Home > Vietnam War > Pol Pot Biography

Born May 19, 1928
Kompong Thom Province, Cambodia
Died April 1998
Preah Vihear, Cambodia

Cambodian political leader; head of the Cambodian Communist rebel group known as the Khmer Rouge

Pol Pot is widely considered to be one of the most evil political leaders in modern history. During the Vietnam War, he led a group of Communist rebels known as the Khmer Rouge who were fighting for control of the neighboring country of Cambodia. When the Khmer Rouge took over the Cambodian government in April 1975, Pol Pot and his followers went on a murderous rampage that led to the deaths of an estimated two million Cambodian citizens. Their reign of terror ended only after Vietnamese forces successfully invaded Cambodia in 1979.

Develops radical communist ideas

The man who became known as Pol Pot was born on May 19,...