Overview

Countering notions that Hmong history begins and ends with the “Secret War” in Laos of the 1960s and 1970s, Dreams of the Hmong Kingdom reveals how the Hmong experience of modernity is grounded in their sense of their own ancient past, when this now-stateless people had their own king and kingdom, and illuminates their political choices over the course of a century in a highly contested region of Asia. China, Vietnam, and Laos, the Hmong continuously negotiated with these states and with the French to maintain political autonomy in a world of shifting boundaries, emerging nation-states, and contentious nationalist movements and ideologies. Often divided by clan rivalries, the Hmong placed their hope in finding a leader who could unify them and recover their sovereignty. In a compelling analysis of Hmong society and leadership throughout the French colonial period, Mai Na M. Lee identifies two kinds of leaders—political brokers who allied strategically with Southeast Asian governments and with the French, and messianic resistance leaders who claimed the Mandate of Heaven. The continuous rise and fall of such leaders led to cycles of collaboration and rebellion. After World War II, the powerful Hmong Ly clan and their allies sided with the French and the new monarchy in Laos, but the rival Hmong Lo clan and their supporters allied with Communist coalitions. Lee argues that the leadership struggles between Hmong clans destabilized French rule and hastened its demise. Martialing an impressive array of oral interviews conducted in the United States, France, and Southeast Asia, augmented with French archival documents, she demonstrates how, at the margins of empire, minorities such as the Hmong sway the direction of history.

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Every now and then a book is published that is almost immediately destined to become the 'go-to' reference for a particular topic. [Dreams of the Hmong Kingdom] will undoubtedly become the key source for those interested in understanding the history of the Hmong from Laos during the French colonial period. . . . One of the strengths of the book is that it relies on both oral history and primary archival sources. --International Journal of Asian Studies Provides insight into historic Hmong desires for autonomy, describing the Hmong relationship to a sequence of Chinese, French, Japanese, and Laotian governing authorities. --Choice A detailed study of the interplay between French colonial authority and the Hmong people. . . . A thoughtful and extensive analysis of history, politics, and conflict, Dreams of the Hmong Kingdom is a welcome addition to public and college library world history shelves. --Library Bookwatch, World History Shelf Presents students, academics, researchers, and general interest readers with an examination of the Hmong struggle for independent nation status before, during, and after the French colonization of Indochina. --ProtoView No other scholar has tracked this one-hundred-year narrative in such detail. The rich oral histories and presentation of Hmong perspectives make this a welcome work of unimpeachable originality. In excavating the complex history of Hmong struggles for sovereignty, Lee also sheds light on clan lineages, gender, orality, and belief systems. --Geoffrey C. Gunn, Nagasaki University, emeritus It is a mature and sophisticated work, showing a huge knowledge of the region and its peoples, and is also highly readable. In its blending of oral with written accounts, it should have a considerable impact in historical studies. --Nicholas Tapp, Australian National University

Every now and then a book is published that is almost immediately destined to become the go-to reference for a particular topic. [<i>Dreams of the Hmong Kingdom] </i>will undoubtedly become the key source for those interested in understanding the history of the Hmong from Laos during the French colonial period. . . . One of the strengths of the book is that it relies on both oral history and primary archival sources. <i>International Journal of Asian Studies</i>

No other scholar has tracked this one-hundred-year narrative in such detail. The rich oral histories and presentation of Hmong perspectives make this a welcome work of unimpeachable originality. In excavating the complex history of Hmong struggles for sovereignty, Lee also sheds light on clan lineages, gender, orality, and belief systems. --Geoffrey C. Gunn, Nagasaki University, emeritus

Every now and then a book is published that is almost immediately destined to become the 'go-to' reference for a particular topic. [Dreams of the Hmong Kingdom] will undoubtedly become the key source for those interested in understanding the history of the Hmong from Laos during the French colonial period. . . . One of the strengths of the book is that it relies on both oral history and primary archival sources. --International Journal of Asian Studies A detailed study of the interplay between French colonial authority and the Hmong people. . . . A thoughtful and extensive analysis of history, politics, and conflict, Dreams of the Hmong Kingdom is a welcome addition to public and college library world history shelves. --Library Bookwatch, World History Shelf Presents students, academics, researchers, and general interest readers with an examination of the Hmong struggle for independent nation status before, during, and after the French colonization of Indochina. --ProtoView It is a mature and sophisticated work, showing a huge knowledge of the region and its peoples, and is also highly readable. In its blending of oral with written accounts, it should have a considerable impact in historical studies. --Nicholas Tapp, Australian National University Provides insight into historic Hmong desires for autonomy, describing the Hmong relationship to a sequence of Chinese, French, Japanese, and Laotian governing authorities. --Choice No other scholar has tracked this one-hundred-year narrative in such detail. The rich oral histories and presentation of Hmong perspectives make this a welcome work of unimpeachable originality. In excavating the complex history of Hmong struggles for sovereignty, Lee also sheds light on clan lineages, gender, orality, and belief systems. --Geoffrey C. Gunn, Nagasaki University, emeritus

Author Information

Mai Na M. Lee is an assistant professor of history and Asian American studies at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, USA. She was born in Laos and came to the United States when she was a teenager. She was the first Hmong in the United States to earn a PhD in history.

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