Lan Chang Province จังหวัดลานช้าง | |||||||||
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Province of Thailand | |||||||||
1941–1946 | |||||||||
![]() Laos (1941-46): Territories annexed by Thailand following the Franco-Thai War. | |||||||||
Historical era | World War II | ||||||||
• Franco-Thai War | 1941 | ||||||||
• Washington Accord of 1946 [1] | 17 November 1946 | ||||||||
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Today part of | Laos |
Lan Chang Province was a former province of the Kingdom of Thailand. It encompassed the eastern slopes of the Luang Prabang Range in Laos, with Xaignabouli (Sainyabuli) as the administrative headquarters. It included parts of former the Luang Prabang and Xaignabouli provinces of French Laos. [2]
Annexed in 1941, Thailand returned it to French Indochina in 1946, along with all other areas it had gained by the war as a condition for admission to the United Nations. Accordingly, all wartime claims against Thailand were dropped and the kingdom received a substantial American aid package in gratitude for the assistance its anti-Japanese underground had provided to the Allied war effort.
Lan Chang Province was named after the ancient Lan Xang kingdom, to which the area had once belonged. Its name means a 'Million Elephants'.
In 1904, Siam ceded the Laotian inhabited area of the Luang Prabang Range to colonial French Indochina.
In August 1940, after a series of border clashes, the Axis-leaning government of Thailand attacked French military posts on the eastern banks of the Mekong between Vientiane and Champassak Province. Both Thailand and the French colonial government would declare war. The more modern Thai Army won many victories on land, but the Royal Thai Navy was caught by a larger French fleet and suffered a humiliating defeat. The Japanese government intervened to mediate a ceasefire. In the ensuing talks in 1941, the French colonial government was forced to cede western Champassak Province and all of Xaignabouli of Laos and Battambang Province of Cambodia to the Thais. Zaignabouli was renamed the province of Lan Chang. [3] The Thai administration was not very active in the province during that time and the largely rural districts were pretty much left to themselves until they were reincorporated into Laos. [4]
At the end of World War II France threatened to block Thai entry into the United Nations unless it returned the provinces to their colonial empire. The Thai government, now under the control of members of the underground who had opposed the Japanese, was anxious to show its repudiation of the previous military government. It willingly signed the Washington Accord, surrendering all war time territorial gains. Lan Chang Province was returned to Laos in 1946 and resumed its pre-war name. [5] [6]
During its short history, Lan Chang Province was divided into six districts (amphoe). [7] They were established on 23 July 1941.
Name | Thai | corresponding to Lao | |
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1 | Sama Buri | สมาบุรี | Xayabury District (?) |
2 | Adundetcharat | อดุลเดชจรัส | Parklai District |
3 | Kaen Thao | แก่นท้าว | Kenethao District |
4 | Chiang Hon | เชียงฮ่อน | Xienghone District |
5 | Han Songkhram | หาญสงคราม | Hongsa District |
6 | Chiang Maen | เชียงแมน |
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King Sisavangvong, known by his courtesy name Sisavangvong, was the last ruler of the Lao Kingdom of Luang Prabang and the founding king of the Kingdom of Laos. Born Prince Khao on 14 July 1885, he ascended the throne at the age of 18 following the death of his father. In keeping with Lao tradition, he took the courtesy name Sisavangvong.
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.
Prince Phetsarath Ratanavongsa (Somdej Chao Maha Uparaja Petsaraj Ratanavongsa was the 1st Prime Minister of Luang Phrabang in French Laos from 21 August 1941 to 10 October 1945, and Head of State of Laos between 12 October 1945 and 4 April 1946.
The Franco-Thai War was fought between Thailand and Vichy France over certain areas of French Indochina.
The French protectorate of Laos was a French protectorate in Southeast Asia of what is today Laos between 1893 and 1953—with a brief interregnum as a Japanese puppet state in 1945—which constituted part of French Indochina. It was established over the Siamese vassal, the Kingdom of Luang Phrabang, following the Franco-Siamese crisis of 1893. It was integrated into French Indochina and in the following years further Siamese vassals, the Principality of Phuan and Kingdom of Champasak, were annexed into it in 1899 and 1904, respectively.
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The Kingdom of Champasak or Bassac, (1713–1904) was a Lao kingdom under Nokasad, a grandson of King Sourigna Vongsa, the last king of Lan Xang and son-in-law of the Cambodian King Chey Chettha IV. Bassac and the neighboring principalities of Attapeu and Stung Treng emerged as power centers under what was later to be described as the Mandala Southeast Asian political model.
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The Kingdom of Luang Phrabang, also called Kingdom of Luang Prabang was formed in 1707 as a result of the split of the Kingdom of Lan Xang. When the kingdom split, Muang Phuan became a tributary state of Luang Prabang. Over the years the monarchy weakened even more, and was forced to become a vassal various times to the Burmese and the Siamese monarchies.
The Luang Prabang Range, named after Luang Prabang, is a mountain range straddling northwestern Laos and Northern Thailand. Most of the range is located in Sainyabuli Province (Laos), as well as Nan and Uttaradit Provinces (Thailand), with small parts in Phitsanulok and Loei Provinces. Several rivers such as the Nan, Pua and Wa rivers, have their sources in this range. Phu Fa waterfall, the biggest and the tallest waterfall in Nan Province, is also located in these mountains. This range is part of the Luang Prabang montane rain forests ecoregion.
Sainyabuli province is a province in northwest Laos. Saiyabuli town is the capital of the province. Saiyabuli is the only Lao province that is completely west of the Mekong River.
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.
Phibunsongkhram Province was a province of Thailand that existed between 1941 and 1946. It was created as a result of the annexation of Cambodian territory by Thailand following the 1940-41 Franco-Thai war. The province was named after Plaek Phibunsongkhram, prime minister of Thailand at the time. The province was dissolved and returned to France in 1946.
Nakhon Champassak Province was a former province in Thailand established in 1941 following the annexation of territories of French Indochina. The province was dissolved and returned to France in 1946.
The Laos–Thailand border is the international border between the territory of Laos and Thailand. The border is 1,845 km in length, over half of which follows the Mekong River, and runs from the tripoint with Myanmar in the north to tripoint with Cambodia in the south.
The Kingdom of Luang Prabang was a short-lived puppet state of Imperial Japan, which existed from 9 March 1945 to 12 October 1945.