An outline, era by era

Korea

Joseon dynasty

Early Modern Era · ~1500 – ~1800

Korea's Joseon dynasty ruled the whole Korean peninsula from 1392 until 1910, one of the longest-lasting dynasties in East Asian history. It was founded by the general Yi Seong-gye, later known as King Taejo, who replaced the Goryeo dynasty. The capital was Hanyang, today's Seoul. This entry covers the early modern centuries, from about 1500 to 1800.

Joseon took Neo-Confucianism as its guiding ideology and built a government run by scholar-officials chosen through examinations. It paid tribute to Ming and later Qing China while keeping its own rulers, laws and language. In this period the country survived Japanese invasions in the 1590s and Manchu invasions in the 1620s and 1630s, and it later saw a cultural revival under kings Yeongjo and Jeongjo. Its alphabet, hangul, created in the 1440s, became widely used in these centuries.

Things happened, and the rest is history

  1. The founding of Joseon

    Event

    What happened

    In 1388 the Goryeo general Yi Seong-gye is sent to attack Ming forces in Liaodong, but turns back at Wihwado and seizes power in the capital. In 1392 he takes the throne and founds the Joseon dynasty, which Ming China recognises with the name Joseon. In 1394 the capital moves to Hanyang.

    The rest is history

    The new state adopted Neo-Confucian principles, supported by scholars such as Jeong Dojeon. A law code, the Gyeongguk daejeon, was completed in the 1400s and shaped government for centuries. The dynasty lasted until 1910.

    Sources

    1. BookDuncan, John B. The Origins of the Choson Dynasty. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2000.
    2. PrimaryJoseon Wangjo Sillok (Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty). Court chronicle, 1392 onward.

  2. The creation of hangul

    Event

    What happened

    In 1443 King Sejong and scholars at court devise a phonetic alphabet for Korean. In 1446 it is promulgated in the document Hunminjeongeum, 'The Correct Sounds for the Instruction of the People'. Some officials, notably Choe Malli, object to it.

    The rest is history

    Hangul was at first used alongside Chinese characters, which elite men kept for formal writing. Over the following centuries it spread in fiction, letters and women's writing. It became Korea's main script, and the 1446 text is a UNESCO Memory of the World item.

    Sources

    1. PrimaryHunminjeongeum. Royal promulgation text, 1446. Kansong Art Museum copy.
    2. BookLedyard, Gari K. The Korean Language Reform of 1446. Seoul: Singu Munhwasa, 1998.

  3. The literati purges

    Event

    What happened

    Between 1498 and 1545 four purges, called sahwa, strike scholars of the reform-minded Sarim faction. Court officials and kings accuse them of disloyalty or factional plotting. Many are executed or exiled, including Jo Gwangjo in 1519.

    The rest is history

    The Sarim eventually rose again, gaining dominance in the later 1500s. Their victory brought factional rivalry at court, with groups such as the Easterners and Westerners splitting by the 1570s. Factional conflict marked politics for the next two centuries.

    Sources

    1. BookWagner, Edward W. The Literati Purges: Political Conflict in Early Yi Korea. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University East Asian Research Center, 1974.
    2. BookPalais, James B. Confucian Statecraft and Korean Institutions: Yu Hyongwon and the Late Choson Dynasty. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1996.

  4. The Imjin War

    Event

    What happened

    In 1592 Toyotomi Hideyoshi's army lands at Busan and quickly takes Seoul, forcing King Seonjo to flee north. Ming China sends troops to help Joseon. Admiral Yi Sun-sin wins naval victories, including Hansando in 1592, and righteous armies resist on land. After a pause in talks, Japan invades again in 1597 and withdraws after Hideyoshi dies in 1598.

    The rest is history

    The war devastated farmland and population, and many artisans were taken to Japan, which influenced Japanese ceramics. Ming's costs contributed to its weakening. Joseon recovered slowly, and relations with Japan were restored in 1607 through diplomatic missions.

    Sources

    1. BookHawley, Samuel. The Imjin War. Seoul: Royal Asiatic Society Korea Branch, 2005.
    2. PrimaryYi Sun-sin. Nanjung ilgi (War Diary). Admiral's diary, 1592-1598.

  5. The Manchu invasions

    Event

    What happened

    In 1627 the Later Jin invade Joseon, which is allied to the Ming, and force a treaty of brotherhood. In 1636 Hong Taiji declares the Qing dynasty and invades again. King Injo holds out at Namhansanseong fortress until early 1637, then surrenders at Samjeondo.

    The rest is history

    Joseon became a Qing tributary and sent royal princes as hostages to Shenyang. Many Koreans resented the Manchus and kept a private loyalty to the fallen Ming. Debates about a northern expedition shaped politics for decades.

    Sources

    1. BookKim, Seonmin. Ginseng and Borderland: Territorial Boundaries and Political Relations between Qing China and Chosŏn Korea, 1636-1912. Oakland: University of California Press, 2017.
    2. PrimaryInjo Sillok. Veritable Records of King Injo, Joseon court chronicle.

  6. The Daedongbeop tax reform

    Event

    What happened

    After the Imjin War ruined the old system of tribute goods, Joseon officials push for a reform that replaces local products with a levy in rice. It is first applied in Gyeonggi Province in 1608. It spreads slowly and reaches Hwanghae in 1708.

    The rest is history

    The reform eased burdens on peasants and fed the growth of markets and merchants. It spread over about a century, against resistance from officials who gained from the old system. It is seen as a key step in the commercialisation of Joseon's economy.

    Sources

    1. BookPalais, James B. Confucian Statecraft and Korean Institutions: Yu Hyongwon and the Late Choson Dynasty. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1996.

  7. The Yeongjo and Jeongjo revival

    Event

    What happened

    King Yeongjo reigns from 1724 to 1776 and promotes his 'impartiality' policy, trying to balance the court factions. In 1762 he has his son Crown Prince Sado confined in a rice chest, where Sado dies. Sado's son Jeongjo rules from 1776 to 1800, founds the Gyujanggak royal library and builds Hwaseong fortress at Suwon.

    The rest is history

    The period saw a flourishing of Silhak ('practical learning') writing, genre painting and hangul fiction. Hong Hyegyeong's memoirs, written by Sado's widow, record the events of 1762. After Jeongjo's death in 1800 court politics shifted to in-law families.

    Sources

    1. PrimaryHanjungnok. Memoirs of Lady Hyegyeong, written 1795-1805.
    2. BookHaboush, JaHyun Kim. The Memoirs of Lady Hyegyong. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996.

  8. Catholicism arrives in Korea

    Event

    What happened

    Korean scholars read Catholic books brought from Beijing in the 1700s. In 1784 Yi Seung-hun is baptised in Beijing and returns to start a community in Seoul. In 1791 the Jinsan incident brings the first executions of Catholics for refusing ancestral rites.

    The rest is history

    The faith spread among commoners and women, partly because it taught human equality. Persecutions followed in 1801 and later. Korean Catholics formed a church before any foreign priest arrived.

    Sources

    1. BookBaker, Donald. Korean Spirituality. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2008.
    2. BookChoi, Jai-keun. The Origin of the Roman Catholic Church in Korea. Seoul: Hollym, 2006.

  9. Admiral Yi's turtle ships

    Popular belief

    The legend

    Admiral Yi Sun-sin is said to have invented the iron-clad turtle ship, an unsinkable armoured vessel that destroyed Japanese fleets. Some tell that it was covered in iron plates and spikes and sailed on its own into the enemy.

    The rest is history

    Turtle ships (geobukseon) were real and appear in Yi's reports of 1592, but Yi did not invent them, as similar ships existed from the early 1400s. Contemporary sources describe a covered deck with spikes and guns, and whether they had iron plating is debated, since no direct record states it. They were few in number, and most of Yi's victories came from ordinary warships, tactics and gunnery. The famous victory at Myeongnyang in 1597 was won with a small fleet of panokseon.

    Sources

    1. PrimaryYi Sun-sin. Nanjung ilgi (War Diary). Admiral's diary, 1592-1598.
    2. BookHawley, Samuel. The Imjin War. Seoul: Royal Asiatic Society Korea Branch, 2005.

  10. Dangun and the founding of Korea

    Origin story

    The legend

    Hwanung, son of the heavenly lord, descends to Mount Taebaek. A bear who eats mugwort and garlic and stays in a cave becomes a woman, and bears his son Dangun. Dangun founds the first Korean state, Gojoseon, in 2333 BCE.

    The rest is history

    The story was first written down in the Samguk yusa of the monk Iryeon around 1280, quoting older works now lost. In Joseon it was used to stress Korea's long and separate past, and the Dongguk tonggam and other histories of the 1400s took it up. No archaeological evidence supports the 2333 BCE date, though Gojoseon was a real early state known from Chinese sources. Dangun's founding is still marked as National Foundation Day on 3 October.

    Sources

    1. PrimaryIryeon. Samguk yusa. Buddhist monk's collection of legends and histories, c. 1280.
    2. BookPratt, Keith. Everlasting Flower: A History of Korea. London: Reaktion Books, 2006.

  11. Chunhyang and the secret royal inspector

    Folk tale

    The legend

    Chunhyang, a girl of lowly birth, marries the nobleman's son Yi Mongryong, who must leave for Seoul. The new governor demands that she serve him, and she refuses and is thrown into prison. Mongryong returns as a secret royal inspector and rescues her.

    The rest is history

    The tale is told in pansori, a sung storytelling form that grew in the 1700s, and was written down in novel form in the 1800s. It reflects attitudes to class and faithfulness in late Joseon, and the figure of the secret royal inspector (amhaeng eosa) was a real office. No historical Chunhyang has been identified. Her story remains among the best known in Korea.

    Sources

    1. BookKim, Kichung. An Introduction to Classical Korean Literature: From Hyangga to P'ansori. Armonk: M. E. Sharpe, 1996.
    2. BookPihl, Marshall R. The Korean Singer of Tales. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1994.

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