Laos - Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Northern Thailand - page 750

History
Throughout its long history, the inhabitants of modern-day Laos have been subject to the
politics and aspirations of more-powerful neighbours in Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand
and China. Even its first taste of nationhood, with the rise of the Lan Xang kingdom, was
achieved thanks to Khmer military muscle.
Kingdom of Lan Xang
Before the French, British, Chinese and Siamese drew a line around it, Laos was a collec-
tion of disparate principalities subject to an ever-revolving cycle of war, invasion,
prosperity and decay. Laos' earliest brush with nationhood was in the 14th century, when
Khmer-backed Lao warlord Fa Ngum conquered Wieng Chan (Vientiane). It was Fa
Ngum who gave his kingdom the title still favoured by travel romantics and businesses -
Lan Xang, or (Land of a) Million Elephants. He also made Theravada Buddhism the state
religion and adopted the symbol of Lao sovereignty that remains in use today, the Pha
Bang Buddha image, after which Luang Prabang is named. Lan Xang reached its peak in
the 17th century, when it was the dominant force in Southeast Asia.
The French
After taking over Annam and Tonkin (modern-day Vietnam) in 1883, the French negoti-
ated with Siam to relinquish its territory east of the Mekong; thus, Laos was born and ab-
sorbed into French Indochina.
The country's diverse ethnic make-up and short history as a nation state meant national-
ism was slow to form. The first nationalist movement, the Lao Issara (Free Lao), was cre-
ated to prevent the country's return to French rule after the invading Japanese left at the
end of WWII. In 1953 sovereignty was granted to Laos by the French. Internecine
struggles followed, with the Pathet Lao (Country of the Lao) army forming an alliance
with the Vietnamese Viet Minh, which had also been opposing French rule in its own
country. Laos was set to become a stage on which the clash of communist ambition and
US anxiety over the perceived Southeast Asian 'domino effect' played itself out.
The Secret War
In 1954 at the Geneva Conference Laos was declared a neutral nation - as such neither
Vietnamese nor US forces could cross its borders. Thus began a game of cat and mouse as