Lan Xang

Lan Xang was a Lao kingdom founded in 1353 that covered much of present-day Laos and neighboring regions until its division in 1707.

Fa Ngum: The founder and first ruler of Lan Xang, who established the kingdom in 1353. His campaigns united territories that became Lan Xang.
Mandala (Southeast Asian political model): A flexible political system in which power radiated from centers through overlapping networks of allegiance. Lan Xang’s authority varied by distance, local rulers, and shifting alliances.
Burmese–Siamese War (1547–1549): A conflict involving Burma and Ayutthaya that drew Lan Xang into mainland Southeast Asian power struggles. The war exposed the kingdom to pressure from competing regional powers.
Kingdom of Luang Prabang: A Lao kingdom established in 1707 from the northern portion of Lan Xang. It continued one branch of Lan Xang’s royal and religious traditions.
Muang Sua: An early Lao principality centered on Luang Prabang, known later as Xieng Dong Xieng Thong. Fa Ngum made this principality the kingdom’s initial political center.
Setthathirath: A sixteenth-century king of Lan Xang who moved its capital to Vientiane and resisted Burmese expansion. His reign strengthened the Vientiane court and defended the kingdom’s independence.
Burmese–Siamese War (1563–1564): A Burmese campaign that brought Vientiane under Burmese control during the expansion of the Toungoo Empire. The invasion forced Lan Xang’s court to confront Burmese supremacy.
Kingdom of Vientiane: A Lao kingdom formed in 1707 from Lan Xang’s central territories, centered on Vientiane. It inherited the former capital and a major share of Lan Xang’s population.
Khmer Empire: A powerful Southeast Asian empire centered at Angkor, dominant from the ninth to fifteenth centuries. Fa Ngum’s political and military formation was connected to the Khmer court.
Vientiane: A city on the Mekong River that became Lan Xang’s capital under Setthathirath. Its rise shifted the kingdom’s political center from Luang Prabang.

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