Draft Goryeo

Title	Goryeo (918 - 1392)
Author	Lyndsey Twining
Actor	Wang Geon
Place	Gaegyeong (present-day Gaeseong, North Korea)
Concept	Buddhism, movable metal type, Goryeo celedon, Later Three Kingdoms, Silla, Mongol Yuan dynasty, Joseon
Object	Tripitaka Koreana, Jikji

Goryeo emerged during the declining period of Silla. Founded in 918 by Wang Geon as the symbolic successor state of Goguryeo, it united the Later Three Kingdoms in 936. Its territory included all but the northernmost part of the Korean peninsula. In the late 10th and early 11th centuries, Goryeo was invaded multiple times by the neighboring Khitan Liao Dynasty, which was threatened by Goryeo's relation with Song China, but Goryeo was victorious. Goryeo then experienced a century and a half-long golden age until 1170 when a military regime took over. Beginning in 1231, the Mongols invaded Goryeo multiple times and Goryeo became a client state of the Yuan Dynasty. While under the Mongol sphere of influence, Goryeo princes married Mongol princesses, while Mongol princes married Goryeo princesses, created highly interwind Goryeo-Yuan royal families. Goryeo regained its autonomy in the mid-14th century, but ended shortly thereafter in 1392 with the establishment of the Joseon dynasty. In total, the Goryeo dynasty lasted 474 years.

From its foundation, Goryeo adopted many Confucian institutions, such as the civil service examination, while keeping Buddhism as the state religion. During the dynasty's Golden Age, the Tripitaka Koreana, a collection of over 80,000 woodblocks of the Buddhist scriptures, was created. This period also saw the creation of the first movable metal type capable of printing books and the oldest extant movable metal type book, the Jikji. Goryeo was well known for its celadon, which was exported widely outside the peninsula. Foreign merchants spread word about "Goryeo" to the rest of the world, which is how the West came to call the country "Korea."

Glossary

• People
  • Wang Geon (founder)
  • Yi Seong-gye (overthrown by)

• Places
  • Gaegyeong (the capital of Goryeo; present-day Gaeseong, North Korea)

• Events

• Concepts
  • Buddhism (the official state religion of Goryeo)
  • Goryeo celedon
  • movable metal type

• Objects
  • Tripitaka Koreana (collection over over 80,000 woodblock prints of the Buddhist scriptures)
  • Jikji (the oldest extant print of moveable metal type in the world)

• Related States
  • Later Three Kingdoms (were united to found Goryeo)
  • Silla (precursor state)
  • Mongol Yuan dynasty (invaded and exerted partial control over Goryeo)
  • Joseon (successor state)

Editor's Worksheet

Issues to Resolve

• more to include regarding culture?

Media Content to be Produced

• Mongol invasion
• Where celedon was produced
• Territory

Samples

• Center for International Affairs, Korea in the World, Academy of Korean Studies, 2015, p.8.

The Goryeo Kingdom came to power in 935 AD after absorbing Silla. Goryeo adopted Buddhism as its national religion, and several excellent Buddhist works of art were produced during this period. The kingdom also maintained an open foreign policy. Thus, the Goryeo Kingdom became known among foreigners as 'Korea.' Goryeo lasted for around 470 years until the rise of the Joseon Dynasty at the end of the 14th century.

• Korean Culture and Information Service, Facts about Korea, Korean Culture and Information Service, 2009, p.29.

The Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392) was founded by Wang Geon, a general who had served under Gungye, a rebel prince of the Silla Kingdom. Choosing his native town of Songak (present-day Gaeseongn in North Korea) as the capital, Wang Geon proclaimed the goal of recovering the lost territory of the Goguryeo Kingdom in northeast China.

Wang Geon named his dynasty Goryeo, from which the modern name Korea is derived. Although the Goryeo Dynasty could not reclaim lost lands, it achieved a sophisticated culture represented by cheongja or blue-green celadon and flourishing Buddhist tradition. No less significant was the invention of the world's first movable metal type in 1234, which preceded the Gutenberg Bible of Germany by two centuries. About that time, skilled Korean artisans also completed the herculean task of carving the entire Buddhist canon on large woodblocks.

These woodblocks, numbering more than 80,000, were intended to invoke the influence of Buddha for the repulsion of the Mongol invaders. Called the Tripitaka Koreana, they are now stored at the historic Haeinsa Temple.

• The Koryo or Goryeo Kingdom of Korea - about.com
• History - Koryo - Encyclopaedia of Korea, p. 497-504