Korean imperial titles

Korean monarchs who used imperial titles had political and religious authority over a realm or domain.

[1] The 5th century was a period of great interaction on the Korean Peninsula that marked the first step toward the unification of the Three Kingdoms of Korea.

[4] The earliest known tianxia view of the world in Korean history is recorded in Goguryeo epigraphs dating to this period.

[1][a] Dongmyeong of Goguryeo was a god-king, the Son of Heaven, and his kingdom was the center of the world.

[12] His worship was widespread among the people, and the view that Goguryeo was the center of the world was not limited to the royal family and aristocracy.

[17] A strong sense of commonality emerged, later culminating in a "Samhan" consciousness among the peoples of the Three Kingdoms.

[18] The Three Kingdoms of Korea were collectively called the Samhan in the Sui and Tang dynasties.

[26] "King" was first used in Goguryeo around the beginning of the Common Era; it was first used in Northeast Asia in the 4th century BCE in Old Joseon, before "emperor", or huangdi, was first used in China.

[32] During the 5th and 6th centuries, a balance of power was maintained in East Asia between the Northern and Southern dynasties, the Rouran Khaganate, Goguryeo, and, later, Tuyuhun.

[15] Goguryeo maintained tributary relations with the Northern and Southern dynasties;[33] the relationships were voluntary and profitable.

[15] Goguryeo restrained Northern Wei, the strongest power in East Asia at the time, by allying with its enemies.

[33] Northern Wei said that Goguryeo was "worthy" and gave preferential treatment to its envoys.

[32] China did not directly intervene in Goguryeo's tianxia of Northeast Asia,[32] and vice versa.

[41] With its supremacy in Northeast Asia threatened, Goguryeo warred with a unified China for 70 years until its defeat in 668 by the Tang dynasty and Silla.

[53][55] Other titles include Seonghwang (Korean: 성황; Hanja: 聖皇; lit.

holy emperor) and Sinseongjewang (Korean: 신성제왕; Hanja: 神聖帝王; lit.

[56] Imperial titles were used since the beginning of the dynasty; Taejo was called "Son of Heaven" by the last king of Silla.

[71] According to Peter Yun: "While Goryeo may have admired and adopted many of China's culture and institutions, there is little evidence that it accepted the notion of Chinese political superiority as the natural order of things.

His correct appellation is not important, however, compared to the fact that he was considered to rule his own domain [tianxia]; his own, not just politically and practically, but also ideologically and ontologically.

[81] The Goryeo worldview partly originated during earlier periods of Korean history.

[92] Goryeo entered a period of military dictatorship similar to a shogunate in the late 12th century.

[95] Goryeo capitulated to the Mongols after 30 years of war and later became a semiautonomous "son-in-law state" (Korean: 부마국; Hanja: 駙馬國) to the Yuan dynasty in 1270.

[73] During this period of Mongol dominance, Goryeo monarchs were demoted to kings and temple names indicated loyalty to the Yuan dynasty.

[65] The Songs of Emperors and Kings and Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms maintained the view of Goryeo as a tianxia.

[85] The powerful influence of Neo-Confucianism in the twilight of the Goryeo dynasty led to a growing Sinocentric view of Korea as a "little China".

[110][i] Joseon Neo-Confucian ideologues loyal to sadae compiled a distorted history of Goryeo that suppressed the fact that it had maintained an imperial system.

[58][j] According to Remco E. Breuker, this can be attributed to "the total weight of the cultural and historical power accumulated during centuries of use".

"[118] The late 19th century was a turbulent period in Korean history: Korea experienced interventions by not only China but also Japan and the West.

[121] A new Korean reformist group called the Independence Club emerged and called for the establishment of a new imperial government that could claim equality with the empires of China, Japan, and Russia and safeguard the independence of Korea.

[122] King Gojong declared Korea an empire and himself an emperor Hwangje [ko] (황제) in 1897.

The Gwanggaeto Stele was erected in 414. It is the largest memorial stele in the world. [ 2 ] This photograph of a Joseon man standing next to the Gwanggaeto Stele was published in 1903 in Japan in The Landmarks and Ruins of Joseon . [ 3 ]
This bronze bowl was excavated from a Silla tomb in Gyeongju , the ancient capital of Silla. It is inscribed with the posthumous name of Gwanggaeto the Great. [ 30 ]
Bronze statue of Taejo of Goryeo , c. 951. This life-size nude statue of Taejo was clothed and worshiped until the end of the Goryeo dynasty; the practice of clothing and worshiping nude statues originated in Goguryeo. The statue is wearing an imperial crown called a tongcheongwan ( 통천관 ; 通天冠 ). [ 50 ]
Goryeo monarchs commissioned a Korean version of the Tripitaka in the 11th century and again in the 13th century; only Sons of Heaven had the right to commission a Tripitaka. [ 75 ]
Korean monarchs sacrificed to Heaven during the Three Kingdoms, Goryeo, and early Joseon periods. During the early Joseon period, it was hotly debated whether Joseon kings, who were not Sons of Heaven, had the right to sacrifice to Heaven. The practice was suppressed and finally abolished in 1464; it was later revived during the Korean Empire period. [ 105 ]