Champa

Related Topics:
Champagne-Ardenne :: Champagne :: Champawat :: Champagne,_Claude_Adonai :: Champaign :: Champagne_Ardenne

The kingdom of Champa (or Zhan-qing|Chiem-thanh in Sino-Vietnamese records) controlled what is now south and central Vietnam from approximately 7th century through 1832. Before Champa, there was a kingdom called Lin-yi (established since 192 A.D.) but relationship between Lin-yi and Champa is still not clear. The modern Cham Lords in Panduranga began to establish in the middle 15^th century, obtained a position as an autonomy principality of Tran Thuan Thanh (Nagar Cham di Pandurang) belonging to Nguyen Lord of Cochinchina in 1695 and became the most faithful vassal of Emperor Gia Long of Nguyen dynasty, but it was finally dissolved in 1832 by emperor Gia Long's son, emperor Minh Mạng.

Writing Champa's history was dominated, until the end of the 20^th century, by the Chinese and Sino-Vietnamese annals. This imposed a single view on Champa history which is not supported by epigraphical, geographical, or archaeological records. Recently, a revised Champa historiography has emerged. The newer histories describe a string of Cham territories with central authority moving between different regions and at times not existing at all.

Prehistory

Champa's people, the Cham Malayo-Polynesian settlers from mainland Southeast Asia, appear to have reached the mainland from Borneo about the time of the Sa Huynh culture in the 1^st and 2^nd centuries BCE. There are pronounced ceramic, industrial and funerary continuities with sites such as the Niah Caves in Sarawak, East Malaysia. Sa Huynh sites are rich in iron artifacts, by contrast with the Dong Son culture sites found in northern Vietnam and elsewhere in mainland Southeast Asia, where bronze artifacts are dominant.

The Sa Huynh culture is a late prehistoric metal age society on the central coast of Viet Nam. In 1909, about 200 jar burials were uncovered at Sa Huynh, a coastal village located south of of Da Nang. Since then, many more burials have been found, at some 50 sites. The Sa Huynh shows a distinct regional Bronze Age culture, with its own styles of axes, daggers, and ornaments. Carbon dating has placed the Sa Huynh culture roughly the same time line with the Dong Son culture, that is about the first millennium BC. From about 200 AD, the central coast of Viet Nam was inhabited by the Chams, who had adopted elements of Indian political and religious culture. Recent researches by Vietnamese archaeologists has shown that the Chams are linguistic and cultural descendants of the Sa Huynh people. The uncovered artifacts show the Sa Huynh people were highly skilled craftsmen in the production of jewelry and ornaments made with hard stones and glass. Sa Huynh styled ornaments were also found in Thailand, Taiwan and Philippines suggesting they were traded with South East Asian neighbors, over land and maritime routes. Archaeologists also observe that iron seems to have been used by the Sa Huynh peoples when their Dong Son neighbors were still mostly using bronze.

Champa Origins

Lin-yi was established by the rebellion of a local official named Ku-lien against the Han Empire in 192 in the region of present-day Huế. After 7th century, Champa included thereafter the modern provinces of Quảng Nam, Quảng Ngãi, Bình Định, Phú Yên, Khánh Hòa, Ninh Thuận, and Bình Thuận. Initially closely tied to Chinese cultural and religious traditions, wars with neighboring Funan and the acquisition of Funanese territory in the 4^th century saw the infusion of Indian culture into Cham society. From the 10th century onwards Arab maritime trade in the region brought increasing Islamic cultural and religious influences. The Cham language is part of the Austronesian family. Cham communities exist in contemporary Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and Chinese Hainan Island.

Champa was an important link in the Spice Route which stretched from the Persian Gulf to southern China and later in the Arab maritime routes in Indo-China as a supplier of aloe. Despite the frequent wars between Champa and Cambodia the two countries also traded and cultural influences moved in both directions. The two royal families intermarried frequently. After 1692 many Chams, including members of the royal family and aristocracy took refuge in Cambodia and some were given high office. Champa also had close trade and cultural relations with Srivijaya and the Malay Archipelago.

