| Abstract: |
(In English although the article is in French) The phase of unrest which spreads from the death of King Setthāthirāt (1572) to that of King Voravongsā Thammikarāt (1623) is one of the least known periods of the history of Lān Xāng - somewhat a paradox when you consider that philological and epigraphic data relative to these 50 years are more numerous than for some other periods of Laotian history. The main purpose of this article is to establish a framework of historical events and reliable cross-checked chronological markers for this period during which the fragility of royal legitimacy turns out to be a key factor. But at the same time, comparing the available sources and assessing the insights that they offer leads the author to reflect upon problems specific to the historiography of that period and on the fact that inscriptions, although essential to historical studies, may lead to misinterpretation when not crosschecked with other sources.
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