The Megadrought That Broke Angkor: Climate and Collapse

Lucas and Luna explore the role of severe droughts in the decline of the Khmer Empire. Drawing on tree-ring data from Vietnam and sediment cores from Cambodia, they discuss how a series of megadroughts in the 14th and 15th centuries stressed Angkor's sophisticated water management system, contributing to the city's eventual abandonment. The conversation covers the work of researchers like Brendan Buckley and Dan Penny, the timing of the droughts in relation to political and religious shifts, and the gradual move of the capital to Phnom Penh. This episode offers a fresh look at collapse, emphasizing environmental factors alongside the human ones. #KhmerEmpire #Angkor #Megadrought #ClimateChange #Paleoclimatology #TreeRings #DanPenny #BrendanBuckley #TonleSap #WaterManagement #Collapse #SoutheastAsianHistory #History #FexingoHistory #Archaeology #ClimateHistory #AngkorWat #Cambodia Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo