Jeongye Daewongun


Jeongye Daewongun was a member of the Korean Joseon dynasty as the biological father of King Cheoljong of Joseon. His personal name was Yi Gwang, but he was also known as Kwae-deuk or Hae-dong.

Early life

Yi Gwang was born on March 21, 1785, in Ganghwa-do. His birth name was Kwae-deuk, which later changed to Hae-dong and after some years to Gwang.
He was one of several illegitimate sons of Prince Euneon and the second of two sons of Lady Yi of the Jeonju Yi clan. His older full-brother suffered an early death.
His legitimate eldest half-brother was Prince Sanggye, also known as Crown Prince Wanpung, who was an adopted son of Jeongjo of Joseon and heir to the throne for a short time in 1779.
His father, Prince Euneon, was an illegitimate son of Crown Prince Sado by his concubine, Royal Noble Consort Suk of the Buan Im clan; Sado himself was an illegitimate son of King Yeongjo of Joseon. This made Jeongye the half-nephew of King Jeongjo, but during his life, he did not receive the treatment of a member of the Royal Family.
In 1801, Prince Euneon was executed after his legitimate wife, Princess Consort Sangsan of the Jincheon Song clan, and his daughter-in-law, Princess Consort Shin of the Pyeongsan Shin clan, had been baptized into the Roman Catholic Church. The Joseon Dynasty's state religion was Neo-Confucianism, so Princess Sangsan, Prince Euneon, and Princess Shin were all executed for treason.
Some of Prince Euneon's sons, including Yi Gwang, were exiled on Ganghwa Island, where they lived as poor farmers until 1822 when the family received a special pardon from King Sunjo.
On 2 November 1841, Grand Internal Prince Jeongye died at his home in Gyeonghaeng, Hanseong, at the age of 56. The cause of death is unknown.

After death

In August 1841, the Noron faction plotted a coup d'état in order to crown Yi Won-gyeong, Yi Gwang's eldest child and only legitimate son, as the new King. However, the plot was detected, which led to the execution of Yi Won-gyeong. The sole survivors were Yi Gwang's two illegitimate sons, Yi Gyeong-eung and Yi Won-beom, who were again exiled to Ganghwa-do.
In 1849, his son, Yi Won-beom, born to a concubine named Lady Yeom, became the new monarch of Joseon as King Cheoljong. The title Daewongun was posthumously conferred on Prince Jeongye, making his full name Jeongye Daewongun.
He was originally buried in Jingwan, Eunpyeong District, Seoul, northwest of the grave of his father Prince Euneon, but he was moved to Yeoju, and in August 1851, to Seondan-ri, Pocheon-eup, near Wangbang Mountain.

Family