Yeongjo of Joseon

Yeongjo
King of Joseon
Reign	16 October 1724 – 22 April 1776
Predecessor	Gyeongjong of Joseon
Successor	Jeongjo of Joseon
Born	(1694-10-31)31 October 1694 Changdeok Palace, Korea
Died	22 April 1776(1776-04-22) (aged 81) Gyeonghui Palace, Korea
Burial	Wonneung, Guri, Gyeonggi
Issue	Crown Prince Hyojang Crown Prince Sado a daughter Princess Hwasoon Princess Hwapyeong Princess Hwahyeop Princess Hwawan Princess Hwayoo Princess Hwaryeong Princess Hwagil
House	House of Yi
Father	King Sukjong of Joseon
Mother	Royal Noble Consort Suk of the Haeju Choi clan

Korean name
Hangul	영조
Hanja	英祖
Revised Romanization	Yeongjo
McCune–Reischauer	Yǒngjo
Art name
Hangul	양성헌
Hanja	養性軒
Revised Romanization	Yangseongheon
McCune–Reischauer	Yangsŏnghŏn
Birth name
Hangul	이금
Hanja	李昑
Revised Romanization	I Geum
McCune–Reischauer	Yi Kŭm
Courtesy name
Hangul	광숙
Hanja	光叔
Revised Romanization	Gwangsuk
McCune–Reischauer	Kwangsuk

Yeongjo (31 October 1694 – 22 April 1776, r. 16 October 1724 – 22 April 1776) was the twenty-first king of the Korean Joseon Dynasty. He was the second son of Sukjong by Royal Noble Consort Suk of the Haeju Choi clan, succeeded his older brother Gyeongjong.

Succession to the throne

In 1720, King Sukjong died and Crown Prince Yi Yun, his half-brother ascends the throne as King Gyeongjong, at the age of 33. When Sukjong died in 1720 supposedly told Yi Yi-myoung to name Yeoning-geum as Kyungjong's heir, but in absence of a histriographer or recorder. During his time the Noron faction pressured King Gyeongjong to step down in favor of his half-brother Prince Yeoning (the future King Yeongjo). In 1720, two months after the King's enthronement, Prince Yeoning was installed as Royal Prince Successor Brother (wangseje, 왕세제, 王世弟). This aggravated the power struggle and led to a big massacre, namely the Shinimsahwa (辛壬士禍). The Norons sent memorials to the king to no effect while the Sorons used this to their advantage -- claiming the Noron faction were trying to usurp power and subsequently getting their rival faction removed from several offices.

Members of the Soron faction then came up with an idea to assassinate the heir (Yeoning-geum) under the cover of hunting for a white fox, said to be haunting the palace, but Yeoning Geum seek shelter with his step mother,Queen dowager Inwon, Who protected him and he was able to keep living, after this he said to the king he rather would go and live as a commoner.

In 11th day of October 1724, King Gyeongjong died. Soron then accused Prince Yeoning to had something to do with his brother death due to the earlier attempt by the Noron faction to have him replace Gyeongjong on the throne. But historiographer now agree that he could have died of eating contaminated seafood, as for the symptoms of the illness that cause his death. Homer described this in his book The history of Korea “But we may well doubt the truth of the rumour, for nothing that is told of that brother indicates that he would commit such an act, & in the second place a man who will eat shrimps in mid-summer, that have been brought thirty miles from the sea without ice might expect to die. In 16th day of October 1724, Prince Yeoning ascend the throne as King Yeongjo, the 22nd ruler of Joseon.

Reign

King Yeongjo was a deeply Confucian monarch, and is said to have had a greater knowledge of the classics than his officials. During the reign of Yeongjo and his grandson Jeongjo, Confucianization was at its height, as well as the economic recovery from the wars of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. His rulership has been called one of the most brilliant reigns of all the Joseon Dynasty.