Before 1471, Champa was a confederation of 4 (at times 5) principalities, each named after a historic region in India.

Indrapura - The city of Indrapura is now called Dong Duong, not many miles from present-day Da Nang and Hue. Da Nang used to be the city of Singhapura and is close to the valley of My Son, site of many ruined temples and towers. The area once controlled by this principality included present-day Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị, and Thừa Thiên–Huế provinces.

Amaravati (present-day Quảng Nam province).

Vijaya - The city of Vijaya is now called Cha Ban but it lies just a few miles north of present-day Qui Nhon in Bình Định province. For a time, Vijaya principality controlled much of present-day Quang-Nam, Quang-Ngai, Binh Dinh, and Phu Yen provinces.

Kauthara - The city of Kauthara is now called Nha Trang in present-day Khánh Hòa province.

Panduranga - The city of Panduranga is now called Phan Rang in present-day Ninh Thuận province). Panduranga was the last of the Cham territories to be annexed by the Vietnamese.

Within the four principalities there were two main groups: the Dua and the Cau. The Dua lived in Amarvati and Vijaya while the Cau lived in Kauthara and Pandaranga.

Insight Guide - Vietnam

Cham territory included the mountainous zones west of the coastal plain and (at times) extended into present-day Laos. However, the Cham were focused on the sea and had few settlements of any size away from the coast.

History: 1000 to 1832

Champa history was characterised by repeated military conflict with the Chinese, the Khmer, the Dai-Viet, and the Mongolian empires. The Chams had many successes over the years, but many failures as well. The initial capital of Indrapura was thought too close to Dai-Viet and so the Champa kingdom transferred the capital to a more southern city, Vijaya, around 1000 A.D.

More than a century of war between the Chams and the Khmers, during which each nation saw its capital repeatedly captured and looted, ended in 1203 when Jayavarman VIII occupied the country and made it a Khmer province. Less than 20 years later, the Chams regained their independence in 1220.

The Mongols under Kublai Khan in 1281 ordered the Cham King Indravarman V to come to Bejing with tribute but he refused. The Mongols sent a fleet down to attack the Champa kingdom and the Champa hid in the hills. A year later the Mongols sent a large army (an estimated 500,000 strong) south to attack the Champa. This army marched through Vietnam but without Vietnamese permission. The kingdom of Vietnam harrassed the army in conjunction with the Champa. With little to show for this display of force, the Mongol army withdrew. Perhaps to solidify the positive relations between the two kingdoms in 1306 a Vietnamese princess married the Champa king.

The marriage did not solve the disputes between Vietnam and Champa and in 1312, the Vietnamese king, Tran Anh Tong, defeated the Champa and made them a vassel state for the next 14 years.

Che Bong Nga - The Red King

The last strong king of the Champa was Che Bong Nga (ruled 1360 - 1390). In Vietnamese stories he is called The Red King. Che Bong Nga appearently managed to unite the Champa lands under his rule and by 1372 he was strong enough to attack Vietnam from the sea. Champa forces sacked the capital city (Hanoi) in 1372 and then again in 1377. A last attack in 1388 was checked by the Vietnamese General Ho Quy Ly, future founder of the Ho Dynasty. Che Bong Nga died two years later in 1390. This was the last serious offensive by the Champa against Vietnam but it helped spell the end of the Tran Dynasty, which was revealed as weak and ineffective in the face of the Champa military (Vietnam, Trials and Tribulations of a Nation D. R. SarDesai, ppg 33-34, 1988).

Defeat and Destruction

In 1446, the Dai-Viet under the leadership of Trinh Kha attacked the center of the Champa kingdom. The attack was successful and Vijaya was captured. However, a year later a counter-attack drove the Vietnamese out of the city.

