The Royal Lao Kingdom

What appears to be ponds are actually water-filled bomb craters from the Vietnam War era, as seen from a helicopter, May 25, 1997, near the northeastern Laotian village of Sam Neau. David Longstreath/AP Photo https://abcnews.go.com/International/bombing-laos-numbers/story?id=41890565

Overview

The French let go of control of the Royal Lao Army (RLA) in 1954 as Laos was in an active civil war, a part of the wider First Indochina War in Vietnam and Cambodia. Shortly after the French let go of the last vestige of their control, the Pathet Lao movement and the Royal Lao Government came to a ceasefire. The Geneva conference established a plan for Laos to reunify, and split Vietnam in two. Laos would have a government with left, center, and right represented, and Pathet Lao militants were to be integrated into the RLA. At the same time, the United States government began funding the entire RLA, established a neocolonial regime under the US Agency for International Development (USAID), and laid the foundation for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to start meddling. The US toppled the government through the CIA ensuring agreement in government could not be made. After interim fighting, new agreements were signed and the First Coalition Government of Laos was created in 1957, again with tripartite representation. However, the US again toppled it in 1958, this time through withholding aid and more CIA meddling. This government, and the the several established though coups under the Second Coalition Government before 1964, continued to be destabilized by the US and repressed left-leaning views. Eventually, the neutralists were forced to pick a side in a brewing conflict which became the Second Indochina War, with the right-wing strongman government backed by the US pushing them submit or join Pathet Lao. Between 1964 and 1973, the US commandeered the RLA and held all meaningful powers of the Royal Lao Government. No Lao person had control over the magnitude of bombs dropped in their country, and the CIA build a secret army of the Hmong ethic group. The war ended with the creation of a Third Coalition Government, which Pathet Lao seized control of to break the pattern of repression in previous tripartite governments, and the establishment the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) in 1975. The Lao PDR is the first independent Lao government since the 1760s.

US Neo-Colonization of Laos

The fighting up to July 20th, 1954 in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos was considered the First Indochina War. The following year was a stalemate between the Royal Lao Army (RLA) and the Pathet Lao. In 1955 the US government began funding the entire RLA and the national police, along with supplying an absurd amount of economic aid, which almost entirely ends up in the corrupt Lao government officials' pockets. With the Pathet Lao being financed by North Vietnam, both sides of the Lao civil war were entirely funded by foreign powers, and the ensuing war would reflect that. The extent of USAID as a parallel administration to the Royal Lao government turned Laos into a neocolony of the US. Neither Lao people, nor Lao elite in government had agency or say over anything their country and army did, nor what the US did on their behalf (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 137, 144–145, 148, 151).

In the 1956 Geneva conference, the Royal Lao government and Pathet Lao came to an agreement. The Royal Lao Government would get all of the land back, Pathet Lao soldiers would integrate into the RLA, and a legal political party called the Lao Patriotic Front (LPF) would be created for Pathet Lao. The US begrudgingly allowed this publicly while tasking the CIA to subvert it. The CIA was successful in causing the government to collapse in disagreement. After an interim conflict between the RLA and Pathet Lao as the RLA arrested the partly integrated communist militants in the RLA, peace was established again in 1957. That year Vientiane agreements were signed and, remarkably, this time it worked. The First Coalition Government was created and a similar agreement to the original took place. The prime minister was neutralist Prince Souvanna Phouma, nicknamed the neutralist prince of Laos, whom had brokered the peace with the Pathet Lao leader Prince Souphanouvong, his half-brother nicknamed the red prince of Laos.

However, in mid-1958 the US engineered an economic crisis by withholding aid and the government collapsed. Phuy, a right wing politician, took over the government and the LPF faced political repression and became illegal. Pathet Lao was purged from government, leaders were arrested and assassinated over the course of a year, violating the Vientiane agreements. Thus, the First Coalition Government had fallen due to US meddling (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 151–154, 157–159, 163, 165–168).

