Sejong

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Sejong
Sejong the Great

4th King of the Joseon Dynasty

Statue of King Sejong in Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul
Statue of King Sejong in Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul
Spelling of names
Hangeul 세종
Hanja 世宗
Revised Romanization Sejong
McCune-Reischauer Sechong
Reign
Reign of September 18, 1418
Reign until March 30, 1450
predecessor King Taejong
successor King Munjong
Life dates
Born on the May 15, 1397
place of birth Hanseong , Joseon
Birth Name 이도
Hanja 李 祹
Revised Romanization Yi Do
McCune-Reischauer Yi Do
father King Taejong
mother Queen Wongyeong
Death dates
Died on April 8, 1450
Place of death Hanseong , Joseon
tomb Yeongneung, Yeoju , Gyeonggi-do
Spouses, mistresses, offspring
Woman (s) Queen Soheon
and twelve other ladies of the court
Sons Prince Hyang (Yi Hyang)
Prince Suyang (Yi Yu)
Prince Anpyeong (Yi Yong)
Prince Imyeong (Yi Gu)
Prince Gwangpyeong (Yi Yeo)
Prince Geumseong (Yi Yu)
Prince Pyeongwon (Yi Im)
Prince Yeongeung (Yi Yeom)
and ten another prince
Daughters Princess Jeongso
Princess Jeongui
and two other princesses and three daughters, whose names are not known.
Remarks
Inventor of the Korean alphabet ,
Hangeul ( 한글 )

Sejong ( kor .: 세종 ; * May 15, 1397 , Hanseong , Joseon ; † April 8, 1450 , ibid) was the 4th King of the Joseon Dynasty ( 조선 왕조 ) (1392-1910) during his reign from 1418 to 1450 in Korea . He is considered to be the inventor of the Korean alphabet , known as Hangeul ( 한글 ).

King Sejong is regarded as the wisest and most talented king in the history of Korea and, along with King Gwanggaeto ( von ) by Goguryeo ( 고구려 ), is one of the only two kings of Korea who have been posthumously honored with the addition of "the great" .

Life

Sejong was born on May 15, 1397 (April 10 according to the lunar calendar) in the Chunsu district of Hanseong, the then capital of the Joseon Empire, as the third son of King Taejong ( 태종 ) with the name Do ( ). His mother was Queen Wongyeong ( 원경 ). At the age of twelve, his father made him prince and he was named Chungnyeong ( 충녕 ). Four years later, at the age of 16, he rose in the hierarchy at court to Grand Prince. Since his father was angry about the behavior of his brother, the firstborn and heir apparent Prince Yangnyeong ( 양녕 ), he made him crown prince in June 1418. Two months later in August 1418, King Taejong abdicated and Chungnyeong was enthroned in September 1418. The name Sejong, which translates as “epochal ancestor” , was only given to him after his death because of his work for the people and science. That is why he entered history as King Sejong.

King Sejong was married to Queen Soheon ( 소헌 ) and had ten children, two daughters and eight sons with her, of whom the firstborn later became King Munjong ( 문종 ) and his second-born son later became King Sejo ( 세조 ) the 7th Became King Joseons.

During his life, King Sejong suffered from diabetes and later paralysis. The early death of his wife and some of his sons also affected him. But despite these impairments, he ruled the country, headed the country's six ministries, took care of the strengthening of the state and its military, worried about improvements in agriculture, was interested in science and technology and, last but not least, created the Korean alphabet.

King Sejong died on April 8, 1450 and was buried together with his wife Queen Soheon in the royal tomb Yeongneung ( 영릉 ) in the city of Yeoju ( 여주 ) in the province of Gyeonggi-do ( 경기도 ). In 1973, grave accessories were removed from the grave and exhibited in Sejongdaewang Ginyeomgwan ( 세종대왕 기념관 'Great Memorial Hall ') in the Cheongnyangni-dong ( 청량리동 ) district in Seoul.

Essence and intellect

As a teenager, King Sejong is described in literature as intelligent, inquisitive and hardworking, and in his later role as king he is open to new ideas and always interested in further learning. Although a cult around him as king was celebrated during his lifetime, which consisted, for example, that when Sejong was officially out and about outside his palace, the common people cover their windows and, so that the sights of the common people could not affect him, they themselves with had to turn their backs on him, it was said that he loved his people and that his understanding as king was to serve his people and make sure they were better off. He believed that the people of the people were the roots of the state, and that adequate nutrition was essential for people to educate themselves and become wise. He had a keen interest in promoting agriculture through science and technology and thus improving the food situation of the people.

