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|King of Lan Xang Lao: ພຣະມະຫາກະສັຕຍ໌ ແຫ່ງ ລ້ານຊ້າງ|
|Reign||1353 – 1372|
Muang Sua, Lan Xang
Muang Nan, Nan
|Spouse||Queen Keo Kang Ya (Khmer) Queen Keo Lot Fa (Ayutthaya)|
|Issue||Prince Oun Heuan |
Prince Kham Kong
Princess Keo Ketkasi
|Father||Khun Phi Fa|
|Religion|| Therevada Buddhism |
Somdetch Brhat-Anya Fa Ladhuraniya Sri Sadhana Kanayudha Maharaja Brhat Rajadharana Sri Chudhana Negara ລາວ: ສົມເດັດ ພຣະບາດ ອັນຍາ ຟ້າ ລັດທຸຣັນຍາ ສຣີ ສັດຕະນາ ຄະນະຍຸດທາ ມະຫາຣາຊ໌ ພຣະບາດ ຣາຊະທໍຣະນາ ສຣີ ສັດຕະນະ ນະຄອນ , better known as Fa Ngum (Laotian: ຟ້າງູ່ມ [fȁːŋum] ; 1316 – 1393, born in Muang Sua, died in Nan), established the Lao kingdom of Lan Xang in 1353.
Phraya Fa Ngum, son of the exiled Phi Fa, grandson of Phraya Khamphong, and great-grandson of the exiled Phraya Lang, was born in 1316. He was raised by the religious scholar Maha Pasaman Chao (Phra Mahasamana). At sixteen, he married a Cambodian princess known variously as Kaeo, Yot Kaeo, or Kaeo Lot Fa.
Fa Ngoum or Fa Ngum was born in Muang Sua, a Lao principality located on the site of present-day Luang Prabang, and founded the Lan Xang Hôm Khao (better known as Lan Xang) kingdom in Laos in 1353. Fa Ngum was a grandson of Souvanna Khamphong, titled Phagna Khampong, ruler of Muang Sua and grandfather of Fa Ngum, banished Fa Ngum and his father, Chao Fa Ngiao, to the Khmer kingdom of Angkor in the 1320s due to his father's indiscretion with one of the grandfather's wives. Another source said that Fa Ngum was sent to exile because Fa Ngoum was miraculously born with thirty-three teeth which was an omen of threatening the well-being of his grandfather's kingdom.Fa Ngum subsequently married a Khmer princess Princess Kèo Kèngkanya. With the support of king of Angkor, Fa Ngum returned to Muang Sua with a 10,000 armed men to gain control and consolidate his kingdom. Princess Kèo Kèngkanya later died from plague, while he was campaigning North against the Mongols. In 1353, Fa Ngum founded the kingdom of Lan Xang Hôm Khao—"land of one million elephants and a white parasol." The elephant symbolized military power since most battles were fought using elephants, and the white parasol symbolized royalty, particularly a Buddhist monarch. Fa Ngum further legitimized his rule by enshrining the Prabang Buddha image as the spiritual protector of the kingdom in Viang Chan Viang Kham (present-day Vientiane). He made Xiang Dong Xiang Thong (later renamed Luang Prabang) his capital.
Fa Ngum is credited with introducing Khmer culture and Singhalese Buddhism to the region. His religious tutor, Maha Pasaman also brought back sacred texts and the Phra Bang.
Political turmoil ensued, and Fa Ngum's son Oun Huan also known as Samsènethai, succeeded the throne in 1368.
Fa Ngum conquered western Nghệ An as well as the valleys between Red River and Black River in Vietnam (Tonkin) and modern day Isan in Thailand. In 1352–1354, he conquered Muang Sing, Muang Houm, Chiang Hung, Chiang Saen, Chiang Mai, Pak Ou and Pak Beng. In 1353, he conquered Vientiane, Xiang Khouang and then Luang Phrabang. He fought a battle against his uncle near Xiang Dong Xiang Thong and won, becoming the undisputed master of the land, which he named Lan Xang and in keeping with his Khmer wife's wishes, made Theravada Buddhism the state religion. In 1350, he symbolically pledged allegiance to the State of Mong Mao, however this didn't have much of an impact on his reign.
