Queen Mother Norodom Monineath was born on June 18th 1936 in Saigon, when it was part of French Indochina. Her birth name was Paule-Monique Izzi and her father was French.

She was queen consort of Cambodia from 1952 to 1955 and again from 1993 to 2004, as the wife of King Norodom Sihanouk.

She first met Norodom Sihanouk in 1951 when he awarded her first prize in a beauty contest. They married the following year.

King Norodom Sihanouk abdicated in 2004, with his son becoming his successor, making Norodom Monineath the Queen Mother.

The Queen Mother’s duties include receiving Khmer and foreign dignitaries. Her Majesty is involved in several charitable activities, such as the Samdech Euv Team, established by His Late Majesty the King Father to help the less fortunate of their compatriots with the building of hospitals, clinics, schools, fishponds and houses. In recent years, she has raised funds and built two hospitals in Phnom Penh.