Sejong was fundamentally interested in the welfare of his people and, as ruler, possessed the ability to sympathize. In November 1412, for example, he issued the order not to imprison persons under 15 years of age and those over 70 years of age for misdemeanors, as he regarded imprisonment as martyrdom. Sejong was also thought to be frugal about himself. Whenever possible, he used materials that had already been used, wore worn clothes when he was unofficially in the palace, and had the eastern part of the Gyonghoe Pavilion built with simple building materials.

Achievements and works

Korean alphabet

King Sejong's most outstanding and well-known achievement was the development of a Korean alphabet (Hangeul) and the corresponding script. In the winter of 1443/44 he made the alphabet he had developed known for the first time and formally proclaimed it in October 1446 as Hunminjeongeum ( 훈민정음 ), which can be translated as “The right sounds to instruct the people” . His motivation and intention to develop the alphabet is clear from the following preface to the Hunminjeongeum, translated into German, in which he wrote:

“The language spoken in our country is different from that of China and does not match the Chinese characters either. That is why there are many uneducated people who would like to write something down but cannot express their feelings in writing. I was very shocked by this fact, and so I invented 28 new letters. Everyone should learn these letters for their own relief and apply them in daily life. "

- King Sejong : King Sejong the Great, Yonghwa Publishing House, 2006 .
Two pages of the proclamation of the Hunminjeongeum (National Museum of Korea)

The development of the alphabet took over 10 years, and King Sejong pursued the scientific research of the Korean language, its sounds and the system of its representation with great commitment and involved his children and a few initiates at court in his work. He sent one of his scholars to China thirteen times to seek advice from the phonologist Huang Tsan, and was so busy with his project that his scholars at court sometimes became desperate. He also received considerable opposition and resistance from his scholars, who wanted to stick to the traditional use of the Chinese script.

King Sejong's proclamation of the Hunminjeongeum called on the most influential scholar Choe Manri ( 최만리 ), who branded the phonetic writing as something "barbaric" and advocated that the Chinese writing should be preserved as a privilege of the ruling class and not like king Sejong intended to make the script available for the people to learn. After Sejong's death, the hangul was initially not to spread, as the scholars stuck to Chinese. Under King Yeonsangun ( 연산군 ) writing was even banned in 1504, but it was resurrected from the 17th century through literature.

King Sejong's proclamation of Hangeul was lost for a long time and was found in its original in 1940 by chance in the city of Andong ( 안동 ). In commemoration of the proclamation of Hangeul by King Sejong, October 9 was made a national holiday in South Korea.

Royal Research Institute

Jiphyeonjeon ( 집현전 ) (Assembly Hall of the Wise Men), as the royal research institute was called and which King Sejong founded in March 1420, was laid out on the palace grounds and initially provided space for ten scientists, later over twenty, whose task it was to work in the to research various specialist areas, to present solutions to the questions of that time and to take on an advisory role for the king and the government. In the 36 years of its existence, the institution housed 32 scientists at peak times and published around 80 new scientific works in the fields of politics , history , literature , linguistics , philosophy , music , medicine , agriculture , astronomy and other subjects. Despite its relatively short existence, the institution achieved recognition and fame and refers to numerous achievements of its time, which today represent an important part of the cultural heritage of Korea.

Agriculture

Since the yields from agriculture were unevenly distributed in the various regions of Joseon, King Sejong asked his experts in the 10th year of his reign to ask those farmers who had particularly good yields about their cultivation techniques. Together with the knowledge of which of the five most important arable crops were best suited for which soils, he had agriculture in the country optimized and the cultivation rotation introduced. In the Nongsa Jikseol ( 농사 직설 ) (Agriculture Direct Speech) published in May 1429, all of the knowledge gathered was published. In addition to the various cultivation methods, the use of fertilizers in the plant was also described in detail. Among other things, the agricultural area that was available for cultivation in the country was increased from 923,000 Kyŏl ( ) in 1404, during the reign of King Sejong to 1,655,234 Kyŏl.

The knowledge of the amount of rain sufficient for agriculture also seemed to King Sejong to be of great importance. So he had a measuring device developed to determine precipitation, which was introduced in 1414. Recordings of measurements of how deep the rain seeps into the ground were also part of the investigations. All this knowledge should enable better cultivation of the fields.

medicine

In 1433, in the fifteenth year of King Sejong's reign, the work of Hyangyak Jipseongbang ( 향약 집성방 ) ( 鄕 藥 集成 方 ) was published. Sejong previously sent his scholars to other countries to learn about medicinal plants there. He had the knowledge of his own country studied, research carried out and recipes for the use of medicinal herbs determined. The work finally contained knowledge of 374 different herbs, 109 minerals, 220 animal products and experience of the workings of 703 different active ingredients. In addition, the work treated the healing of 959 diseases using the knowledge from over 160 Chinese plants. In 1445 the Uibang Yuchwi ( 의방 유취 ) ( 醫 方 類 聚 ), a 365-volume work that was published as a medical encyclopedia, was published. Another advancement in medicine made King Sejong's forensic medicine effort to determine the cause of death or injury.

Inventions

King Sejong was interested in improving printing techniques, telling the time, and astronomy. Since he wanted as many of his subjects as possible to enjoy education, efficient printing technology was important in increasing the number of prints per unit of time. He gave instructions on how to improve printing technology and develop new fonts.

In 1446, in order to comfort the soul of his late wife Soheon ( Buddha ), he had the work Seokpo sangjeol (The Life Story of Buddha) published. Written as a mourning book, it is the first work that was written in Sino-Korean characters (Hanja) and the new Korean letters (Hangeul) that he developed, and that was printed for the first time with movable metal type.

Furthermore, King Sejong did not give in to develop a separate almanac for the Joseon Empire, independent of China , in which Hanseong , the capital of the empire, was the point of reference. To this end, he gave instructions to develop astronomical devices that made position and time determinations possible. To this end, he particularly encouraged Jang Yeong-sil ( 장영실 ), whom he considered the most talented. His designs of Klepsydra ( water clocks ) are well known. He also developed numerous astronomical devices. Encouraged by Sejong, sundials and astronomical clocks were also developed that could display the time at night using the constellation of stars. Even today, a device from this period is depicted on the back of the 10,000  won banknote.

music

King Sejong also had an impact on Korean music of his time and beyond. Together with his musician friend Park Yeon ( 박연 ) he developed the idea of ​​creating an instrument for tuning other musical instruments. One source states that King Sejong developed a bamboo flute ( yulgwan , 율관 ) that emitted a keynote ( hwangjong , 황종 ) that was similar in pitch to the western "C" and was used to tune all musical instruments used in a piece of music and another source describes that Park Yeon created a flute called Hwangjongwan ( 황종완 ) that could be used to tune other musical instruments over 12 key tones. All musical instruments in the court were coordinated with one another using the new technology.

King Sejong composed over two hundred pieces of music with Park Yeon, some of which were his very personal works. With the Jeongganbo ( 정간보 ) he also created a system of notation , after which it was composed and with which both the pitch and the pitch could be represented. The system is still used today in Korea, along with the Western notation system.

Legal system

King Sejong introduced the legal system for convicts to appeal against a judicial decision. At the same time he ruled that judges could not be punished for their judgments. He also made sure that the people got to know the most important laws. He was of the opinion that ordinary people could not be accused of breaking laws if they were ignorant of those laws. He also decreed that judgments should not be so harsh and that ordinary people should be punished more mildly than the wealthy. The more humane equipment of the prisons was another concern of his. For example, they should be kept cool in summer and warm in winter. In addition, inmates should be given the opportunity to bathe once a week.

Tax reform

Another important concern of King Sejong was to raise a fair tax and prevent corruption by his officials. During his tax reform, he had in mind to levy the tax on the basis of the previous year's harvest. In 1430 he had a survey of farmers and officials organized to help him make a decision. After many discussions at court and after clearing up his self-doubts, a new tax system was finally implemented in 1444, in which the land was divided into six tax categories and nine different tax levels depending on fertility.

