Prince Sado

Prince Sado ( Korean : 사도 세자 ) (* 1735 in Gyeongdeokgung Palace ( 경덕 궁 ) in Seoul , Korea ; † July 12, 1762 in Gyeonghuigung Palace ( 경희궁 ), in Seoul, Korea), during Prince Jangheon's lifetime ( 장헌 ) called, was the original heir to the throne of King Yeongjo ( 영조 ) of Joseon ( 조선 ) (1694–1776) in Korea. Because of his allegedly dishonorable behavior, however, Sado was locked in a rice box by his own father, King Yeongjo , and killed by dying of thirst.

Life

Jangheon's mother was the royal concubine Yeongbin ( 영빈 ) (? –1764) of the Yi family. Just two years after his birth, Jangheon was named Crown Prince by his father, King Yeongjo . Prince Jangheon married Hyegyeonggung ( 혝 영궁 ), with whom he had two sons. The second born was the future King Jeongjo ( 정조 ).

Jangheon showed great interest in literature at a young age and tried his hand at poetry and prose . But with increasing age an eccentric behavior developed, which some influential members at the royal court interpreted as a mental illness . He was said to have had numerous sex affairs with women of the court, including one of his sisters, and to have mistreated and killed servants of the royal court in seizures. The cause of his behavior is said to have been a disease of syphilis , which made him mentally weak.

His behavior, incompatible with the rules and morals of a Confucian society, eventually led his father to urge him to commit suicide. After he did not comply, his father canceled his appointment as heir to the throne on July 4, 1762 and had him locked in a rice box, in which he died of thirst eight days later.

The day Prince Jangheon was forced into the rice box by his father, Jangheon's son Jeongjo was barely 10 years old. Jeongjo , who was present at the execution , pleaded for mercy for his father and went through a trauma that would shape him forever. He was named the new Crown Prince by King Yeongjo . In 1764 the king also ordered Jeongjo's adoption by Prince Hyojang ( 효장 ), another grandson of Yeongjo .

After Prince Jangheon's death, Yeongjo regretted having executed his son, renamed his grave Sueunmyo ( 수은 묘 ) and posthumously nicknamed him Prince Sado that same year. The name Sado meant to remember the Crown Prince and to regret his death.

Other theories about Sado's death

In addition to the theory of mental illness, there are two alternative theories as to the background to the prince's execution. The first theory assumes personal differences between father and son, bad treatment by his father as the cause of the depression and subsequent behavior. The second theory assumes that Prince Sado supported the currents of the new Confucian doctrine and, in this power struggle, succumbed to the intrigues of the representatives of the old doctrine and was accused of conspiracy against his father on May 22, 1762. While the Sipa ( 시파 ) (representatives of the new Confucian doctrine) and the Catholics in the country supported Prince Sado and Jeongjo , the Byeokpa ( 벽파 ) (representatives of the old doctrine) were strictly against him.

Posthumous honor

After Prince Sado's son, Jeongjo , took over the throne, he immediately declared publicly: "I am the son of Crown Prince Sado" . In order to be able to rehabilitate his father, he posthumously returned his original name and on October 7, 1789 he moved his father's grave to Paldalsan ( 팔달산 ), a small mountain, now in the city of Suwon ( 수원 ). He chose this place on the west coast of Korea as a special place, far from the influences of the royal court, had the fortress Hwaseong ( 화성 ) built there from 1794 to 1796 and moved his residence and his power center there. The procession of his procession in 1795 lasted 8 days and was recorded in the Banchado ( 반차 보 ) by the best painters of his time. On the fourth day of the procession, Jeongjo visited his father's grave to pay tribute to him.

literature

Peter H. Lee : Sourcebook of Korean Civilization . Volume II . Columbia University Press , New York 1996, ISBN 0-231-07914-1 (English).
Sung-Yun Kim : Tangpyeong and Hwaseong: The Theory and Practice of Jeongjo's Politics and Hwaseong . In: Korea Journal . Vol. 41 No. 1 , spring. Korean National Commission for UNESCO , 2001, ISSN 0023-3900 , p. 137-165 (English).
Science and Technology . In: Fifty Wonders of Korea . Volume 2 . Diamond Sutra Recitation Group , Seoul 2008, ISBN 978-0-9797263-4-7 (English).
Doo Won Cho : The Korean fortress city of Suwon - history - monument preservation - documentation "Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe " - national and international relations . Otto Friedrich University, Bamberg July 13, 2010 (dissertation).

