U of Goryeo

U of Goryeo
Reign	1374-1388
Predecessor	king Gongmin
Successor	king Chang
Born	25 July 1365
Died	31 December 1389 (aged 24)
Father	King Gongmin
Mother	Han Ban Ya

U of Goryeo
Hangul	우왕
Hanja	禑王
Revised Romanization	U-wang
McCune–Reischauer	U-wang
Childhood name
Hangul	모니노
Hanja	牟尼奴
Revised Romanization	Monino
McCune–Reischauer	Monino

Monarchs of Korea Goryeo

Taejo 918–943 Hyejong 943–945 Jeongjong 945–949 Gwangjong 949–975 Gyeongjong 975–981 Seongjong 981–997 Mokjong 997–1009 Hyeonjong 1009–1031 Deokjong 1031–1034 Jeongjong II 1034–1046 Munjong 1046–1083 Sunjong 1083 Seonjong 1083–1094 Heonjong 1094–1095 Sukjong 1095–1105 Yejong 1105–1122 Injong 1122–1146 Uijong 1146–1170 Myeongjong 1170–1197 Sinjong 1197–1204 Huijong 1204–1211 Gangjong 1211–1213 Gojong 1213–1259 Wonjong 1259–1274 Chungnyeol 1274–1308 Chungseon 1308–1313 Chungsuk 1313–1330 1332–1339 Chunghye 1330–1332 1339–1344 Chungmok 1344–1348 Chungjeong 1348–1351 Gongmin 1351–1374 U 1374–1388 Chang 1388–1389 Gongyang 1389–1392

U of Goryeo 우, often written Woo, (25 July 1365 – 31 December 1389) ruled Goryeo (Korea) from 1374 until 1388.

Cultural background

In the thirteenth century, Mongol forces had invaded China and established the Yuan Dynasty in 1271. After a series of Mongol invasions, Goryeo eventually capitulated and entered into a peace treaty with the Yuan Dynasty, in which Goryeo was subordinate tributary state to China. The Ming Dynasty in China had grown extremely powerful during the 14th century; however, it began to beat back the Yuan forces, so that by the 1350s Goryeo had managed to regain its northern territories and took back the Liaodong region.

Birth

According to the records, U was reportedly born to slave girl Han Ban Ya, a maid of the monk Shin Don, and King Gongmin. Because Gongmin initially denied the child as his son and refused to name him, Shin Don took it upon himself and named the boy Monino (meaning "servant of Buddha"). As a result of the King's refusal to recognize the child, intense debate and speculation surrounding the lineage of the boy ensued and Monino was not permitted to enter or live inside the palace.

Soon after the death of Shin Don in 1371, King Gongmin summoned Monino to the palace to formally recognize and proclaim the boy as his son and sole heir to the throne. Gongmin officially pronounced Monino to the Royal Court as Crown Prince and renamed him "U."

Accession to the throne

In 1374, a military hero and high official named Yi In-Im led a small, yet strong, anti-Ming faction that assassinated King Gongmin.

The anti-Ming group enthroned the eleven-year-old boy, as King Gongmin's successor. Suspicious about Gongmin's sudden and unexplained death, the Chinese doubted the legitimacy of the adolescent King U.

Diplomatic Tensions with China

Tensions over this crucial foreign policy protocol had not been resolved when, the Ming Dynasty proclaimed its intention to establish a command post headquartered in the Ch'ollyŏng pass at the southern end of the Hamgyŏng Plain in 1388.

Goryeo's senior military commander, General Choi Young, consulted with General Yi Seong-gye, and determined that removal of the anti-Ming faction from power in Kaesŏng was essential to reducing the perceived threat from Ming China. Supported by Seong-gye, Choi removed Yi In-Im and his group accordingly in a coup d'état and took personal control of the government.

Fall and Death

There was a growing feeling in Kaesŏng that Goryeo needed to take some kind of preemptive action against China, and advisors to King U eventually goaded him into attacking the powerful Ming armies. Against universal opposition, and in violation of the long-standing Goryeo practice of not invading its neighbors, King U went one step further and insisted on attacking China proper.

In 1388, General Yi Seong-gye was ordered to use his armies to push the Ming armies out of the Korean peninsula. Upon reaching the Amrok River and realizing that the strength of the Ming forces surmounted the forces of Goryeo, General Yi made a momentous decision that forever altered the course of Korean history. Knowing of the support he enjoyed both from high-ranking government officials and the populace, Yi Seong-gye decided to return to the capital and take control of Goryeo's government instead of destroying his army by attacking the Chinese.

Returning to Kaesŏng and, after overpowering the royal court's defenders and removing (then killing) General Choi Young, Yi Seong-gye usurped the throne from Goryeo's Dynasty and took control of the government. King U was deposed and replaced with his son, King Chang; together they were assassinated with poison one year later and replaced with Prince Gongyang on the grounds that he was of true royal descent.

King U is the only king in Korea's long history to never receive a posthumous title for his reign.

In popular culture

• Portrayed by Jeong Joon-won and Lee Min-ho in 2012 SBS television series The Great Seer.^[1]

See also

• Jeong Mong-ju
• List of Korean monarchs

References

1. '대풍수' 우왕 이민호, 첫등장부터 조민기와 대립 '긴장감 조성' (in Korean). Xportsnews. Retrieved 4 January 2013.