In 1470, the Dai-Viet, led by the great emperor Le Thanh Tong, attacked the Champa kingdom. Le Thanh Tong was an extraordinary administrator and leader. The Dai-Viet army was very powerful and well organized. By contrast the Chams were disorganized and weak. Vijaya was captured after four days of fighting on March 21 1471. The Champa king Tra-Toan was captured and died not long after. At least 60,000 Cham were killed and 30,000 taken as slaves by the Vietnamese army. The capital of Vijaya was largely destroyed (though Qui Nhon was located close by). As a result of the victory, Le Thanh Tong annexed the principalities of Amaravati and Vijaya. This defeat caused the first major Cham emigration, particularly to Cambodia and Malacca.

However, the principality of Panduranga was liberated from the rule of the Vijaya kings. Moreover, under the protection of Dai-Viet, it preserved some of its independence. This was the starting point of the modern Cham Lords in the principality of Panduranga (Phanrang, Phanri and Phan-thiet).

In 1594 the Cham Lord Po At sent forces to assist the Sultanate of Johor's attack on Portuguese Malacca.

In 1692, the Cham Lord Po Sot rebelled against Nguyễn Phúc Trần who ruled southern Vietnam. The revolt was at first unsuccessful and the aftermath was exacerbated by an outbreak of plague in Panduranga. However, a Cham aristocrat Oknha Dat obtained the help of the general A Ban, a Lauw (Orang Laut? Overseas Chinese?) leader. They defeated the Nguyễn forces of Nguyễn Phúc Chu in 1695. After the victory, new king Po Saktiray Da Patih (younger brother of Po Sot) signed a peace treaty with Nguyễn Phuc Chu. As a result of the treaty, the Cham lords were called as Trấn Vương(local lord) of Thuận Thành(Panduranga) by the Nguyễn Lords, and they were closely supervised by Nguyễn officials.

Although the Cham lords had authority to the Cham people, "Archives du Panduranga" supplied some evidences about their limited authority over Vietnamese settlers. The Cham lords often played the role of the judge for Kinh-Cham conflict cases.

17 years later, in 1712, the Nguyễn Lord Nguyễn Phúc Chu made new treaty called "the treaty with 5 articles"(Nghị định ngũ điều) with the Cham Lord Po Saktiray Da Patih and clarified the right (included the trial right of the Cham lords and Cham people) and the obligation of the Cham Lords and the Nguyen Lords. This new treaty was kept until 1832 by the Cham Lords, Nguyễn Lords, Tây Sơn Lords and Nguyễn Emperors.

As a result of the war between the Tây Sơn, under Nguyễn Nhạc, and Nguyễn Ánh, in 1786, the Cham Lord Chei Krei Brei and his court fled to Cambodia. The assumption behind this flight is that they supported the Nguyễn Lords and the Tây Sơn Lords seemed to have won the war. From then on, the Cham Lords' title was downgraded to prefect.

In 1796, during the last years of the Tây Sơn, Tuen Phaow, a noble from Makah (Kelantan), headed a major revolt against the new Cham leaders (Po Ladhwan Paghuh, Po Chơng Chơn and Po Klan Thu) and claimed Kelantan's support but the revolt was defeated. The Cham leaders regained their special rights once Nguyễn Ánh (the Emperor Gia Long) regained control over Vietnam in 1802. But even the limited Cham rule in Panduranga officially came to an end in 1832, when the Emperor Minh Mạng annexed the area.

Religion

Before the conquest of Champa by Lê Thánh Tông, the dominant religion of the Champa people was Shaivism and the culture was heavily influenced by India. Islam started making headway among the Cham after the 10th century, but it was only after the 1471 invasion that this influence picked up speed. By the 17th century the Royal families of Cham Lords also began to turn to Islam and this eventually triggerred the major shift in religious orientation of the Cham so that by the time of their final annexation by the Vietnamese, the majority of the Cham people had converted to Islam. Most Cham are now Muslims but, like the Javanese in Indonesia, they are heavily influenced by Hinduism. Significant minorities of Hindus and Mahayana Buddhists exist.

