Battambang Province

Battambang Province

Battambang is a large and important province in the northwest of Cambodia. Its name translates as “the lost long stick”. Battambang combines local legends with beautiful countryside, hills and Angkorian temples.
‘The Legend of Lost Long Stick’
Local folklore states that in the eleventh century King Chakrapoate, Cambodia’s sixteenth king, mobilized his people. He ordered them to dig canals to drain land around the capital and cut trees in the Dangrek and Cardomom Mountains to build a palace. The people obeyed his wishes, but were unhappy, as the work was hard.
One day Gnoung, one of the local chiefs (a farmer’s son from Suorn Monkhut Village, now in Laos), was put in charge of cooking rice for his group. He was preparing to cook when he realized he did not have enough spoons. He cut some wood from a Rakar tree. The Rakar has dark wood and when he stirred the rice, the rice turned black. As he was hungry, he ate the rice and after felt very strong.
When he started to work cutting timber, he found he was amazingly powerful and could pull as many trees as seven elephants. His efforts earned him respect from his people and they began to obey his orders. Out of respect for the Rakar tree, he cut a long section from a nearby tree and made it into a stick to use in battle. He declared himself the people’s King. His people called him Dam Bang Kragnoung (King Black Bat). He ordered his men to take up arms against King Chakrapoate. People were happy with this, as they did not like having to work so hard.
When Dam Bang Kragnoung attacked King Chakrapoate’s forces, King Chakrapoate was sick. He tried to lead his men, but fell down and died. In 1545 (Buddhist era, or 1001 A.D.), Dam Bang Kragnoug became the King of Cambodia

He immediately ordered that all of the previous royal family should be put to death, as he was worried that they would challenge his throne.
At that time, the eldest son of King Chakrapoate, Buttum Komar, was 13 years old. He had already entered a forest pagoda and was learning to be a monk. The pagoda was renowned for its strong magic. Accompanying him was his five-year-old brother, Serey Komar. The new king’s forces came to look for the two brothers and found Serey Komar. His mother tried to protect him, but they threw him in a fire. He managed to escape, but was badly burned. His arms and legs were crippled. The monks took him in and looked after him. As he grew up, the monks called him Prohm Kel. His disability did not stop his studies and he learned well.
One night Dam Bang Kragnoung saw a strange light in the sky, brighter than the moon. He called a fortune teller to interpret this sign. The fortune teller told him, “You will be king for only seven years, seven months and seven days. There is a good person born in this country. He will ride a white horse around the palace and seven days later he will replace you as king”.Dam Bang Kragnoung listened but was not afraid. He thought that he would be able to kill the newcomer with his magic Rakar stick.
The news of the good person spread throughout the kingdom and people waited expectantly and began to gather at Mohanokor (eventually called Angkor). Disabled people were gladdened to hear that they would be cured by this person. After a time, the news reached Prohm Kel. He asked the head monk for permission to go to Mohanokor to wait for the good person. The monk gave his permission and Prohm Kel left for the city.
Because of his disability, he could not move very fast and he was very tired. He stopped to rest under a big Bo tree on the outskirts of the city. While he rested, an old man approached with a white horse. The old man said, “Would you watch my horse and two bags for a moment?” Prohm Kel declined. However, the old man tied his horse to Prohm Kel’s arm anyway and ran into the forest. The horse became angry and pulled his arm. Amazingly, his arm was healed! He tied the horse to his leg. The horse pulled. His leg was healed! He continued until all his limbs were healed.
Prom Kel then wondered what was in the bags. In one bag was some food. He was hungry after his long and tiring journey, so he ate the food. He immediately felt strong. He looked in the other bag. Inside was some fine cloth and well made shoes. He put them on and got on the horse. Immediately the horse galloped off towards the capital.
When the crowds of people saw Prom Kel, they started to applaud, as they knew it was the good person they were expecting. Of course, Dam Bang Kragnoung was also waiting to see this person.
When he saw Prom Kel on the white horse he was furious. He took his magic black stick and hurled it at Prom Kel, in order to destroy him. Unfortunately for Dam Bang Kragnoung, his magic stick became normal in the presence of the Prom Kel. The magic stick flew off and landed far away in a village which became known as O‘Dam Bang. The village can still be found in Sangker district, Battambang province. The French used the name to form the name Battambang.
Dam Bang Kragnoug had lost his magic stick, so he and all his followers left the throne for Prohm Kel, Seven days later, as predicted; Prohm Kel was crowned the eighteenth king of Cambodia. Cambodia was at peace again.

Battambang Today
Nowadays Battambang province is a vital agricultural area. Crops include corn, beans, oranges, sesame, and especially rice. According to 2010 year’s statistics, Battambang province produced five hundred thousand tons of rices. It is bordered by the Tonle Sap lake in the east, Pursat province to the southeast, Thailand and Pailin province in the west and Banteay Meanchey to the north. Battambang covers an area of 1,270,200 hectares. 172,000 hectares is towns and villages, 264,500 hectares is agricultural land and 476,520 ha is forest. The rest is flood land. There are 13 districts, 96 communes, and 741 villages. There are about 172,451 families and 1,250,695 people. 53 percent are women. 70% of people farm.
Battambang is also the name of the provincial capital and is Cambodia’s second largest city. It is about 291km from Phnom Penh. You can get there on National Route 5, or by train. Boats also travel to and from Siem Reap.

