The Battle of Myeongnyang and Yi Sun-sin

Admiral Yi Sun-shin (1545~1598) is a hero who defended the Joseon Dynasty against invasions from Japan. Having passed the national examination for military service in 1577 at the age of 32, he was appointed as a military officer and promoted to a navy admiral 15 years thereafter, appointed as commander of a naval corps in Jeolla-do Province.

Soon after, he prepared for the anticipated invasion by Japanese troops by building innovative ironclad battleships called ‘turtle ships’ and reserving military provisions. Most warships in the Joseon Dynasty then were double-decked with a command tower upon the upper deck. But turtle ships created by Lee Sun-sin were additionally clad in iron and then stuck with pointed knives and awls on their top. During the Imjin War these turtle ships greatly contributed to winning sweeping victories by fatally destroying many of the invaders’ warships.

That great war broke out in 1592, the Year named “Imjin” by the traditional calendar. Japanese forces captured a strategic fortress in Busan and controlled the sea only in two days. However, battleships commanded by Admiral Yi defeated the Japanese navy by destroying 26 warships out of 30 in a battle near Okpo. In the first use of ironclad turtle ships, his corps exterminated Japanese forces in a battle near Noryang, and he won sweeping victories in several other battles consecutively, including the one near Hansan-do Island. After completely sweeping the enemy from the nation’s southern coast in 1593, Admiral Lee Sun-sin was appointed as chief commander of the navy for three southern provinces.

Japan invaded Joseon again in 1597, but Yi Sun-sin was imprisoned due to plots of Won Gyun, the naval commander for the southeastern region. Admiral Yi was fortunately released from jail, but he was deployed as an enlisted man. As Won Gyun’s forces were almost annihilated in a battle, the king had to re-appoint Yi as chief commander of navy for three southern provinces. With only 120 naval soldiers and 12 battle ships surviving, Yi fought victoriously against 133 Japanese warships in the Myeongryang Sea Battle, destroying 31 ships. While commanding a final winning battle in the Noryang area, he lost his life by getting shot by the enemy on November 19, 1598. His ‘War Diary’ written during the Imjin War is an important historical record for studying that important turning-point of East Asian history.

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  Statue of General Yi Sun-sin (Jongno-gu, Seoull) / Courtesy of the Korea Tourism Organization

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  Drawing of Yi Sun-sin

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  Imjin War (Southern Coast)

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  Imjin War (A)