History

Early History

The history of Laos is conventionally traced to the establishment of the kingdom of Lan Xang by Fa Ngum in 1353. His successors, especially King Photisarath in the 16th century, helped establish Theravada Buddhism as the predominant religion of the country. In the 17th century, Lan Xang entered a period of decline and the late 18th century Siam (now Thailand) established control over much of what is now Laos.

1893-1954: French Indochina

The region was divided into three dependent states centred on Luang Prabang in the north, Vientiane in the centre, and Champassak in the south. The Vientiane Lao rebelled in 1828 but were defeated, and the area incorporated into Siam. Following its occupation of Vietnam, France absorbed Laos into French Indochina via treaties with Siam in 1893 and 1904.

During World War II, the Japanese occupied French Indochina. When Japan surrendered, Lao nationalists declared Laos independent, but by early 1946, French troops had reoccupied the country and conferred limited autonomy on Laos. During the First Indochina War, the Indochinese Communist Party formed the Pathet Lao resistance organisation committed to Lao independence. Laos gained full independence following the French defeat by the Vietnamese communists and the subsequent Geneva peace conference in 1954.

1954-1975: The Kingdom of Laos

Elections were held in 1955, and the first coalition government, led by Prince Souvanna Phouma, was formed in 1957. The coalition government collapsed in 1958 under pressure from the United States. In 1960, elements of the army staged a coup and demanded reformation of a neutralist government. The second coalition government, once again led by Souvanna Phouma, was not successful in holding power. Rightist forces under General Phoumi Nosavan drove out the neutralist government from power later that same year.

A second Geneva conference, held in 1961-62, provided for the independence and neutrality of Laos, but the agreement was subverted by both the United States and North Vietnam and the war soon resumed. The government and army of Laos were generally neutral during the conflict. The United States and North Vietnam subverted the agreement by forming private proxy armies. Growing American and North Vietnamese military presence in the country increasingly drew Laos into the Second Indochina War (1954-1975). For nearly a decade, eastern Laos was subjected to the heaviest bombing in the history of warfare, as the US sought to destroy the Ho Chi Minh Trail that passed through Laos.

In 1968, the North Vietnamese Army launched a multi-division attack against the Royal Lao Army. The attack resulted in the army largely demobilising and leaving the conflict to irregular forces raised by the United States and Thailand. In 1975, the communist Pathet Lao, backed by the Soviet Union and the North Vietnamese Army (justified by the communist ideology of 'proletarian internationalism'), overthrew the royalist government, forcing King Savang Vatthana to abdicate on December 2, 1975. He later died in captivity.

1975 - Present: Lao People's Democratic Republic

After taking control of the country, Pathet Lao's government renamed the country as the 'Lao People's Democratic Republic' and signed agreements giving Vietnam the right to station military forces and to appoint advisors to assist in overseeing the country. Laos was ordered in the late 1970s by Vietnam to end relations with the People's Republic of China which cut the country off from trade with any country but Vietnam.

The new communist government led by Kaysone Phomvihane imposed centralised economic decision-making and incarcerated many members of the previous government and military in 're-education camps' which also included the Hmongs. While nominally independent, the communist government was for many years effectively little more than a puppet regime run from Vietnam. The government's policies prompted about 10 percent of the Lao population to leave the country. Laos depended heavily on Soviet aid channelled through Vietnam up until the Soviet collapse in 1991. In the 1990s the communist party gave up centralised management of the economy but still has a monopoly of political power.

In 1995, after a twenty-year embargo, the United States established Normal Trade Relations with Laos.