The law introducing the new tax, called Gongbeop ( 공법 ), among other things, reduced the tax from 1/10 of the yield to now 1/20, but this did not mean that life became easier for the simple farmers, it just became easier slightly improved. The basis of the tax calculation should endure well beyond his reign.

military

The pacification of the northern border areas of the Joseon Empire, which were influenced by the Jurchen tribe and in which there were repeated uprisings, King Sejong tried to achieve through a two-part strategy. On the one hand, he strengthened his military by building defenses along the Tumen and Yalu rivers and brought the Jurchen under control by military measures. On the other hand, he provided a certain pacification by stimulating trade. Settlement measures and the integration of Jurchen into parts of society and the military also showed success. In order to be able to secure the border in the north, between the years 1431 and 1447 he made sure that thousands of Koreans moved from the more densely populated south to the north and settled there. At least during his lifetime, King Sejong was able to pacify the north.

Sejong sillok

Sejong sillok ( 세종 실록 ) refers to the entirety of the records that were created by designated scholars during the reign of King Sejong about all processes at the royal court and those of his official acts. The term Sillok ( 실록 ), which translates as “written historical source , consists of a total of 1893 books, which cover the period of 472 years of the rulers of the Joseon dynasty, from King Taejo to King Cheoljong . 163 of these books are dedicated to King Sejong alone.

UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize

The UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize was founded in 1989 in memory of King Sejong by the Korean government and is endowed with US $ 20,000. The award winners who have made merits in literacy and who are awarded the prize will also receive a silver medal. The prize is awarded by UNESCO .

Other uses of names

  • Sejong City , a new city inaugurated on July 1, 2012, which emerged from Yeongi-gun County ( 연기군 ) in Chungcheongnam-do ( 충청남도 )Province.
  • Sejong University ( 세종 대학교 ), a university founded in Seoul in 1940, which got its current name in 1979.
  • Sejong Center ( 세종 문화 회관 ), the largest cultural center in Seoul with a theater, event hall and art gallery.
  • King Sejong Institute Foundation , the educational institute supports the King Sejong Institutes in the world and ensures that in all institutes the Korean language is taught and communicated according to the same system and that examinations are held according to a uniform standard.
  • numerous educational institutes in many countries of the world that have the name Sejong in their name, such as the King Sejong Institute Tübingen at the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen .

literature

  • Ki-baik Lee : A New History of Korea . Harvard University Press , Cambridge, Massachusetts 1984, ISBN 0-674-61576-X , Chapter 9. The Creation of Yangban Society .
  • Andrew C. Took : Korea - Tradition & Transformation . A History of the Korean People . 2. ed. . Hollym International Corp. , Seoul 1996, ISBN 1-56591-070-2 (English).
  • Myung-hee Han : King Sejong's Musical Achievments . In: Koreana . 30, Autumn , 1997, pp. 30–35 (English, online [PDF; 1,2 MB ; accessed on January 29, 2019]).
  • Chin W. Kim : The Legacy of King Sejong the Great . In: Studies in the Linguistic Science . Volume 30, Number 1, Spring . University of Illinois , 2000, ISSN  0049-2388 , pp. 3–12 (English, online [PDF; 524 kB ; accessed on January 27, 2019]).
  • Young-key Kim-Renaud : Sejong's Theory of Literacy and Writing . In: Studies in the Linguistic Science . Volume 30, Number 1, Spring . University of Illinois , 2000, ISSN  0049-2388 , pp. 13–45 (English, online [PDF; 524 kB ; accessed on January 27, 2019]).
  • Gari Ledyard : The Cultural Work of Sejong the Great . Ed .: The Korea Society . November 2002 (English, online [PDF; 159 kB ; accessed on January 27, 2019]).
  • Michael J. Seth : A Concise History of Korea . From the Neolithic Period through the Nineteenth Century . Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. , Oxford 2006, ISBN 978-0-7425-4005-7 (English).
  • King Sejong the Great . The Eternal Light of Korea (=  Korean Spiritual and Cultural Series . Volume II ). Yonghwa Verlag, Pohang 2006, ISBN 0-9779613-8-9 .
  • Han Young Woo : Joseon Era . In: A Review of Korean History . Volume 2 . Kyongsaewon Publishing Company , Pajubookcity, Gyeonggi-do 2010, ISBN 978-89-8341-092-4 (English).

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  5. Woo : Joseon Era . 2010, p.  307 .
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