Remains

Many Champa towers still stand in Annam (Central Vietnam). The most significant example of Cham architecture is My Son (Viet: Mỹ Sơn) near the town of Hoi An (Viet: Hội An). My Son, is a large complex that was heavily damaged by US bombing during the Vietnam War. The site is currently being restored with donations from a number of countries and NGO's. As of 2004, there were still land mines and UXO's to be cleared. There is a Museum of Cham Sculpture in Da Nang which was established in 1915 by the French.

The Dynasties of Lin-yi and Champa

Dynasty I

192- ? Sri Mara
?
?
circa 270 Fan Hiong
circa 284-336 Fan Yi

Dynasty II

336-349 Fan Wen
349- ? Fan Fo
circa 377 Bhadravarman I
? Gangaraja
? Manorathavarman
d circa 420 Wen Ti

Dynasty III

circa 420-Fan
? Fan
? Fan
? Fan
? Fan
? Fan
? Fan
circa 510 Devavarman
circa 526/9 Vijayavarman

Dynasty IV

circa 529 ? Rudravarman I
circa 605 Sambuvarman
circa 629 ? Kanharpadharma
? -645 Bhasadharma
645- ? Bhadresvaravarman
(d. 653 ? (f)
653- ? Vikrantavarman I
circa 685-c. 730 Vikrantavarman II
circa 749/58 Rudravarman II

Dynasty of Panduranga

circa 757 : Prithivîndravarman
circa 774 : Satyavarman
circa 793 : Indravarman
circa 801 : Harivarman
circa 820-860 : Vikrantavarman III

Dynasty of Bhrigu

circa 877 : Indravarman II
circa 896-905 : Jayasimhavarman
905-910 : Bhadravarman II
911-vers 971 : Indravarman III
989- ? : Vijaya Shrî Harivarman II
circa 989 : Yanpuku Vijaya Shrî

Dynasty of the South

1041-1059 : Jayasimhavarman II
1059-1060 ? : Bhadravarman III
circa 1060 : Rudravarman
circa 1081 : Jaya Indravarman IV
? -1086 : Paramabodhisattva
1086-1139 : Jaya Indravarman V
1139-1147 : Jaya Indravarman VI
1147-1163 : Jaya Harivarman VI
1163- ? : Jaya Indravarman VII
? - 1190 : Jaya Indravarman VIII
1226- ? : Jaya Parameshvaravarman IV
? - 1237 : Jaya Indravarman X
1266- ? : Indravarman IX
? - 1307 : Jayasimhavarman IV
1307- ? : Mahendravarman
1342-1360 : Bo-dê
1360-1390 : Che Bong-nga
1441-1446 : Bichai

1627 – 1651 Po Rome
1660 – 1692 Po Sot

Dynasty of Po Saktiraidaputih, vassal Cham rulers under the Nguyen Lords

1695 - 1728 Po Saktiraidaputih
1728 - 1730 Po Ganvuhdaputih
1731 - 1732 Po Thuttirai
1732 - 1735 vacant
1735 - 1763 Po Rattirai
1763 - 1765 Po Tathundamohrai
1765 - 1780 Po Tithuntiraidapaguh
1780 - 1781 Po Tithuntiraidaparang
1781 - 1783 vacant
1783 - 1786 Chei Krei Brei
1786 - 1793 Po Tithundaparang
1793 - 1799 Po Lathundapaguh
1799 - 1822 Po Chong Chan

External references

Proceedings of the Seminar on Champa
Vietnam-Champa Relations and the Malay-Islam Regional Network in the 17th—19th Centuries
The Survivors of a Lost Civilisation
Cham Muslims: A look at Cambodia's Muslim minority
The Cham Muslims of Indo-China
Insight Guide - Vietnam (ed.) Scott Rutherford, 2006 ISBN 9812349847.
Vietnam, Trials and Tribulations of a Nation D. R. SarDesai, ppg 33-34, 1988 ISBN 0941910040

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