[1] His reign of 43 years and 188 days is the longest in Cambodian history in terms of verifiable exact date.

In 1850, he and his half-brother Prince Sisowath were sent to study in Bangkok by their father Ang Duong, where they grew up near members of the Siamese royal family.

In 1857, Norodom (Prince Phrom Borirak) served in the Royal Siamese Army as a military adviser, for which later he was awarded the Order of the White Elephant.

[citation needed] On 17 June 1884, French authorities forced King Norodom to sign a treaty that consolidated their position in Cambodia by forcing him to give up control of public revenue, customs taxes, and public works.

The French suspected Norodom secretly supported Si Votha's actions and blamed him for inciting the revolts.

After the 1897 coup d'état against his person, he lost confidence in his closest collaborators namely Thiounn and Bernard Col de Monteiro who were appointed as Ministers without his consent.

Norodom died in the palace in Phnom Penh in April 1904; his body was cremated in the traditional Buddhist fashion in 1906.

He also followed King Chulalongkorn and abolished commercial monopolies, slavery, and civil lists for the royal family.

It soon became a great honour for court officials, ministers, and senior dignitaries to have their children admitted to the palace's school of dancing.

Norodom's generosity began drawing artists from many nationalities to Cambodia and they were always given a warm welcome at the royal palace and court.