Yeongjo worried deeply for his people. Annals of Joseon recorded that one day in his 4th year of his reign, King Yeongjo woke up to the sound of early morning rain and said to his courtiers, “Oh dear! We have had flood, drought and famines for the past four years because of my lack of virtue, and this year we even went through an unprecedented revolt by a traitor named Yi In Jwa. Yeongjo said that “How can my poor people manage their livelihood under such hardship? There is an old saying, ‘War is always followed by a lean year.’ Fortunately, however, we haven’t had a big famine for the past two years and we pin our hopes on a good harvest this year. Yet I am still nervous because, while the season for harvesting is around the corner, there is no way of knowing if there will be a flood or drought before then. Nobody knows whether a cold rain will pour suddenly and flood the fields awaiting harvest. My lack of goodness might bring upon us such awful things as I fail to win the sympathy of heaven. How can I earn the sympathy of heavens if I do not self-reflect and make efforts myself? I should start with reflecting on myself.”(“The Annals of Yeongjo dated July 27 of the 4th year of his reign 1728)

Yeongjo worried that rain would ruin the harvest and force his unfortunate people to starve. The King ordered his courtiers to reduce taxes on the people and decrease the number of dishes in his meals. Reducing the range of foods he ate was a decision made out of concern for his starving people.

One early morning 25 years later circa 1753, the continuous rain reminded Yeongjo of the flood during his 4th year of his reign, when he had eaten less food. “Oh! Floods and droughts really happen because I lack virtue. I am much older than that year, but how can my compassion for the people and will to work hard for them be less than back then?” (The Annals of Yeongjo, dated July 23 of the 29th year of his reign circa 1753). Yeongjo ordered a reduction in the number of dishes on his dining table again.

Yeongjo who reign from 1724-1776 realising the detrimental effect on state administration of factional strife during the latter half of the 17the century and attempted to end factional strife as soon as he ascended the throne. Yeongjo reinstate the short lived universal military service tax then he even comes out of the palace gate and solicited the opinion of officials, literati, soldiers and peasants. Yeongjo reduced the military service tax by half and ordered the variance be supplemented by taxes on fisheries, salt, vessels and an addition land tax. Yeongjo also regularized the financial system of state revenues and expenses by adopting an accounting system, Yeongjo realistic policies allow payment of taxes on grain from the remote mountainous areas Gyeongsang do province, then to the nearby port, the payment in cotton or cash for grain. The circulation of currency was encourage by increasing coin casting

Yeongjo concern for improvement of the peasant’s life was manifest in his eagerness to educate the people by distributing important books in Korean script Hangul, including the book of agriculture. The pluviometre was again manufacture in quantity and distributed to local Administration office and extensive public work projects were undertaken. Yeongjo upgraded the status of the posterity of the commoners, opening another possibility for upwards social mobility. Yeongjo policies were intended to reassert the Confucian monarchy and humanistic rule, but they couldn't stem the tide of social change

Mercantile activities increased in volume at a rapid rate. The accumulation of capital through monopoly and wholesales that expanded through guild organisation that many merchant were centred in Hanyang. The traditional division of government chartered shop, the license tribute good suppliers and the small shopkeepers in the alley and streets were integrated and woven into a monopoly and wholesale system.

In regardless to status, many Yangban class and commoners engage in some kind of merchant activities. Thus Hanyang made great strides as a commercial and industrial city in the 18th century. The popular demand handicraft goods such as knives, horse hair hats, dining table and brassware was ever increasing. Restriction on wearing horse hair hat originally denotes a Yangban class status virtually disappeared

Even pirating of books became commercialised as competition developed among the well to do Yanban engage in publication of collected literary works of their renowned ancestors. This also led to printing of popular fiction and poetry. The people especially appreciate satire & social criticism. One of the example is the Chunhyangjeon *Tales of Chunghyang) about the fidelity of the Gisaeng’s daughter was widely read as a satire aimed to expose the greed & snobbery of government official.