In 1373, the royals and nobles of his own court exiled him. His son Oun Huan, often called Samsenethai, a name adopted for the 300,000 Tai people of Lan Xang; then ascended to the throne of Lan Xang. Who was barely 18 when he acceded the throne. He was named after the 1376 census, which concluded that he ruled over 300,000 Tais living in Laos; samsèn means, literally, 300,000. He set up a new administrative system based on the existing muang , nominating governors to each that lasted until it was abolished by the Communist government in 1975. Samsènthai's death was followed by a period of unrest. Under King Xaiyachakkaphat-Phènphèo (1441–1478), the kingdom came under increasing threat from the Vietnamese. King Xaiyachakkaphat's eldest son, the Prince of Xianglo, secured a holy white elephant. The emperor of Vietnam, learning of this momentous discovery, asked to be sent some of the beast's hairs. Disliking the Vietnamese, the Prince dispatched a box of its excrement instead, whereupon the Emperor formed an improbably large 550,000 man army. The Prince's army numbered 200,000 and 2,000 elephants. The massive Vietnamese army finally prevailed and entered and sacked Luang Prabang. But shortly thereafter they were driven out by Xaiyachakkaphat-Phènphèo's son, King Souvanna Banlang (1478–1485). Peace was only fully restored under King Visounnarath (1500–1520).
Evidence for modern human presence in the northern and central highlands of Indochina, that constitute the territories of the modern Laotian nation-state dates back to the Lower Paleolithic. These earliest human migrants are Australo-Melanesians — associated with the Hoabinhian culture and have populated the highlands and the interior, less accessible regions of Laos and all of South-east Asia to this day. The subsequent Austroasiatic and Austronesian marine migration waves affected landlocked Laos only marginally and direct Chinese and Indian cultural contact had a greater impact on the country.
The Lao Kingdom of Lan Xang Hom Khao existed as a unified kingdom from 1353 to 1707.
Luang Phabang, or Louangphabang, commonly transliterated into Western languages from the pre-1975 Lao spelling ຫຼວງພຣະບາງ as Luang Prabang, literally meaning "Royal Buddha Image", is a city in north central Laos, consisting of 58 adjacent villages, of which 33 comprise the UNESCO Town Of Luang Prabang World Heritage Site. It was listed in 1995 for unique and "remarkably" well preserved architectural, religious and cultural heritage, a blend of the rural and urban developments over several centuries, including the French colonial influences during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Setthathirath or Xaysettha is considered one of the great leaders in Lao history. Throughout the 1560s until his death, he successfully defended his kingdom of Lan Xang against military campaigns of Burmese conqueror Bayinnaung, who had already subdued Xieng Mai in 1558 and Ayutthaya in 1564. Setthathirath was a prolific builder and erected many Buddhist monuments including Wat Xieng Thong in Luang Prabang, Haw Phra Kaew, Wat Ong Teu Mahawihan and the Pha That Luang in Vientiane.
Photisarath son of King Visoun of Lanxang, is considered to be the most devout of the Lao kings. He banned spirit worship and built temples upon the sites of spirit shrines. His elephant fell and crushed him while he sought to display his prowess to the diplomatic corps. His son Setthathirath returned from Chiang Mai to succeed him to the throne of Lan Xang.
Samsenethai(Lao: ສາມແສນໄທ) also called Oun Huan(Lao: ອຸ່ນເຮືອນ) was the second king of Lan Xang in Laos. He succeeded his father, Fa Ngum.
Muang Sua was the name of Luang Phrabang following its conquest in 698 by a Tai/Lao prince, Khun Lo, who seized his opportunity when the king of Nanzhao was engaged elsewhere. Khun Lo had been awarded the town by his father, Khun Borom, who is associated with the Lao legend of the creation of the world, which the Lao share with the Shan and other peoples of the region. Khun Lo established a dynasty whose fifteen rulers reigned over an independent Muang Sua for the better part of a century.
Muang Phuan or Xieng Khouang was a historical principality on the Xiangkhoang Plateau, which constitutes the modern territory of Xiangkhouang Province, Laos.
The Phra Bang ," Lao is the palladium of Laos. The Lao-language name for the image has been transliterated in a number of ways, including "Pra Bang," "Prabang," "Phabang" and "Pha Bang." The statue is an 83 cm-high standing Buddha with palms facing forward, cast using thong, an alloy of bronze, gold, and silver. According to local lore, it was cast in Ceylon sometime between the 1st and 9th century. However, the features of the image suggest a much later Khmer origin.
Nang Keo Phimpha (1343–1438), an epithet meaning literally "The Cruel", was Queen of Lan Xang in 1438, taking the regnal name Samdach Brhat-Anya Sadu Chao Nying Kaeva Bhima Fa Mahadevi(Lao: ສົມເດັຈ ພຣະຍາ ສາທຸເຈົ້າຍິງ ແກ້ວພິມພາມະຫາເທວີ). She is also known by her title Maha Devi, and may have been the only reigning female sovereign of the kingdom of Lan Xang. According to some chronicles, she briefly occupied the throne for a few months, before she was deposed and killed at ninety-five years old. Her brief reign was the culmination of a ten-year period of regicide, which she orchestrated through a series of puppet kings.
