’ll become an even bigger hub. The network of charming old French shop houses clustered along the riverbank is the real highlight here, and there are a number of Wats(Temples) scattered around the town.

The small museum has a collection of Angkorian-era artifacts, and beyond the town there’s a number of hilltop temple with more Wats and a fairly large lake. One of the more famous hills is Phnom Sampeau (Ship Hill) with the notorious killing caves.

Battambang did not give way to the Khmer Rouge movement after the fall of Phnom Penh, but its been in the center of the ongoing government Khmer Rouge conflict ever since the Vietnamese invasion in 1979 pushed the genocidal regime out of Phnom Penh and to the Northwest. Until the surrender of Leng Sary (Khmer Rouge number three man based in Pailin), Battambang was the Khmer Rouge stronghold in the region.

Earlier in it's history, Battambang flip-flopped back and forth between Thailand (called Siam before their 20th-century renaming) and Cambodia. It’s been a part of Thailand a majority of the time since the 15th century, with Cambodia regaining control (more specifically the French) in 1907. The Thais grabbed it again, with Japanese assistance, in 1941 and kept the region in their territory until after World War II.

The Allied Forces helped persuade the Thais that the region was originally part of ancient Cambodia and the world community would not take kindly to the Thais holding onto it further. Like the rest of the Northwest, there is still a lot of Thai influence as the main currency is still the Thai Baht and many people are able to converse in Thai. But the area is very Khmer, with ancient Khmer ruins scattered around, as the Khmer way of life dominates the region.

Battambang city is a peaceful and pleasant place with the main parts of the city situated along the Sangker River, a tranquil, small body of water that winds its way through Battambang Province. It is a nice, picturesque setting. As with much of Cambodia, the French architecture is an attractive bonus of the city.