Eventually their power was reduced and the Thai forces captured Angkor in 1431 A.D. However an independent kingdom, with its capital near what is now Phnom Penh, survived until the mid 1800s. In 1863 The French made Cambodia a protectorate. After the Second World War, France gave Cambodia its independence as a kingdom ruled by King Norrodom Sianouk. He gave up the throne to become prime minister but was overthrown in 1970. Then followed a period of civil war and in teh end the communist Khmer Rouge under Pol Pot took power. Then there was along period of oppression called the Killing Fields period. Millions of people were killed. Pol Pot was afraid of anyone with an education. He killed teachers and monks. He even killed anyone who wore glasses because that meant they could read! Eventually the Vietnamese invaded Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge was defeated. However, there were several more years of fighting and instability. In 1998 the Cambodian Peoples' Party was elected and there has been peace in Cambodia for the last few years.