Son Ngoc Thanh

Cambodian leader

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 14, 2026

Quick Summary

Son Ngoc Thanh was a Cambodian leader who served as prime minister in 1945 during a brief period of Japanese occupation and declared independence from French rule. He was a former editor of Nagara Vatta and had been exiled to Japan in 1942. After World War II, the French returned, arrested Thanh, and reestablished control. He was later released from exile in France in 1951 and formed a dissident movement called the Khmer Serei ("Free Khmer") that opposed both Prince Norodom Sihanouk and the French.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

3 Britannica Sources

Cambodia - World War II and its aftermath
Nguyen Van Thinh
history of Cambodia - World War II and its aftermath

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Cambodia
World War II and its aftermath
…the government was led by Son Ngoc Thanh, a former editor of Nagara Vatta, who had been forced into exile in Japan in 1942.
Read More
…the government was led by Son Ngoc Thanh, a former editor of Nagara Vatta, who had been forced into exile in Japan in 1942.
Read More
Cambodia
Independence of Cambodia
…anticommunists in South Vietnam, including Son Ngoc Thanh, whose Khmer Serei movement had gained recruits among the Khmer-speaking minority in Vietnam.
Read More
…anticommunists in South Vietnam, including Son Ngoc Thanh, whose Khmer Serei movement had gained recruits among the Khmer-speaking minority in Vietnam.
Read More