Sejong the Great
Sejong, commonly known as Sejong the Great, was the fourth monarch of the Koreanic state Joseon. He ruled from 1418 to his death in 1450. He is widely regarded as the greatest king in Korean history, and is remembered for the creation of Hangul, the native alphabet of the Korean language.
Sejong was born the third son of the future King Taejong. He was regarded as gifted, moreso than the troubled crown prince Grand Prince Yangnyŏng. In mid-1418, Yangnyŏng was deposed and Sejong made the crown prince. Months later, Taejong abdicated and Sejong was crowned king. Taejong served as king emeritus until his death in 1422.
Sejong's reign was marked by major developments in science, technology, medicine, agriculture, and the arts. Many such efforts Sejong not only oversaw, but actively participated in. In 1420, Sejong had the government research organization Hall of Worthies reestablished. It oversaw such projects as the creations of the first native Korean calendar, the 365-volume medical text , and the agricultural text Nongsa chiksŏl.
In 1419, Sejong launched the successful Ōei Invasion against the Japanese Tsushima Island. This was followed by decades of peace and trade between Korea and Japan. Sejong also expanded the northern borders of Korea to roughly its current extent by launching military campaigns against and assimilating the raiding Jurchens, although this region would remain problematic. He also maintained positive relations with Joseon's suzerain Ming while still asserting Korean autonomy. Sejong made significant tax and land reforms, which resulted in increases in agricultural production and a reduction in tax rates, without significant impact to tax income. He also led a massive expansion in the influence of Confucianism in Korea and decrease in the influence of Buddhism. Despite his anti-Buddhist policies, he was privately Buddhist and increasingly vocalized his faith, which put him at odds with the Confucianists of his court.
Sejong had recurring and worsening health issues for much of his life. Beginning in 1445, he had the crown prince, the future King Munjong, handle the daily affairs of government. Sejong died at the age of 52 in 1450 and is buried in the tomb Yeongneung.
Sejong is regarded as an icon of Korean culture in South Korea, where he has received numerous tributes. Sejong City bears his name. Several North Korean texts reportedly skeptically evaluate Sejong as a feudal oppressor.
Names and titles
"Sejong" is the name by which he is most widely known. It is a temple name: a posthumous title that was given to him on the 19th day, 3rd month of 1450. Historian Gari Ledyard roughly translates its meaning as "epochal ancestor". Sejong's birth name was Yi To. In the 2nd month of 1408, Yi To was granted the name "Ch'ungnyŏng" and the title "Prince". In the 5th month of 1413, Ch'ungnyŏng was granted the title "Grand Prince". On the 27th day, 6th month of 1418, Ch'ungnyŏng was granted the courtesy name "Wŏnjŏng".After his death, Ming granted him the title of Changhŏn. His full posthumous title was Great King Changhŏn Yŏngmun Yemu Insŏng Myŏnghyo.
Sejong was reportedly popularly called the "Yao-Shun East of the Sea". The name references the legendary wise Chinese sage kings Yao and Shun. "East of the Sea" refers to Korea.
Early life
Yi To was born on the 10th day, 4th month of 1397 in Chunsubang, Hanyang, Joseon as the third son of father Grand Prince Chŏngan and Princess Chŏngnyŏng. Yi To's father was the fifth son of the founding and reigning king of Joseon, Taejo.Yi To was born five years after the founding of Joseon. His father, Grand Prince Chŏngan, had played a major role in the dynasty's establishment. In 1398, Chŏngan became embroiled in a succession crisis. He launched the, which resulted in the installment of one of his brothers as King Jeongjong. After suppressing a coup in the, Jeongjong abdicated the throne in favor of Chŏngan, who became King Taejong.
Very little is known of Yi To's early life; few records were made of him, as it had seemed unlikely that he would ascend to the throne until just before he did. One anecdote has it that the young Yi To read so much that his father became concerned for his health and took away his books; one book that was missed Yi To read several times over. Several historians have evaluated this anecdote as possibly fanciful, but Ledyard argued it was plausible given Yi To's lifelong academic interests. In 1413, Taejong told Yi To : "you have nothing to do in particular, so you should just enjoy your life in peace". At this point, Ch'ungnyŏng was already considered to be bright and skilled at the arts, including calligraphy, the gayageum, and painting. That year, he began to be tutored by scholar-official.
