Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
pand Lane Xang, creating a decentralized state with hubs in Xieng Khuang, Sikhotabong and
Vientiane. All three of these
muang
were virtually autonomous, but they each helped Lane
Xang by contributing revenue and manpower - the greatest asset in a sparsely populated land.
With Fa Ngum and his Khmer queen, Kaew Keng Nya, came Cambodian monks and artis-
ans, a new civil administrative system and a code of laws. It's fairly certain Buddhism also
flourished during Fa Ngum's reign, growing further with the arrival of his second queen,
Kaew Lot Fa.
Although Fa Ngum was a strong leader, after twenty years on the throne and following some
internal strife, he was ousted by his ministers. In 1373 the succession passed to his only son,
OunHeuan
, who ruled for 43 years, ushering in an era of peace during which the city flour-
ished. Oun Heuan is remembered as Samsenthai or king of Three Hundred Thousand Tai, a
name signifying the number of Lao men available to Lane Xang for labour and military ser-
vice. After Oun Heuan's death, a period of bitter political infighting began - with eight kings
in 22 years - which left the kingdom severely weakened.
The leading ministers of Lane Xang restored stability by offering the throne to the ruler of
Vientiane, Vangburi (1438-79), the only surviving son of Oun Heuan. Whereas Fa Ngum had
merely tipped his hat to Theravada Buddhism, Vangburi was a devout Buddhist. He took the
Buddhist name Sainyachakkaphat upon his coronation and promptly appointed new abbots in
key monasteries. Theravada Buddhism, slower to take hold east of the Mekong at first, now
served to legitimize the rule of the kings of Lane Xang. In return for the king's patronage the
monks taught that the king ruled because he possessed superior moral merit.
Sainyachakkaphat took pains to return Lane Xang to its former glory, but his rule was not
to last.
Vietnam
, angered by Lane Xang's betrayal of the Vietnamese struggle against the
occupying forces of China's Ming Dynasty and further provoked by a Phuan revolt against
Vietnamese control over Muang Phuan, invaded Lane Xang in 1479. Five columns of Viet-
namese troops swept through Xieng Dong Xieng Thong and Sainyachakkaphat, humiliated,
abdicated and fled. The Lao king's younger brother, Souvanna Banlang, regrouped the Lao
troops and eventually chased off the Vietnamese, whose final retort was the sacking of Muang
Phuan on their way home.
Xieng Dong Xieng Thong's destruction proved to be a catalyst for Lane Xang's first golden
age, a century when the civil administration was fine-tuned, striking temples were built and
epic poems composed.
The kingdom of the Pha Bang
Souvanna Banlang's three successors - La Saen Thai (1486-96), Somphou (1496-1500) and
Visoun (1500-20) - ruled over a peaceful and prosperous Lane Xang, their reigns marked
by strengthened ties and an upswing in trade with Ayutthaya. The wealth generated by trade
