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Grand Prince Yangnyeong (Korean: 양녕대군; Hanja: 讓寧大君; 1394 – 8 October 1462[2]) was the former Crown Prince of the Korean Joseon Dynasty. He was the first son of King Taejong and his wife, Queen Wongyeong. Yangnyeong was the elder brother of Sejong the Great, and an ancestor of Syngman Rhee[citation needed], an independence activist and the first President of South Korea.

Biography

He was born as Yi Je (이제; 李禔) in 1394. Originally his father appointed him as crown prince but he eventually executed Queen Wongyeong's brothers and in the 18th year of his reign replaced Prince Yangnyeong with his third son Prince Chungnyeong as heir apparent.[3] Known for his literature and calligraphy skills, the former crown prince lacked in the requisite skills for kingship and acted extremely rude in court. On May 1415, he caused a scandal when he had an affair with Chogungjang, the kisaeng of his uncle and former king, Jeongjong. Yangnyeong was unaware that Chogungjang was his uncle's woman.[4] On 15 February 1417, Yangnyeong secretly brought in Eori, the concubine of Gwak Seon, into the palace. Angered, Taejong banished Yangnyeong from the royal palace to the residence of Yangnyeong's father-in-law, Kim Han-ro. However, Kim Han-ro arranged a rendezvous between Yangnyeong and Eori, and Eori bore the crown prince's child.[5] For a while, Taejong did not fault Yangnyeong for his libertine proclivities but instead held his father-in-law, Kim Han-ro, accountable for Crown Prince Yangnyeong's improprieties.[6]

The final straw that sealed Yangnyeong's fate was a letter he wrote to Taejong, accusing Taejong of hypocrisy for punishing him over his affair with Eori, despite Taejong himself having ten concubines, in direct defiance of the Confucian virtue of the highest importance: filial piety.[7] Due to Yangnyeong's behavior showing no signs of penitance, Taejong deposed Yangnyeong from his position as crown prince on 3 June 1418.[8] The Veritable Records describe a scene in which Taejong asks two officials who were sent to apprise Yangnyeong of his deposition. They report back to Taejong that Yangnyeong did not cry and showed no signs of sadness.[9] Grand Prince Hyoryeong, Yangnyeong's second brother, had similar feelings about Chungyeong being king, and so he became a monk in a Buddhist temple.[citation needed] Yangnyeong was banished from the palace and relocated to Gwangju.

After Sejong had taken the throne, the relationship between the brothers strengthened, and Sejong often invited Yangnyeong to the palace. Yangnyeong enjoyed the status of the eldest royal family member during Sejo's reign, and Sejo often invited Yangnyeong to the palace for court revelries.

Yangnyeong died in 1462, the eighth year of Sejo's reign, at the age of 68.[10]

The tomb of Prince Yangneong reopened in 2018 to the public after 18 years of closure.[11]

Family

  1. Princess Consort Suseong of the Gwangsan Kim clan (수성군부인 김씨) (1395 - 1456)[a]
    1. Princess Jaeryeong (재령군주) or Princess Jeonui (전의현주; 1405 – 1444)
    2. Princess Yangcheon (영천군주; 1412 – 5 April 1502)
    3. Yi Gae, Prince Sunseong (이개 순성군; 1414 – 2 September 1462)
    4. Yi Po, Prince Hamyang (이포 함양군; 1416 – 21 June 1475)
    5. Yi Hye, Prince Seosan (이혜 서산군; 1422 – 10 April 1451)
    6. Princess Yeongpyeong (영평현주) (1424 - ?)
    7. Princess Yi of the Jeonju Yi clan (현주 이씨) (1426 - ?)
    8. Princess Yi of the Jeonju Yi clan (현주 이씨) (1432 - ?)
  2. Kisaeng Bong Ji-ryeon (기생 봉지련)
  3. Unknown concubine (1400 - ?)
    1. Yi Sim (이심) (1409 - ?)
    2. Lady Yi (1420 - ?)
    3. Yi Sun (이순) (1445 - 1509)
    4. Lady Yi (1445 - ?)
    5. Lady Yi (1447 - ?)
    6. Lady Yi (1449 - ?)
    7. Yi Sun (이순) (1445 - 1509)
    8. Yi Gwang-seok (이광석) (1449 - ?)
    9. Yi Gwang-geun (이광근) (1451 - ?)
  4. Kisaeng Eori (기생 어리) (1398 - ?)
    1. Princess Yi Ae-jung (현주 이애중) (1414 - ?)
  5. Kisaeng Cho Gung-jang (기생 초궁장) (1385 - ?)
  6. Kisaeng Jeonghyang (기생 정향)
  7. Kisaeng Chil Jeom-saeng (기생 칠점생)
  8. Unknown concubine (1410 - ?)
    1. Yi Gyeom (이겸) (1434 - ?)
    2. Yi Heun (이흔) (1438 - ?)
    3. Yi Seong (이성) (1439 - ?)
    4. Lady Yi (1440 - ?)
  9. Unknown slave (1435 - ?)
    1. Lady Yi
    2. Princess Yi Gu-ji (현주 이구지) (1457 - ?)
  10. Unknown concubine (1437 - ?)
    1. Lady Yi (1454 - ?)
    2. Lady Yi (1456 - ?)
    3. Lady Yi (1458 - 1509)
    4. Princess Yi Geon-yi (현주 이건이) (1460 - ?)
    5. Lady Yi (1465 - ?)

Popular culture

Notes

  1. ^ Family Search tree (registration required)

References

  1. ^ In lunar calendar
  2. ^ In lunar calendar, the Grand Prince died on 7 September 1462
  3. ^ Yi, Pae-Yong (2008). Women in Korean History 한국 역사 속의 여성들. Ewha Womans University Press. ISBN 9788973007721.
  4. ^ "[이기환의 흔적의 역사] 태종이 밝힌 양녕대군 폐세자 이유, "대체 너 땜에 몇명이 죽었냐"". Kyunghyang Shinmun (in Korean). 13 June 2019. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Crown Prince Is Ordered To Reside With Father-In-Law". Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty. National Institute of Korean History.
  6. ^ "Crown Prince Is Ordered To Return To Hangyeong". Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty. National Institute of Korean History.
  7. ^ "Crown Prince Sends Letter to King Via Chamberlain Park Ji-saeng". Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty. National Institute of Korean History.
  8. ^ Park, Hong-Kyu (December 22, 2006). "King Taejong as a statesman: From power to authority". Korea Journal. 46 (4). Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  9. ^ "Mun Gwi and Choi Han Return And Report About Yangnyeong". Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty. National Institute of Korean History.
  10. ^ "Death of Grand Prince Yangnyeong Yi Je". Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty. National Institute of Korean History.
  11. ^ "Tomb of Grand Prince Yangnyeong to reopen to public in 18 years". The Dong-a Ilbo. Retrieved 2019-11-24.

External links

References

  • Kim Haboush, JaHyun and Martina Deuchler (1999). Culture and the State in Late Chosŏn Korea. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674179820; OCLC 40926015
  • Lee, Peter H. (1993). Sourcebook of Korean Civilization, Vol. 1. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231079129; ISBN 9780231079143; ISBN 9780231104449; OCLC 26353271
  • Lee Bae-yong (2008). Women in Korean History. Seoul: Ewha Womans University Press. ISBN 9788973007721
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