The House of Champassak or the Na Champassak family ( lo, ນະ ຈຳປາສັກ; th, ณ จัมปาศักดิ์, ) was an important Lao royal house, descendants of Chao Yuttithammathon (Kham Souk), the 11th King of the

Kingdom of Champassak The Kingdom of Champasak (Lao: ຈຳປາສັກ ɕàmpàːsák 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 ...

whose prominent members include Prince

Boun Oum Prince Boun Oum (also Prince Boun Oum Na Champassak; lo, ບຸນອຸ້ມ ນະ ຈຳປາສັກ; th, บุญอุ้ม ณ จัมปาศักดิ์; ; 2 December 1912 – 17 March 1980) was the son of King Ratsadanay, ...

Na Champassak and Prince

Sisouk na Champassak Prince Sisouk na Champassak ( lo, ເຈົ້າ ສີສຸກ ນະ ຈໍາປາສັກ; 28 March 1928 in Pakse, Champassak, Laos – 10 May 1985 in Santa Ana, California, United States) was the eldest son of Chao Bounsouane na Champ ...

. It was the ruling house of the former Kingdom of Champassak, with territories reaching on both banks of the Mekong river. Phra Phuttha Butsayarat Chakkraphat Phimon Manimai

Phra Phuttha Butsayarat Chakkraphat Phimon Manimai

History

To prevent the attempts of Setthathirath II, nephew of King Suliyavongsa, to unify the kingdom of

Lan Xang existed as a unified kingdom from 1353 to 1707. For three and a half centuries, Lan Xang was one of the largest kingdoms in Southeast Asia. The meaning of the kingdom's name alludes to the power of the kingship and formidable war machine of the ea ...

to include Vientiane and Loungprabang, the King of Loungprabang requested aid from

Siam Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 mi ...

. The King of Siam intervened, granting Loungprabang independence from Lan Xang. Following in the footsteps of his cousin the King of Loungprabang, the Prince Nokasat Song, refused to acknowledge the rule of Setthathirath II. A grandson of King Suliyavongsa, the prince had left Vientiane for Southern Laos upon the return of Setthathirath II. He asked the King of Siam to recognize Champassak's independence from Lanxang. Lan Xang was thus split yet even further into a total of three small kingdoms. During the rule of King Anouvong of the Kingdom of Vientiane, Anouvong placed his son Prince

Nyô ''Chao Raja Putra Sadet Chaofa Jaya'' Nyô, born in Vientiane in the early nineteenth century and died in 1828, was crown prince of the Kingdom of Vientiane and Uparaja (Vice-king) of the Kingdom of Champasak. In Vietnamese records, he was called ...

on the throne of Champassak. During King Anouvong's rebellion against Siam, the former royals of Champassak started a rebellion against Prince Nyô while he was fighting against Siamese forces in Issan. Returning to Champassak, Prince Nyô saw a rebellion taking place and barely escaped out of the city. This escape was cut short after the former rulers tracked down Prince Nyô and handed him over to the Siamese. The King of Siam returned the former royal family to rule over Champassak. The name Champassak was given by

Vajiravudh Vajiravudh ( th, วชิราวุธ, , 1 January 188126 November 1925) was the sixth monarch of Siam under the Chakri dynasty as Rama VI. He ruled from 23 October 1910 until his death in 1925. King Vajiravudh is best known for his efforts ...

, the King of

, to descendants of Chao Yuttithammathon (Kham Souk), the 11th king of the

. They took their name from the city of Champassak, prefixed by the

nobiliary particle A nobiliary particle is used in a surname or family name in many Western cultures to signal the nobility of a family. The particle used varies depending on the country, language and period of time. In some languages, it is the same as a regular p ...

'' na'' signifying ''of'' a former kingdom or

tributary state A tributary state is a term for a pre-modern state in a particular type of subordinate relationship to a more powerful state which involved the sending of a regular token of submission, or tribute, to the superior power (the suzerain). This tok ...

. They are descended from the rulers of the

and are also members of the

Khun Lo Khun Lo, legendary founder of the city of Luang Prabang, was the eldest of the seven sons of the Khun Borom, and is credited as being the first of the prehistoric Lao monarchs. The royal families of Laos trace their lineage to him. Khun Khum may ...

Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...

, which was established by

. Originally, it was transliterated in English as ''Na Champasakdi''. During most of the 19th century the Kingdom of Champassak was a tributary of

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

but was not a part of Siam proper.

Power and Wealth

The Champassaks were one of the most important and wealthy families in Laos. Along with other leading families of Southern Laos and Chinese businessmen working in the opium trades, they dominated political and economic life in Southern Laos. At the time they were the national symbol and rallying point of the Laotian right centered around Prince Boun Oum na Champassak.

Notable members

*King

Ratsadanay King Ratsadanay (1874-1945) was the last king of Champasak. He was the father of Boun Oum Prince Boun Oum (also Prince Boun Oum Na Champassak; lo, ບຸນອຸ້ມ ນະ ຈຳປາສັກ; th, บุญอุ้ม ณ จัม ...

, last King of Champassak. Died in June 1946, in the

Bassac River The Bassac River ( km, ទន្លេបាសាក់; Tonlé Bassac) is a distributary of the Tonlé Sap and Mekong River. The river starts in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and flows southerly, crossing the border into Vietnam near Châu Đốc. The n ...

. *Chao

na Champassak,

Prime Minister of Laos The Prime Minister of the Lao People's Democratic Republic, formerly the chairman of the Council of Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is the head of government of Laos. The highest position in the government, they direct the ...

. Died in 1981, in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. *Prince

, Former Finance and Defence Minister, Secretary General of the Royal Government of Laos. Author of Storm over Laos. Died in 1985, in Santa Ana, California, USA.

References

{{authority control Asian royal families History of Laos Thai families