Tai Federation Sip Song Chau Tai (1947–1950) Sip Hoc Chau Tai (1950–1955) | |||||||||
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| before 17th century–1954 | |||||||||
 Flag | |||||||||
Seal (1889–1945) | |||||||||
 The later Tai Federation, 1950, based on the Sip Song Chau Tai | |||||||||
| Status | French protectorate, part ofTonkin,French Indochina (1889–1948) Autonomous federation within theFrench Union (1948–50) Crown domain of theVietnamese Emperor (1950–54) | ||||||||
| Capital | none (before 1948) Muaeng Lai (1948–54) | ||||||||
| Common languages | French,Tai,Kinh | ||||||||
| Religion | Catholicism (official) Daoism Traditional religions | ||||||||
| Historical era | New Imperialism | ||||||||
• Established | before 17th century | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 1954 | ||||||||
| Currency | French Indochinese piastre | ||||||||
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| Today part of |  Vietnam | ||||||||
TheSip Song Chau Tai[nb 1] ("Twelve Tai cantons";Vietnamese:Mười hai châu Thái orMười hai xứ Thái;Thai:สิบสองจุไท orสิบสองเจ้าไท;Lao:ສິບສອງຈຸໄຕ orສິບສອງເຈົ້າໄຕ;Chinese:泰族十二州;Tai Dam:ꪵꪠ꪿ꪙꪒꪲꪙꪼꪕ "Tai Federation"[1]) was a confederation ofTai Dam ("Black Tai"),Tai Dón ("White Tai") andTai Daeng ("Red Tai")chiefdoms in the mountainous north-west of today'sVietnam, dating back at least to the 17th century.[2]
It became an autonomous part of the French protectorate ofTonkin, and thereby ofFrench Indochina, in 1889. In 1948, during the period of theFirst Indochina War, it was transformed into theTai Federation (French:Fédération Taï,Vietnamese:Thái liên-đoàn) that was recognized as an autonomous component of theFrench Union.[3]
In 1950 it was made acrown domain of Vietnamese emperorBảo Đại without being integrated into theState of Vietnam.[4][5] It was dissolved after theGeneva Agreements of 1954.
The number Sip Song isTai language for twelve, as with Thai "twelve" (12, ๑๒, สิบสอง, sip song,Thai pronunciation:[sìpsɔ̌ːŋ]). A parallel etymology with the number twelve can also be found in the place name Sip Song Panna (Xishuangbanna) in China.
Chau is land (similar to sino-Vietnamese州 and not to be confused with similar sounding Thaichau,lord) and Tai (ไต๋, Chinese傣).[6]
Tai peoples have settled in the northwestern parts of what now is Vietnam since the early first millennium CE or, at the latest, the fifth to eighth century.
They mainly settled along theBlack River(Sông Đà). One Black Tai chiefdom—located at the place today known asĐiện Biên Phủ—was namedMuang Thaeng, just like the legendary kingdom ofKhun Borom, protagonist of a Tai creation myth and believed to be the progenitor of the Lao, Thai, Shan and other Tai peoples, who later spread to the territories of modern Laos, Thailand, Burma, northeast India and the south of China'sYunnan province.[7]
Like in other Tai societies, the core social units of the Tai Dam, Tai Dón and Tai Daeng were the village(ban) and the chiefdom (mueang, Vietnamesemường), each consisting of several villages and ruled by a feudal lord(chao). Their base of life waswet rice cultivation, which is why the Tai settled in valleys alongside the course of rivers. A number (first 12 - then 16) of thesemueang, situated in the modern-day provinces ofĐiện Biên,Lai Châu,Sơn La as well as western parts ofLào Cai andYên Bái grouped together and formed a long-term alliance, called Sip Song Chau Tai.
Usually one of the lords was considered senior to the others, but each of them maintained the power over his chiefdom. The alliance has been formalized since at least the 17th century,[2] but the chiefdoms never merged into one homogenous state.[8] The number ofmueangs belonging to the confederation altered during the course of time, but the number "twelve" was kept in the name for symbolic reasons.
In premodern Southeast Asia's complex political geography, Sip Song Chau Tai lay at the intersection of several largermandalas (circles of influence): At different times, it had to pay tribute to China, Vietnam,Lan Xang/Luang Phrabang (in today's Laos) and/orSiam (Thailand). Nevertheless, the Tai chiefdoms always maintained their autonomy in internal affairs.
Even though the upland Tai had stronger ethnic and cultural ties to Laos, Sip Song Chau Tai was incorporated into the French protectorate ofTonkin—and thereforeFrench Indochina—after 1888. This was arranged by the French explorer and colonial representativeAuguste Pavie who signed a treaty withĐèo Văn Trị, the White Tai lord of Muang Lay (Lai Châu) on 7 April 1889.[9]
Thereby the Sip Song Chau Tai accepted the French overlordship, while the colonial power promised to respect the positions of the Tai lords and their autonomy in internal affairs.
Following Đèo Văn Trị's death, leadership of the White Tai passed to his third sonĐèo Văn Long, passing over the second son. After theJapanese coup of 1945, Đèo Văn Long fled Lai Chau with retreating French units. On his return, with the assistance of a Eurasian agricultural official named Louis Bordier, Đèo Văn Long was reestablished, and the French agreed to honor the terms of Pavie's 1889 agreement with Long's father. Bordier married Long's daughter and as his son-in-law proceeded to direct military operations of the White Tai against the Black Tai at Son La who supported the Viet Minh. Several Tai companies fought alongside the French in theFirst Indochina War, against both the communistViet Minh and the nationalistViệt Nam Quốc Dân Đảng (VNQDD),[10] probably motivated by their distrust vis-à-vis the lowland Vietnamese and their wish to retain the autonomy they enjoyed under the French.
