The Pheonix Throne | House of Yi

“...Every time I left for the battlefield I promised
this to myself; I must live to see you again.
In order to protect you, I promised myself
that I must win...”
_{— GWANGHAEGUN OF JOSEON, Korean King — 16th Century}
—

Overview

The monarchs of Korea in its various incarnations have ruled the Korean Peninsula since the Gojoseon era (2333 BC – 108 BC) it is deemed to be the first Korean kingdom. According to legend, it was founded by Dangun in 2333 BC. Bronze Age archaeological evidence of Gojoseon culture is found in northern Korea and Liaoning. By the 9th to 4th century BC, various historical and archaeological evidence shows Gojoseon was a flourishing state and a self-declared kingdom. Both Dangun and Gija are believed to be mythological figures, but recent findings suggest and theorize that since Gojoseon was a kingdom with artifacts dating back to the 4th millennium BC, Dangun and Gija may have been royal or imperial titles used for the monarchs of Gojoseon, hence the use of Dangun for 1900 years.

The current dynastic Kingdom is Joseon, found back in July 1392 by Yi Seong-gye, the dynasty intially ended in 1897 when Joseon was transformed into the Korean Empire before subsequently being abolished and ruled from Japan by Governor-Generals in 1910. The Pheonix Throne on which the old Kings sat was revived in 1932 by the Japanese to create a puppet state headed up by Emperor Geon of the Yi Dynasty, following Japan and Greater Joseon's defeat in the Second World War the dynasty was once again left without official status. Instability and political upheaval throughout the 1950s led to the eventual return of the monarchy in the "May 16 Joint Revolution" or "May 16 Coup", it was led up by King Yi U, the younger brother of Emperor Geon, and now holds a more constitutional and ceremonial role than that of its previous incarnations.

Early Foundations

Founder Yi Seong-gye was a General in the Goryeo Dynasty era and was chosen to lead the invasion of the Liaodong Peninsula in modern day China; he instead swept back to the capital and organised a coup against King U in favour of the Kings son. After a failed restoration he had the King and his son executed placing Wang Yo on the throw who he later forcibly removed and took the throne for himself in 1392, ending the 474 year Goryeo Dynasty and beginning the new Yi Dynasty.

When Taejo of Joseon ascended to the throne in 1392, he continued to use the laws of Goryeo, and the noble titles he gave to his sons, nephews, and sons-in-law were all "prince" (군).After the coup d'état in 1398, the system of noble titles changed: "duke" for king's sons, "marquis" for royal descendants, and "earl" for officers of senior first rank. This system was abolished in 1401 to avoid "usurping" the existing title laws of the more powerful Ming dynasty.

As of 1412, Taejong of Joseon approved a new system for giving titles to the royalty: among the sons of a king, those who were born by the queen can acquire the title "grand prince" (대군), and the rest can be the "prince" (군); both princes have are of senior first rank and their male descendants as far as their great-grandsons can retrieve official positions as well. According to the Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty, the title "prince" (군) was at first restricted to be given to sons or grandsons of kings, but these standards became looser over time. Generally, a royal eligible to be a prince could not receive the title automatically even if his rank raised him to the junior second rank. Such a hereditary title could be passed down to generations until it exceeds more than four generations (from the king).

Similar to male royals, female royals received titles according to their kinship to the kings. Despite all being called "princess" in English, daughters of the king and queen were called 공주 (gongju). Girls born to other consorts and fathered by the king were called 옹주 (ongju) to differentiate; some further distant female royalties also had different titles. If the above-mentioned females were stripped of titles due to various reasons, they would be referred to as a commoner; for instance, the eldest daughter of deposed Yeonsangun of Joseon was addressed as "Ku Mun-gyeong's wife" after 1506. Later, there were also so-called "Kim Se-ryung's wife" (former Princess Hyomyeong) and "Jeong's wife" (former Princess Hwawan).

Middle Era

In 1469, Seongjong of Joseon ascended to the throne as the adopted heir to his uncle, Yejong of Joseon. As of 1475, Seongjong asked the Ming dynasty government to ratify his biological father, Crown Prince Uigyeong, to have a posthumous status as a king, and a temple name "Deokjong" was made for the late crown prince. A similar event took place in 1568, when Seonjo of Joseon succeeded the throne as the adopted heir to his half-uncle, Myeongjong of Joseon. Based on official advice, instead of giving his biological father (Prince Deokheung) a title of "king" posthumously, Seonjo created a new title for him in 1569, Deokheung Daewongun (덕흥대원군), as an honor to the late prince. This action had a precedent in 1066, when Emperor Yingzong of Song promoted his biological father (Zhao Yunrang) without posthumously elevating him to the status of emperor.

