My Korean history

By Korea.net Honorary Reporter Jane Maria Tomy

Photos = RYE TOUR 

There was civilization in the Indus Valley in my country, India. Also, Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilization were other famous civilizations and they formed the groundwork for famous empires and countries. Now, what about Korea? From where does it start its history?

Well, I was curious about this after I started watching the soap opera "Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo." (달의 연인 - 보보경심 려). This got me researching.

Korea is the kingdom between China and Japan, with the Yellow Sea and the East Sea forming the dividing boundaries, respectively. The earliest human presence in this land in the form of pottery was seen in 8,000 B.C. 

Empires never come and go suddenly. In the beginning, there were many tribal leagues around that region of Manchuria and the Korean Peninsula. The tribes around the Liaoning Peninsula in Manchuria and northwestern Korea united themselves to form the Gojoseon Kingdom around the time of 2,333 B.C.

The history of empires began in 37 B.C. There were three powerful kingdoms in Korea. First, there was Goguryeo, which occupied Manchuria and the vast regions of the northern parts of Korea. It was a very powerful kingdom and slowly, by setting up a strong administration, it was able to control its entire land. 

In the southern end of the peninsula there was Baekje, Silla and Gaya. 

Baekje was situated near the present day Seoul. Like Goguryeo, this kingdom established itself by stitching together a lot of tribal leagues and smaller kingdoms.

Silla was a kingdom that was facing away from China. Hence, it had less influence from Chinese practices. Three female kings -- or queens -- also ruled that kingdom. It was in Silla that an elite group of males, called the Hwarang, was created to serve the king. Remember, the soap opera called "Hwarang" (화랑)? Yes! It was all about the kingdom of Silla.

The last was the kingdom of Gaya. It can be said that it was a confederation of tribal leagues.

The Three Kingdoms exist in the south of the peninsula. 

Silla might not have been as powerful as Goguryeo in the beginning. Soon, however, it expanded its power and control. Around the A.D. 500s, with the help of the Chinese ruler, it annexed all the other kingdoms. Some of the people from Goguryeo fled from Silla and created a kingdom called Balhae in central Manchuria. 

Unified Silla takes up most of the Korean Peninsula. 

Now, comes the story of the soap opera "Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo" (달의 연인 - 보보경심 려). As time passed, Unified Silla grew weaker. There were revolts everywhere. Some of the rebels wanted to re-establish Goguryeo and others wanted to reclaim Baekje. This resulted in the establishment of the Later Three Kingdoms: Silla, Later Baekje and  Later Goguryeo. However, these kingdoms were annexed by the mighty King Taejo of Goryeo. As a fan of "Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo" (달의 연인 - 보보경심 려), I choose to call Taejo the "Father of the Wang Dynasty." 

King Taejo, whose name was Wang Geon, was a general who served under Gung Ye, a rebel Silla prince. He won battles but he killed the rebel prince in the end and established the kingdom of Goryeo in A.D. 918. The name "Korea" was derived from the name of this kingdom, Goryeo. He chose his home city of Gaeseong to be the capital for his kingdom. He unified all the kingdoms of Korea and strengthened his kingdom. 

Goryeo takes up a large part of the Korean Peninsula. 

You might have seen the rest of the story about him in the TV show "Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo" (달의 연인 - 보보경심 려). No one can forget the next few kings, including King Gwangjong, the fourth king of Goryeo. Also, how can one forget the cute love story between Baek-Ha and Woo-Hee in the soap opera? Woo-Hee was depicted as a princess of Later Baekje. If you have seen "Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo" (달의 연인 - 보보경심 려), you can see how she fought until the end for the rights of her Baekje people under Goryeo rule.

Thus, the kingdom of Goryeo continued until 1392. Goryeo was overthrown by General Yi Seong-gye. He established the much more powerful Joseon kingdom. The Yi Dynasty continued its rule over Joseon until the Japanese annexed the territory in the 1800s. 

Joseon is ruled over by the Yi Dynasty.

After that, it's the field of modern history and the beginning of the separate governments in North Korea and South Korea.

wisdom117@korea.kr

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