Setthathirath II, also called Ong Lo and Sai Ong Hue, grandson of the great ruler Suliyavongsa, was the king of the Lao Kingdom of Lān Xāng. In Vietnamese records, he was called Triều Phúc (朝福).
Kingdom of Vientiane was formed in 1707 as a result of the split of the Kingdom of Lan Xang. The kingdom was a Burmese vassal from 1765 to 1824. It then became a Siamese vassal until 1828 when it was annexed by Siam.
Vientiane Province is a province of Laos in the country's northwest. As of 2015 the province had a population of 419,090. Vientiane Province covers an area of 15,927 square kilometres (6,149 sq mi) composed of 11 districts. The principal towns are Vang Vieng and Muang Phôn-Hông.
Luang Prabang is a province in northern Laos. Its capital of the same name, Luang Prabang, was the capital of the Lan Xang Kingdom during the 13th to 16th centuries. It is listed since 1995 by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site for unique architectural, religious and cultural heritage, a blend of the rural and urban developments over several centuries, including the French colonial influences during the 19th and 20th centuries. The province has 12 districts. The Royal Palace, the national museum in the capital city, and the Phou Loei Protected Reserve are important sites. Notable temples in the province are the Wat Xieng Thong, Wat Wisunarat, Wat Sen, Wat Xieng Muan, and Wat Manorom. The Lao New Year is celebrated in April as The Bun Pi Mai.
The people of Laos have a rich literary tradition dating back at least six hundred years, with the oral and storytelling traditions of its peoples dating back much earlier. Lao literature refers to the written productions of Laotian peoples, its émigrés, and to Lao-language works. In Laos today there are over forty-seven recognized ethnic groups, with the Lao Loum comprising the majority group. Lao is officially recognized as the national language, but owing to the ethnic diversity of the country the literature of Laos can generally be grouped according to four ethnolinguistic families: Lao-Tai (Tai-Kadai); Mon-Khmer (Austroasiatic); Hmong-Mien (Miao-Yao), and Sino-Tibetan. As an inland crossroads of Southeast Asia the political history of Laos has been complicated by frequent warfare and colonial conquests by European and regional rivals. As a result, Laos today has cultural influence from France, Thailand, China, Vietnam, Burma, and Cambodia.
Chakkaphat Phaen Phaeo (1415–1481) reigned as King of Lan Xang from 1442 to 1480, succeeding the Maha Devi after an interregnum of several years. He was born in 1415 as Prince Vong Buri, the youngest son of King Samsenthai by Queen Nan Keo Yot Fa daughter of King Intharacha of Ayutthaya. When he came of age he was appointed as Governor of Vientiane. He was invited to ascend the throne several times during the succession dispute orchestrated by the Maha Devi, but refused. The Council of Ministers finally persuaded him to become king in 1441, after they had failed to find any other candidate. He still refused to be crowned and avoided the ceremony for many years. Finally bowing to custom in 1456, he was formally coroneted and assumed the reign name and title of Samdach Brhat-Anya Chao Sanaka Chakrapati Raja Phen-Phaeo Bhaya Jayadiya Kabuddha. The regnal name is significant because it translates in Pali to cakkavattin, meaning "Universal Buddhist Monarch." Vong Buri, and the court, were claiming enough political and religious power to unify the kingdom, and warn surrounding kingdoms, despite the upheaval caused by the Maha Devi and interregnum in Lan Xang from 1428-1442.
Souvanna Banlang (1455-1486) was king of Lan Xang from 1479-1486 taking the regnal name Samdach Brhat-Anya Chao Suvarna Panya Lankara Raja Sri Sadhana Kanayudha. His reign was marked as a period of peace and reconstruction, following a massive invasion by the Đại Việt forces of Emperor Lê Thánh Tông. He became king in 1479 after the abdication of his father Chakkaphat Phaen Phaeo, who had fled the capital of Muang Sua ahead of the Đại Việt armies. Prior to his accession he served as Governor of Muang Dansai, according to the Lao chronicles he commanded Lao forces at the Battle of Pakphun where the invading forces were halted and forced to retreat to Vietnam.
The Vietnamese-Laotian War of 1479–84, also known as the White Elephant War, was a relatively short conflict between the Laotian mandala of Lan Xang and the Vietnamese kingdom of Đại Việt. The war and its aftermath contributed significantly to the formation of Laos.