Following the precedent by Seonjo, three more royals were designated as Daewongun throughout the Joseon history: Prince Jeongwon (1623, but later promoted to "King Wonjong" as of 1634"); Yi Kwang (Jeongye Daewongun, 1849); and Prince Heungseon (1864). In 1650, Hyojong of Joseon, as requested by the prince regent Dorgon of the Qing dynasty, adopted a fourth cousin once removed as his daughter. Unusually, he gave her title, Princess Uisun, before she was about to leave Joseon to marry Dorgon.

Late Era and First Fall of Yi

After the Meiji Restoration, Japan acquired Western military technology. With this power, it forced Joseon to sign the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876 after the Ganghwa Island incident. It established a strong economic presence on the peninsula, heralding the beginning of Japanese imperial expansion in East Asia. In the 19th century tensions mounted between China and Japan, culminating in the First Sino-Japanese War; much of this war was fought on the Korean Peninsula. The Chinese defeat in the 1894 war resulted in the Treaty of Shimonoseki, which officially guaranteed Korea's independence from China. However, the treaty effectively granted Japan direct control over Korean politics.

The Joseon court, pressured by encroachment from larger powers, tried to reinforce national integrity and declared the Korean Empire in 1897. King Gojong of Korea assumed the title of Emperor in order to assert Korea's independence; he gave himself the rank of the leaders of China and Japan. In addition, Korea sought modern military technology from other foreign powers, especially Russia, in order to fend off the Japanese. Technically, 1895 marks the end of the Joseon period, as the official name of the state was changed. But the dynasty continued, although Japan intervened in its affairs. For example, the 1895 assassination of the queen consort, Queen Min, is believed to have been orchestrated by Japanese general Miura Gorō. The queen had great influence on politics during the reign of her husband, and she tried to maintain the neutrality of the country by accepting the offers from the Russian Empire, allowing the later to have greater influence. After the death of the queen, the emperor honored her by posthumously promoting her status to empress (Empress Myeongseong).

As an emperor, Gojong granted higher titles to some of his close relatives, and so did his successor Sunjong of Korea. In 1900, Gojong designated his younger son Yi Kang as Prince Imperial Ui (의친왕) and Yi Un as Prince Imperial Yeong (영친왕). Yi Seon, their older half brother who died young in 1880, was posthumously designated in 1907 as Prince Imperial Wan (완친왕). Gojong designated his (biological) elder brother Yi Jae-myeon as Prince Imperial Heung (흥친왕) in 1910. After a long-term process of controlling the puppet state, on 22 August 1910, Japan annexed the Korean peninsula effectively ended rule by the House of Yi, forcing the nation to accede to the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910.

The Puppet Emperor

In 1932, twenty-two years after the abolition of the Korean state, a new intiative was launched to further stabilise Japan's rule over the Peninsula. Prince Yi Geon the grandson of Emperor Gojong was invited to take up the title of 'Emperor of the Greater Joseon State' and act as a unifying figure on behalf of the Japanese Empire. In effective the role was nothing more than ceremonial, although through time Emperor Geon played a key role in the Japanese Colonial Government that ruled over Korea.

Following the invasion of the Korean Peninsula by allied forces in late 1945 the position was quickly abolished in the Soviet and American occupied zones, the House of Yi once again fell, although many had privately and very publicly opposed Yi Geon's reign, including his younger brother Yi U who openly rebelled against him from March 1944 onwards. Yi Geon fled to Japan in late 1945 sneaking out of Korea and changing his name to Kenichi Momoyama.

Modern Era

President Syngman Rhee of the First Korean Republic and attempted to dramatically curb the Royal Families influence on Korean society by exiling them from Japan and removing their properities, this was followed by wide-scale protests from the public after many had deemed the efforts of Prince Imperial Uihwa and his son Prince U, who had since taken up the courtesy name of Prince Haneul, Rhee backtracked on the proposals, but kept the royals under close watch and banned them from making public appearances in royal dress. (Ironically Rhee himself was of the House of YI; Rhee's family traced its lineage back to King Taejong of Joseon, and was a 16th-generation descendant of Grand Prince Yangnyeong.) Many believed he feared that its return would challenge his emerging authority as the new republic's founding father.

In April 1960 following a series of high profile protests in the aftermath of the March 1960 Presidential election, members of the revived Changdeok Faction under the guise of ousting President Syngman Rhee launched a military coup in conjunction with the anti-government protests and formed the Council for National Restoration. The Council sought to rewrite Korea's constitution and prevent a strongman from entering a powerful leadership position, in truth the Council almost guarenteed the revival of the Korean Throne, and General Park Chung-hee's election as Prime Minister. The House of Yi once again became the ruling dynasty of Korea and was granted more power than that of European Royal Families, but still had to operate within a constitutional framework. Yi U was enthroned as King Haneul of Korea (Hangul: 하늘)(Hanja: 寒乙) on August 15 1962.

Kingdom of Korea (1961-Present)

Empire of Greater Korea | Japanese Occupation (1932-1945)

Korean Empire (1897-1910)

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