Battambang Province Travel Guide
Located in the northwest of Cambodia, Batdambang's name is related to the legend of Preah Bat Dambang Kranhoung and literally means 'loss of stick'. Known as the 'rice bowl of Cambodia', the rural province is also used for the raising of livestock and fishing. The Sangker River winds through the province, which is loaded with French colonial architecture.
Batdambang town features a number of interesting temples, highlights of which include Wat Ek, built in 1027; Barseat Temple, which overlooks the town from upon a hill; and Ba Nan Temple, which sits upon a mountain just outside of town. Another architectural attraction is the 12th century stupas of Prasat Snung.
The province is home to a number of natural resorts. Phnom Sam Pov Resort features natural wells and ancient temples surrounded by picturesque mountains which form the setting for many local legends. Sek Sak Resort has long attracted local tourists to its prehistoric sites and natural resources.
Other highlights include the 10th century temple Wat Banan, which has been likened to the great Angkor Wat; the large dam at Kamping Pouy; and the small town of Pailin, which lies near the border with Thailand. Pailin is famed for its mining of precious stones and gems.
Cambodia's second largest provincial capital, Batdambang has historically been the commercial center of the eastern provinces of Siam and connects Phnom Penh with Thailand. Visited mainly by small numbers of local tourists, the town of Batdambang features several accommodation options while the rest of the province offers home stay options.

Attraction to Battambang
There are so many nice places and resorts to visit in Battambang province but 3 main places that people like to visit the most is in the area of Wat Ek Phnom, Wat Banan, and Boeung Kamping Pouy. Phnom Sam Pov Resort is a nice place that also mentioned in the song of Sin Sisamut in the 1960s which features natural wells at the mountain site and the ancient temples. Another resort is Sek Sak, it has long attracted local tourists to come and visit especially during the holidays.
Planning to travel there during Khmer New Year holiday is the best for there are so many things to enjoy including in the province central and outskirt of Battambang province.
History
During the pre-Angkor and Angkor eras, the areas to the north and to the north west of the Tonle Sap Lake were known as the territories of Amogha Boreak and Bhima Boreak. During the Angkor period, the territory of Amogha Boreak was significantly prosperous because the land was so fertile that rice crops, fruit and vegetables produced excellent yields. Many Khmer people settled there as indicated by the existence of so many ancient temples in the area. With the exception of the temples of Wat Banan, Ek Phnom,Baseth, Stung, Banteay Tey, Banteay Chmar, etc,other monuments, which were built by dignitaries and subjects at the time as places of worship to God and other deities of Buddhism and Hinduism, almost completely disappeared.

Between the 15th century and the 18th century the area was invaded by the Siamese army, forcing landowners off their land and splitting up their families.
From the late 18th century until early in the 20th century, the Siamese ruled Battambang and placed it under the rule of the Lord Chaofa Ben family, which was later known as the Akpheyyavong Family. This lasted for 6 generations and ended in 1907. While under Thai rule, the province was a changwat of Thailand called Phra Tabong.
The French Siamese Treaty of March 23, 1907, obliged the Siamese to return territories that they had occupied for more than a century. These included Battambang, Siem Reap and Angkor, in exchange for Trat province and the area of Dach Se (Lao territory) in the upper catchment area of the Mekong River. On December 6 1907, His Majesty Preah Bat Sisowath issued a royal declaration splitting Battambang into 3 provinces: Battambang, Siem Reap and Serei Sophorn. In 1925, Battambang was divided again into two provinces: Battambang and Siem Reap, with Battambang having two districts: Battambang and Serei Sophorn. By 1940, Battambang consisted of 7 districts: Battambang, Sangke, Maung Russey, Monkol Borei, Toeuk Cho, Serei Sophorn, and Bei Thbaung.
In May 1953, the Poi Pet administration was founded and ordered under the district of Serei Sophorn which was divided into two districts: Serei Sophorn and Banteay Chmar. In March 1965, the administration of Poi Pet, was elevated to the status of a district named O Chrov. In July 1965, part of the territory of Maung Russey was separated to become the administration of Kors Kralor. In March 1966, another new district Thmar Pouk was founded and the district of Banteay Chmar was cut off from the province of Battambang for incorporation into Oddor Meanchey province, another newly founded province. In the early years of the Khmer Rouge, two new districts were established: Banan and Kors Lor. During the 3 years and 9 months of the Killing Fields, Battambang saw its people evacuated by Pol Pot's men from the city and towns and relocated to remote and mountainous areas. The province of Battambang, once known as the rice bowl of the country, was turned into a site of torture, killings, and starvation.
The province of Battambang was completely liberated from the genocidal regime on January 13, 1979. At that time, the People’s Committee of commune-Sangkat was founded through the first-ever elections in 1983. Between 1979 and 1986, Battambang had 9 districts and one provincial town.
In 1986, three new districts were created: Banan, Bovel, and Ek Phnom. Until that point, Battambang had 12 districts and 1 provincial town. In 1988, however 5 districts were separated and incorporated into the newly founded province of Banteay Meanchey.
In 1998, following the integration of the remaining territory of the former Democratic Kampuchea, the province of Battambang saw part of its territory separated for the municipality of Pailin, while 4 new districts were established: Samlot, Kamreang, Phnom Proeuk and Sampov Loun. In 2000, part of the district of Maung Russey was split off to become the district of Koas Krala