Several Coups and the CIA

Three coups happened in succession. Phumi, a right-wing strongman and Minister of Defense of the coalition government, started undermining the government with military movements. The CIA created the Committee for the Defense of National Interests (CDNI) political party, and it infiltrated the government. Laos began operating as a de facto dictatorship and American colony under this right-wing party. In mid-1959, fighting began again between the repressed Pathet Lao, whom were purged from the government, and Royal Lao Government. Then, the King died in August 1959 and the right-winger Phumi launched a coup. He relinquished, but the CDNI and his right-wing army rigged the 1960 elections. On April 24th, the CDNI got more votes than there were registered voters, and the LPF got close to none (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 166, 170, 173–174).

The second coup was launched by neutralist Kônglae in August 1960 and he reestablished the Souvanna Phouma as prime minister. The US publicly approved the the neutralist government, but the CIA started secretly funding General Phumi and his right-wing forces while the US stopped funding the rest of the RLA. Then, Phumi launched another coup in December, taking Vientiane and sending Kônglae's neutralist forces to join Pathet Lao. This government established Prince Boun Oum Na Champasak as prime minister, another half-brother of Souvanna Phouma nicknamed the right-wing prince of Laos. His government immediately began purging neutralists from the government (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 174, 176–185).

Over the next year, Pathet Lao and Kônglae took two thirds of Laos while the CIA created a 'secret army' in Pathet Lao territory out of the Hmong (Lao Soung) villages. In May 1961 there was a ceasefire and the second Geneva Conference started. By July 1962, the agreements were signed and the Second Coalition government was created as a tripartite government between neutralists, right-wing, and Pathet Lao forces with Souvanna Phouma as prime minister. The three half-brother princes of Laos, Souvanna Phouma the neutralist prince, Souphanouvong the red prince, and Boun Oum the right-wing prince frequently met during the time of the Second Coalition Government as it slowly fell apart, attempting to find common ground to build a neutral Laos. However, in October 1964 the neutralists became completely divided between right and left as the three princes fell apart in argument. Political assassinations took place against neutralists by right-wingers; more neutralists joined Pathet Lao. The Second Coalition had completely collapsed (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 184, 188, 193, 198–199, 201–206).

Ten Years of Brutal War

By October 1964, the neutralists were split between fighting for Pathet Lao, or fighting under the direct control of the US with the right-wing forces of Phumi. The US now had complete governing and strategic control over the Lao economy and army, allowing corruption to fester in government officials who had no power over what their own government was doing. Prime minister Souvanna Phouma, who had tried bringing the government and his two half-brothers together countless times over the last several coalitions, watched helplessly as the US controlled his government with no regard to any Lao official. He understood that his government was a facade for the US, but felt it was best for him to be in position to negotiate with the US as opposed to another (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 207, 211, 227).

The US turned urban Laos into a corrupt and self-indulgent society, allowing Lao officers to sell drugs such as opium and heroin, run casinos, and smuggle gold from the country. They even sold opium and heroin to the US military, which was active in Vietnam. The complete control the US had over economic development in infrastructure, education, and health alienated the Lao people, who had no role or say in the economic decisions made. USAID treated the population like children, and left them with no sense of national identity. This, combined with the corruption of the RLA, left the Lao people disconnected from their government, and government disconnected and fighting in clan politics (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 224, 236–238).

While the US commandeered the Royal Lao government, they bombed eastern Laos in one of the worst aerial bombing campaigns in history. The leaders of Laos had always been reluctant to take civilian life, but the US had no regard in dropping two million tons of bombs, the most a single country has ever received in history. This was two tons for each inhabitant of the Pathet Lao territories, the most bombs per capita in the history of warfare (Kiernan & Own, 2015; Stuart-Fox, 1997: 213, 217).

By 1969, US pilots were authorized to bomb any target they pleased except a single Chinese road in the north, to keep an illusion of accordance with the last agreements. Civilians across eastern Laos were forced to live in holes and caves, or flee westward where 200,000 refugees started receiving aid from Air America. This bombing campaign sought to destroy or disrupt the Ho Chi Minh Trail (HCMT), a North Vietnamese supply route through eastern Laos, and to take the Plain of Jars, a strategic and historical position (see maps). The HCMT was never disrupted for the whole war, and the Plane of Jars was never held for more than a few months at a time by the RLA (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 218. 222).

