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Laos traces
its history to the kingdom of Lan Xang, founded in the fourteenth
century by Fa Ngum, himself descended from a long line of
Lao kings, tracking back to Khoun Boulom. Lan-Xang prospered
until the eighteenth century, when the kingdom was divided
into three principalities, which eventually came under Siamese
suzerainty. In the 19th century, Luang Prabang was incorporated
into the 'Protectorate' of French Indochina, and shortly thereafter,
the Kingdom of Champasak and the territory of Vientiane were
also added to the protectorate. Under the French, Vientiane
once again became the capital of a unified Lao state.
The country
declared its independence in 1945, but the French under De
Gaulle re-asserted their control and only in 1950 was Laos
granted semi-autonomy as an "associated state" within
the French Union.
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