Individual evidence

↑ Sugyeongwon . Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea , accessed March 11, 2013 .
↑ ^a ^b ^c Yungneung . Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea , accessed March 11, 2013 .
↑ Science and Technology . In: Fifty Wonders of Korea . Volume 2 , 2008, pp. 93-94 (English).
↑ Chung Ah-young : Book Reconstitutes Secret of Prince Sado's Death . The Korean Times , November 27, 2009, accessed March 11, 2013 .
^ Joan Bos : Sado of Korea . Mad Monarchs Series , accessed March 11, 2013 .
↑ Peter H. Lee : Sourcebook of Korean Civilization . Volume II , 1996, pp. 42-43 (English).
↑ Doo Won Cho : The Korean fortress city of Suwon - History - Preservation of monuments . Bamberg 2010, p. 219 .
↑ ^a ^b Yang Sung-jin : Epitaph Dedicated to Tragic Prince Sado Bared . Retrieved March 11, 2013 .
↑ Sung-Yun Kim : Tangpyeong and Hwaseong: The Theory and Practice of Jeongjo's Politics and Hwaseong . In: Korea Journal . Vol. 41 No. 1 , 2001, p. 146 (English).
↑ Kim Hyung-eun : Fortress guards memory of Jeongjo . JoongAng Media Network , June 18, 2012, accessed May 9, 2019 .
↑ Doo Won Cho : The Korean fortress city of Suwon - History - Preservation of monuments . Bamberg 2010, p. 11 .
↑ ceremony protocol Joseon (Joseon Wangjo Euigwe). Korea Tourism Organization , accessed March 11, 2013 .
↑ Lee Hyegyeong : Folding Screen of the Royal Procession to the Royal Tomb at Hwaseong . In: Quarterly Magazine . Volume 13 , Autumn . National Museum of Korea , Seoul 2010, p. 23 (English).

personal data
SURNAME	Prince Sado
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Prince Jangheon
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Korean prince and heir to the throne
DATE OF BIRTH	1735
PLACE OF BIRTH	Gyeongdeokgung , Seoul
DATE OF DEATH	July 12, 1762
Place of death	Gyeonghuigung , Seoul

[chakor_1-1] Sugyeongwon . Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea , accessed March 11, 2013 .

[chakor_2-2] Yungneung . Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea , accessed March 11, 2013 .

[fwokst_1-3] Science and Technology . In: Fifty Wonders of Korea . Volume 2 , 2008, pp. 93-94 (English).

[kortim_1-4] Chung Ah-young : Book Reconstitutes Secret of Prince Sado's Death . The Korean Times , November 27, 2009, accessed March 11, 2013 .

[mamose_1-5] Joan Bos : Sado of Korea . Mad Monarchs Series , accessed March 11, 2013 .

[leepet_1-6] Peter H. Lee : Sourcebook of Korean Civilization . Volume II , 1996, pp. 42-43 (English).

[chodoo_1-7] Doo Won Cho : The Korean fortress city of Suwon - History - Preservation of monuments . Bamberg 2010, p. 219 .

[yangsj_1-8] Yang Sung-jin : Epitaph Dedicated to Tragic Prince Sado Bared . Retrieved March 11, 2013 .

[kimsun_1-9] Sung-Yun Kim : Tangpyeong and Hwaseong: The Theory and Practice of Jeongjo's Politics and Hwaseong . In: Korea Journal . Vol. 41 No. 1 , 2001, p. 146 (English).

[kimhyu_1-10] Kim Hyung-eun : Fortress guards memory of Jeongjo . JoongAng Media Network , June 18, 2012, accessed May 9, 2019 .

[chodoo_2-11] Doo Won Cho : The Korean fortress city of Suwon - History - Preservation of monuments . Bamberg 2010, p. 11 .

[kortou_1-12] ceremony protocol Joseon (Joseon Wangjo Euigwe). Korea Tourism Organization , accessed March 11, 2013 .

[leehya_1-13] Lee Hyegyeong : Folding Screen of the Royal Procession to the Royal Tomb at Hwaseong . In: Quarterly Magazine . Volume 13 , Autumn . National Museum of Korea , Seoul 2010, p. 23 (English).