Yamada, T., & Yamada, H. (n.d.). The long-term causal effect of U.S. bombing missions on economic development: Evidence from the Ho Chi Minh Trail and Xieng Khouang Province in Lao P.D.R - ScienceDirect. Retrieved October 30, 2025, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0304387820301863

The Plain of Jars, highlighted in blue.

Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1188528

The US severely took advantage of the Hmong population, driving them to the point of their social fabric unraveling for the sake of US interests. By the end of the war, 10% of the Hmong population had died, and throughout it their men and boys as young as fourteen years were conducting dangerous operations in the Plain of Jars (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 213–215).

On the other side, Pathet Lao was organizing the people of eastern Laos into a cohesive society. They started by countering propaganda of the Royal Lao Government and the US, and forced public self-criticism as a form of political control. Their ideals were equality for all; uniting the three ethnic groups, Lao Loum, Lao Theung, and Lao Soung; and collective liberation from France and the US in a movement of all people. Their economic programs were more necessarily centered on the war effort, but they created agricultural, educational, and health programs, including their soldiers responding the US bombings to help civilians. Unlike the corrupt Royal Lao, the Pathet Lao officers worked for ideals instead of wealth. And unlike the US, their economic programs benefited all populations, instead of only the Lao Loum in urban centers. They created a movement of united Lao against imperialism, Thai, French, and American (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 223, 229–230).

Over the course of the war, more Vietnamese solders started fighting in Laos to protect the Ho Chi Minh trail. As the funders of Pathet Lao, it appears they did not care to help Pathet Lao take Laos, only to keep the HCMT and the Plain of Jars under Pathet Lao control. With the US having a goal also related to the HCMT and Plain of Jars in relation to Vietnam, the fronts of the war remained relatively stagnant until the end (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 215).

Laos, Xiangkhoang, Meo soldiers gathered around an American plane shot down over Pathet Lao territory. (Photo by: Eye Ubiquitous/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

The End of the Civil War

On January 23rd, 1973, the US and North Vietnam negotiated a ceasefire. A month later, The Royal Lao Government and Pathet Lao had a ceasefire as well. The Third Coalition Government of Laos was soon constructed. This time, there was no neutralist center to balance the right and left except for neutralist Prince Souvanna Phouma as prime minister. Another right-wing coup was launched later in 1973, but was quickly subverted. The US withdrew its aid workers and the Thai mercenaries the US hired left as well. After six months, the government was constructed and major cities were neutralized in 1975 with militants of right and left in each (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 235, 239–241).

Pathet Lao tested the US by taking the rest of the Plain of Jars, and there was no response. Emboldened, a May Day protest was organized, calling out the richest clans for corruption with the US and selling out the Lao people. Then, Pathet Lao seized power in the south by the end of May, fearing another right-wing coup from the now absurdly wealthy right-wing ministers due to USAID, and not willing to risk yet another coalition government to end with their political repression. By June they took Luang Phrabang and Vientiane, as USAID workers were forced out by protestors. This marked the end of the war; Pathet Lao won. On December 2nd, 1975 the King officially abdicated the throne, marking the end of the six-century long monarchy and the beginning of the Lao People's Democratic Republic. The red Prince Souphanouvong succeeded Prince Souvanna Phouma as first president of the new nation, and Souvanna became an advisor to the new government. In the new government, the Lao Theung had political representation for the first time in history. It would take longer for Lao Soung representation in the National Assembly (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 245–251).

Many Lao believe that this conflict would had never happened in the first place if not for the CIA subverting the First Coalition Government. Left to themselves, the Lao believe they would been able to find peace. However, the US dragged Laos into Cold War politics in response to war in Vietnam. After years of being helpless at the direction of the US, the Royal Lao Government and its people had little political will. After thirty years of fighting, Pathet Lao did not want to be subverted yet again and lose everything for which they had fought. For thirty years, US involvement had left them no peaceful option to participate in Lao politics. At the end of the civil war, Pathet Lao had de facto control of the government and most of the land in Laos. Thus, they thwarted reconciliation of the right and left in favor of finally seizing power. In the end, Laos was finally free of Western powers, colonial and neocolonial, as a socialist transition state allied deeply to Vietnam (Stuart-Fox, 1997: 253–255).

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