The King is also famous for having treasured Park Mun-su, who was appointed as Amhaeng-eosa (암행어사), a secret governmental inspector. Park, who had earned great merit in putting down Yi In-ja's rebellion, went around the nation arresting corrupt local officers in the name of the King.

The only significantly dismal incident during Yeongjo's reign was the death of his son, Crown Prince Sado. History indicates Sado suffered from mental illness; accused of randomly killing people in the palace and being a sexual deviant. By court rules King Yeongjo could not kill his son by his own hands, so Sado was ordered to climb into a large wooden rice chest on a hot July day in 1762. After eight days, Sado died of suffocation. During the 19th century, there were rumors that Prince Sado had not been mentally ill, but had been framed; however, these rumors are widely contradicted by The Memoirs of Lady Hyegyeong.

Fourteen years later King Yeongjo dies, and Sado's son, Jeongjo, became king. The early part of Jeongjo's years were marked by political intrigues and fear of court officials who were afraid that Jeongjo would seek revenge on them for petitioning the punishment that caused the death of his father, Crown Prince Sado. Yeongjo was buried in the dynastic tombs at Donggureung.

Yeongjo was the first to take action against Roman Catholic activities in the country. By the 18th century, Catholicism was beginning to acquire a following especially in the Gangwon and Hwanghae provinces. In 1758, Yeongjo officially outlawed Catholicism as an evil practice.

Yeongjo is buried with his second wife at the royal tomb of Wonneung (원릉, 元陵) in the city of Guri.

Family

• Father: King Sukjong (숙종)
• Mother: Royal Noble Consort Suk of the Haeju Choi clan (숙빈 최씨)
• Consorts:

1. Queen Jeongseong of the Dalsung Seo clan (정성왕후 서씨, 7 December 1692 – 15 February 1757)
2. Queen Jeongsun of the Gyeongju Kim clan (정순왕후 김씨, 10 November 1745 – 12 January 1805)
3. Royal Noble Consort Jeong of the Lee clan (정빈 이씨)
   1. Crown Prince Hyojang (효장세자, 1719–1728).
   2. A Daughter
   3. Princess Hwasoon (화순옹주)
4. Royal Noble Consort Yeong of the Lee clan (영빈 이씨, 1696 – 23 August 1764)
   1. Crown Prince Sado (사도세자, 1735–1762)
   2. Princess Hwapyeong (화평옹주, 1727–1748)
   3. Princess Hwahyeop (화협옹주, 1733–1752)
   4. Princess Hwawan (화완옹주, 1738–1808)
5. Jo Gwi-in (귀인 조씨)
   1. Princess Hwayoo (화유옹주, 1741–1771)
6. Moon Suk-ui (숙의 문씨)
   1. Princess Hwaryeong (화령옹주, 1752–1821)
   2. Princess Hwagil (화길옹주, 1754–1772)

His full posthumous name

• King Yeongjo Jangsun Jihaeng Sundeok Yeongmo Uiryeol Jang-ui Hong-yun Gwang-in Donhui Checheon Geon-geuk Seonggong Sinhwa Daeseong Gwang-un Gaetae Giyeong Yomyeong Suncheol Geon-geon Gonyeong Baemyeong Sutong Gyeongnyeok Honghyu Junghwa Yungdo Sukjang Changhun Jeongmun Seonmu Huigyeong Hyeonhyo the Great of Korea
• 영조장순지행순덕영모의렬장의홍윤광인돈희체천건극성공신화대성광운개태기영요명순철건건곤영배명수통경력홍휴중화융도숙장창훈정문선무희경현효대왕
• 英祖莊順至行純德英謨毅烈章義洪倫光仁敦禧體天建極聖功神化大成廣運開泰基永堯明舜哲乾健坤寧配命垂統景曆洪休中和隆道肅莊彰勳正文宣武熙敬顯孝大王

See also

• History of Korea
• Rulers of Korea
• Joseon Dynasty
• Dong Yi (TV series)