Fearing the growth of Catholicism in Vietnam emperor Cahn Thinh  first restricted Catholicism in 1798. Soon this turned into persecution. Fearing for their lives many Catholics fled. A group of refugees hid in the forest of La'Vang in the Quang Tri Province. Every night they gathered to pray the rosary. According to the tradition, one night, while they were at prayer a vision of a woman dressed in traditional Vietnamese garb and holding a child appeared to them. She consoled them and told them how to use the leaves of the trees as medicine for the sick.

Our Lady of La'Vang is the Patroness of Vietnam and all Vietnamese people. Her feast day is November 22.

This marble sculpture of Our Lady of La'Vang was carved by an unknown artist in Vietnam.

You can find the shrine of Our Lady of La'Vang near the Apse in the north-west corner of The Basilica.