Gojong of Goryeo (1192 - 1259, r. 1213 - 1259) was the twenty-third ruler of
GoryeoThe Goryeo Dynasty or Koryŏ was a sovereign state established in 918 by King Taejo. It united the Later Three Kingdoms in 936 and ruled most of the Korean peninsula until it was removed by the Joseon dynasty in 1392...
in present-day
KoreaKorea is a civilization and formerly unified nation currently divided into two states. Located on the Korean Peninsula, it borders China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the east by the Korea Strait....
. Gojong's reign was marked by
prolonged conflictThe Mongol invasions of Korea consisted of a series of campaigns by the Mongol Empire against Korea, then known as Goryeo, from 1231 to 1270...
with the
Mongol EmpireThe Mongol Empire was an empire from the 13th and 14th century spanning from Eastern Europe across Asia. It is the largest contiguous empire in the history of the world...
, which sought to conquer Goryeo, ending only when the kingdom was finally vassalized in 1259.
Although ascending to the throne in 1213, Gojong did not wield much power until powerful advisors were killed off. In 1216, the
Khitanthumb|250px|Khitans [[Eagle hunting|using eagles to hunt]], painted during the Chinese [[Song Dynasty]].The Khitan people , or Khitai, Kidan, were a nomadic people, originally located at Mongolia and Manchuria from the 4th century...
invaded but was defeated.
Gojong of Goryeo (1192 - 1259, r. 1213 - 1259) was the twenty-third ruler of
GoryeoThe Goryeo Dynasty or Koryŏ was a sovereign state established in 918 by King Taejo. It united the Later Three Kingdoms in 936 and ruled most of the Korean peninsula until it was removed by the Joseon dynasty in 1392...
in present-day
KoreaKorea is a civilization and formerly unified nation currently divided into two states. Located on the Korean Peninsula, it borders China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the east by the Korea Strait....
. Gojong's reign was marked by
prolonged conflictThe Mongol invasions of Korea consisted of a series of campaigns by the Mongol Empire against Korea, then known as Goryeo, from 1231 to 1270...
with the
Mongol EmpireThe Mongol Empire was an empire from the 13th and 14th century spanning from Eastern Europe across Asia. It is the largest contiguous empire in the history of the world...
, which sought to conquer Goryeo, ending only when the kingdom was finally vassalized in 1259.
Although ascending to the throne in 1213, Gojong did not wield much power until powerful advisors were killed off. In 1216, the
Khitanthumb|250px|Khitans [[Eagle hunting|using eagles to hunt]], painted during the Chinese [[Song Dynasty]].The Khitan people , or Khitai, Kidan, were a nomadic people, originally located at Mongolia and Manchuria from the 4th century...
invaded but was defeated. In August 1232, Gojong moved the capital of Goryeo from
SongdoSongdo , meaning "city of pines," can refer to:*Kaesong, North KoreaSongdo , meaning "isle of pines," can refer to:*New Songdo City, a planned ubiquitous city near Incheon, South Korea*Songdo *Songdo , area 2.4 km²....
to the island of
GanghwaGanghwa may refer to:* Ganghwa County, administrative region of South Korea* Ganghwa Island, island in South Korea...
and started the construction of significant defenses there, in order to better defend from the Mongol threat. Gojong resisted the Mongol invasion for nearly thirty years before the kingdom was forced to surrender to the Mongols in 1259; Gojong died soon after.
In 1251, the carving of the
Tripitaka KoreanaThe Tripitaka Koreana or Palman Daejanggyeong is a Korean collection of the Tripitaka , carved onto 81,340 wooden printing blocks in the 13th century...
, a collection of
BuddhistBuddhism, as traditionally conceived, is a path of salvation attained through insight into the ultimate nature of reality. It encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha...
scriptures recorded on some 81,000 wooden blocks, was completed. The work was perhaps motivated by Gojong's hopes to change fortunes through the act of religious devotion; however the originals were later destroyed by the Mongols — the existing Tripitaka is a replica of Gojong's original, and was commissioned around one hundred years after the originals were lost.
Gojong was married to Anhye Taehu, daughter of
HuijongHuijong of Goryeo was the 21st Emperor of the Goryeo dynasty of Korea and the only son of Emperor Sinjong.It is said of Huijong that if he were to have grown old he would have made a great Emperor...
, the twenty-first king of Goryeo. His tomb is located near the city of
IncheonIncheon, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City, is South Korea's third largest metropolis, after Seoul and Busan. As the largest seaport on the west coast and home to the country's largest airport, Incheon International Airport, Incheon is South Korea's most important transport hub...
.
See also
- History of Korea
The history of Korea stretches from Lower Paleolithic times to the present. The earliest known Korean pottery dates to around 8000 BC, and the Neolithic period began before 6000 BC, followed by the Bronze Age around 2500 BC...
- Rulers of Korea
- List of Korea-related topics
- Mongol invasions of Korea
The Mongol invasions of Korea consisted of a series of campaigns by the Mongol Empire against Korea, then known as Goryeo, from 1231 to 1270...