Heir to the throne
By 1406, Taejong had decided that he wished to eventually abdicate the throne to a successor while he was still alive, to reduce the probability of a succession crisis upon his death. Taejong had twelve sons, the oldest of which was Grand Prince Yangnyŏng. Yangnyŏng was designated the successor.A number of anecdotes indicate that Yangnyŏng was considered to have behavioral issues. Yangnyŏng disobeyed the king frequently, neglected studying, and womanized. Taejong strictly and sternly managed Yangnyŏng's education. Historian Kim Young Soo argued that this may have pushed Yangnyŏng away from studying. The king also disliked the companions of the grand prince; on several occasions they were banned from the palace for their behavior. By contrast, various anecdotes in the indicate that Ch'ungnyŏng was seen as intelligent and studious by the king and various members of the court. The king frequently praised Ch'ungnyŏng and compared him favorably to Yangnyŏng, to the latter's chagrin. On several occasions, Ch'ungnyŏng chastised the misbehavior of Yangnyŏng, which only fueled the latter's resentment, although on several occasions Yangnyŏng acknowledged his brother's better judgement. The two developed a bitter rivalry.
In early 1417, it emerged that Yangnyŏng had had an affair with a woman named Ŏri, a concubine of scholar-official Kwak Sŏn. The incident enraged and embarrassed Taejong. Yangnyŏng angrily accused Ch'ungnyŏng of having informed their father of the affair.
In early 1418, the younger brother of Ch'ungnyŏng,, was deathly ill. Ch'ungnyŏng reportedly stayed by his brother's bed day and night, reading medical texts and helping with the treatment. Sŏngnyŏng died on the 4th day, 2nd month of that year. Afterwards, Taejong went to Kaesong and nominally left Yangnyŏng in charge of the capital in his absence. He quietly ordered that Yangnyŏng be functionally isolated and monitored; he wished to see if Yangnyŏng would change his ways. In his father's absence, Yangnyŏng brought Ŏri back into the palace, where she gave birth to their child. When Taejong learned of this, he wept and confided to several ministers that he had little faith in Yangnyŏng's ability to govern. Historian Yoon Jeong argues that, around this time, Taejong worked on building consensus among his cabinet to have Yangnyŏng removed from his position. Their relationship reached its lowest point in the 5th month of that year, after Yangnyŏng sent a letter to his father in which he defended his actions and questioned his father's judgment.
On the 3rd day, 6th month of 1418, Taejong and his ministers held a meeting on whether to depose Yangnyŏng. The topic was contentious as it required overriding the stable practice of primogeniture. Despite some opposition from the queen and several in the court, it was decided that Yangnyŏng would be demoted and exiled to Gwangju. It was also decided that they would select the new successor based on their merits. Taejong described his second son, Grand Prince Hyoryŏng, as weak and overly agreeable. He then nominated Ch'ungnyŏng, whom he praised as studious and wise. The court reportedly enthusiastically agreed with Taejong's nomination. There is an anecdote that these decisions weighed heavily on Taejong, and that he wept after making them. Yangnyŏng took the news of his deposal calmly and quickly became detached from politics. Kim argued that Yangnyŏng had likely anticipated this happening. He was eventually invited back to the capital by his brother and the two got along well.
Early reign
On the 10th day, 8th month of 1418, Taejong abdicated and 21-year-old Ch'ungnyŏng ascended the throne at the hall Geunjeongjeon in the palace Gyeongbokgung. Taejong, as king emeritus, would continue to exert great influence over Sejong until the former's death on the 10th day, 5th month of 1422. Taejong had veto power on all decisions and maintained tight control over the military. On the 26th day, 10th month of 1421, Sejong designated his son Yi Hyang as crown prince.A number of historians have argued that Sejong's successful reign was made possible by the stability created by Taejong's competent statecraft. Historian Djun Kil Kim argued that Sejong also benefitted from being surrounded by experienced military officials that had worked under his father. By the time that Sejong took the throne, bureaucratic institutions had been in place for around 15 years.
File:Sujeongjeon.JPG|thumb|During Sejong's reign, the building Sujeongjeon in Gyeongbokgung hosted the Hall of Worthies
In 1420, Sejong designed and reestablished the Hall of Worthies. Modern historians have likened the institution to a think tank; it oversaw major cultural and intellectual pursuits, especially for issues of governance, as well as the education of the king and crown prince. In 1426, he ordered that the institution began a practice called : allowing scholars to independently research without participating in government work; this has been likened to modern research grants.
In 1421, Sejong made Gyeongbokgung his primary palace. In 1426, he had many major gates and bridges of the palace named. By 1427, he officially moved out of the secondary palace Changdeokgung and into Gyeongbokgung, although he would continue to move between the two often. Sejong greatly renovated and expanded the palace. It was during Sejong's reign that Gyeongbokgung became fully-fledged and functional; it would remain in much the same state from his reign for around a hundred years afterwards.