The Royal Lao Army (RLA) was the military of the Kingdom of Laos from 1 July 1949 to 2 December 1975. It was founded as the pro-French "National Laotian Army" during the First Indochina War, and its strength peaked at 29,000 men in May 1959. Under Phoumi Nosavan, the army's performance deteriorated as it suffered numerous defeats from 1961 to 1963 during the Laotian Civil War, and it was disbanded after the communist victory in 1975.