The Cambodian genocide

The Cambodian genocide was the systematic persecution and killing of Cambodians by the Khmer Rouge under the leadership of Communist Party of Kampuchea general secretary Pol Pot, who radically pushed Cambodia towards an entirely self-sufficient agrarian socialist society. It resulted in the deaths of 1.5 to 2 million people from 1975 to 1979, nearly a quarter of Cambodia's population in 1975 (c. 7.8 million).

Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge had long been supported by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its chairman, Mao Zedong;[a] it is estimated that at least 90% of the foreign aid which the Khmer Rouge received came from China, including at least US$1 billion in interest-free economic and military aid in 1975 alone. After it seized power in April 1975, the Khmer Rouge wanted to turn the country into an agrarian socialist republic, founded on the policies of ultra-Maoism and influenced by the Cultural Revolution.[b] Pol Pot and other Khmer Rouge officials met with Mao in Beijing in June 1975, receiving approval and advice, while high-ranking CCP officials such as Politburo Standing Committee member Zhang Chunqiao later visited Cambodia to offer help.[c] To fulfill its goals, the Khmer Rouge emptied the cities and forced Cambodians to relocate to labor camps in the countryside, where mass executions, forced labor, physical abuse, malnutrition, and disease were rampant. In 1976, the Khmer Rouge renamed the country Democratic Kampuchea.

U.S. Sanitary Commission: A government agency created on June 18, 1861, whose purpose was to coordinate female volunteers who were supporting the Federal army. These women collected over $25 million in donations from "Sanitary Fairs" and other fundraisers. The volunteers also made uniforms and bandages, worked as cooks, and nursed the sick and wounded. Leadership, however, was largely male.

Redoubt: (pronounced rih-dowt) An enclosed field work - without redans - which had several sides and was used to protect a garrison from attacks from several directions. While redoubts could be very useful, one key weakness was that each protruding angle was a salient. This meant that the redoubt would be susceptible to enfilading fire. A redoubt could also extend from a permanent fortress.

Aide-de-Camp: A soldier who was appointed by an officer to be his confidential assistant. The aide wrote and delivered orders and held a position of responsibility which required him to know troop positions and where officer quarters were located. The aide-de-camp was an officer by virtue of his position and he took orders from his commander only.

Slavery: A state of bondage in which African Americans (and some Native Americans) were owned by other people, usually white, and forced to labor on their behalf.

Barrel: The long metal tube on a gun through which a projectile is fired.