In 1948, the French colonial administration declared theTai Federation (French:Fédération Thaï, native name:Phen Din Tai,Vietnamese:Khu tự trị Thái; by that time consisting of 19 Tai states in then three Vietnamese provinces of Lai Châu, Sơn La and Phong Thổ) to be an independent component of theFrench Union. It had its own flag, constitution and parliament.[3] Đèo Văn Long was appointed president for life and Lai Châu was chosen as the capital.[11]
The Tai Federation was however not only populated by Tai peoples, but also other "hill tribes"(montagnards), includingHmong,Yao,Yi (Lolo) andKhmu. They were labeled as "sub-minorities" and treated inferior to the Tais.[3] Đèo Văn Long monopolized all the state power in his person and family, as well as the opium trade (which was tolerated by the French).[12] In 1950, the Tai Federation was made a crown domain of the French-installed Vietnamese emperorBảo Đại, but not an integrated part of the State of Vietnam. Bảo Đại refrained from delegating a governor to Lai Châu, but rather left the power in the hands of Đèo Văn Long and the Tai lords. The emperor visited his domain only once, in 1952.[4]
Many of the subjugated groups supported the Viet Minh on their advance to the Northwest starting in 1952. There were also rising tensions between the different Tai groups and their lords. Đèo Văn Long had simply dismissed the Black Tai lord of Muang Thaeng (Dien Bien Phu), Lò Văn Hặc, and replaced him by his own son. The disempowered chief and many members of his tribe joined forces with the Viet Minh to both seek retaliation against the Đèo family and to dislodge the dominance of the White Tai.[13] Following the death of Đèo Văn Long's oldest son, his third son Deo Van Un took command of 4,000White Tai partisans, but was killed at theBattle of Dien Bien Phu of March to May 1954.[14] When the Viet Minh attacked the Lai Châu town in December 1953, Đèo Văn Long was evacuated by the French army to Hanoi, then departed to Laos and finally went into exile in France. TheGeneva Agreements of July 1954 awarded the whole ofNorth Vietnam to the communist-led Democratic Republic (DRV) and dissolved the autonomous Tai Federation, marking the end of the centuries-old rule of the feudal lords.[12] Thousands of Tais left their native land and emigrated to France, Australia and the United States (mainly settling inIowa).
In order to avoid ethnic tensions, the DRV designated its northwestern provinces of Lai Châu, Sơn La and Nghĩa Lộ as the "Tai-Meo [i.e. Hmong] Autonomous Region" (Vietnamese:Khu Tự trị Thái-Mèo), modeled on thenational autonomies of communist China. It was renamed the "Northwest Autonomous Region"(Khu Tự trị Tây Bắc) in 1961, in order to not highlight just two of the many ethnic groups in this zone. The autonomy was rescinded after theVietnamese reunification of 1975.[15][16]
Following Đèo Văn Long's death in 1975, his title and position among the exile community of the "Pays Taï" passed to his daughterDeo Nang Toï, who has lived in Paris until her death in 2008.
Sip Song Chau Tai had a class-based society made up of thechao (lord) andpai (commoner). It was organized loosely with twelve or sixteen principalities calledchau muang, which established their relationships with each other through intermarriage and warfare. Other ethnic groups living in the area were known asSa, outsiders, and not included into the Tai principality system. Eachchau muang was made up of four to fivemuang (districts), including achiang (core district) and three to fourmuang nok (peripheral districts).[17]
The original twelvechau muang were as follows, although the names differ slightly from one account to another and can be preceded bychau/chou instead ofmuang:[18][19]
An additional fourchau muang were added after thearrival of the French:[20]
In the north-western highlands ... the loose federation ofSip Song Chau Tai, the Twelve Tai Cantons, had been formalized around it [Muang Lay (Lai Châu)] since at least the 17th century.
An accord was finally promulgated in July 1948, creating an independent Tai Federation in theUnion française, a Federation grouping together the provinces of Lai Chau, Phong Tho and Son La.
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)[Pavie] signed with Deo Van Tri .. a Protectorate treaty on 7 April 1889... The hereditary leader of the Sip Song Chau Tai was from now on to be referred to in French official documents as theSeigneur de Lai Chau, the Lord of Lai Chau, after the name of the town lying at the heart of his domain.
The initiator and intermediary of this new agreement was a Eurasian named Bordier, formerly an official of the Agricultural Service, who later married Deo Van Long's daughter and became organizer of the Thai partisans.
Traditional sovereignty over Dien Bien Phu ... was claimed by Black Tai leaders long installed in its surroundings as well as in the Son La area, on which the Lord of Lai Chau's supremacy had been imposed by the colonial power. Deo Van Long thus quite simply removed the local Black Tai leader Lo Van Hac and installed his own son in his place. The staunch French support of this sort of White Tai hegemonic power ... alienated the Black Tai to the colonial cause. Their main leaders joined Lo Van Hac and retaliated by defecting to the Viet Minh in the early 1950s.
Ils ont surtout été sacrifiés après la chute de Dien Bien Phu, où leur chef, Deo Van Un, troisième fils de Deo Van Long, est mort. Il avait pris le commandement des quelque 4,000 partisans thaï blancs, après la mort tragique de son frère aîné...
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