Gwangjong of Goryeo facts for kids

Gwangjong of Goryeo, whose personal name was Wang So, was an important king of the Goryeo kingdom. He ruled from 949 to 975 and was the fourth king of this dynasty. He is remembered for making big changes that helped strengthen the king's power and improve the country.

Life of Gwangjong

Early Life and Family

Gwangjong was born in 925 as Wang So. He was the fourth son of King Taejo, who founded the Goryeo kingdom in 918. His mother was Queen Sinmyeongsunseong. She also had other children, including two of Gwangjong's older brothers.

Because he had three older brothers, Wang So was not expected to become king. However, his oldest brother, Wang Tae, died young. His second oldest brother, Wang Mu, became king but died in 945. Then, his third oldest brother, Wang Yo, became king.

Before Jeongjong died, he chose Wang So to be the next king. This was unusual because Jeongjong had his own son. People at the time described Gwangjong as careful and quiet, but also brave when needed. He was also said to be very handsome and talented.

Becoming King and Facing Challenges

Gwangjong became king on April 13, 949, when he was 25 years old. At that time, the Goryeo kingdom was not very stable. His father, King Taejo, had made alliances with powerful families by arranging marriages. These families had their own armies and a lot of influence.

Gwangjong knew he needed to make the king's power stronger. He wanted to create a system where the king had absolute control. To do this, he decided not to marry a woman from a powerful noble family. Instead, he married his half-sister, Queen Daemok, who was part of the royal family. He also studied books about how to be a good emperor, like Difan by Taizong of Tang.

He worked hard to have good relationships with neighboring countries. This helped him focus on strengthening his power within Goryeo. Seven years into his reign, he started making big changes to create a stable government and improve the economy and military.

Gwangjong's Big Changes

Freeing Slaves

One of Gwangjong's first major changes was the law of emancipation of slaves in 956. Many powerful families owned a lot of slaves, who were often prisoners of war. These slaves also served as private soldiers for the noble families. They did not pay taxes to the king, but to their owners.

By freeing these slaves, Gwangjong turned them into common people. This weakened the power of the noble families. It also meant more people would pay taxes to the king and could join the royal army. This change made many common people support Gwangjong, even though the nobles were against it. Even his own wife, Queen Daemok, tried to stop him because the law affected her family.

Building International Relations

Gwangjong continued the strong relationship between Goryeo and China, which his father had started. He focused on ties with the Later Zhou and later the Song dynasty. Many diplomats and goods were exchanged between the countries. Gwangjong also built diplomatic relationships with other regions like Wuyue.

Creating a Fairer Government

In 957, a scholar named Shuang Ji came to Goryeo from China. Gwangjong was impressed by his skills and asked him to stay. With Shuang Ji's advice, Gwangjong started the national civil service examination in 958.

This exam was designed to choose government officials based on their skills and knowledge, not just their family's power or reputation. It was based on the Tang dynasty's exam and Confucian teachings. The exam was open to all free-born men, giving more people a chance to work for the government. However, in reality, mostly sons of wealthy families could get the education needed for the exam. Royal relatives of the highest ranks were not allowed to take it.

In 960, Gwangjong also introduced different colored robes for court officials. This helped people easily tell the rank of an official.

Helping the Poor and Sick

During Gwangjong's rule, medical centers called Daebi-won were set up in Kaesong and Pyongyang. These centers gave free medicine to poor patients. Later, they expanded into the provinces as Hyeminguk, which were like public health departments.

His father, King Taejo, had created regional granaries to store food for times of drought. Gwangjong added jewibo, which were stores that offered grain loans with interest. The money earned from these interests was used to help the poor. These systems, even with some changes, continued to help people for hundreds of years. Better farming methods were also introduced to feed the growing population.

Strengthening the Army

When the Later Zhou dynasty in China fell in 959, it left northern areas open to other groups like the Khitans and Jurchens. To protect Goryeo, Gwangjong reorganized and expanded the military. He built twelve garrisons, which are military bases, along the northeast and northwest borders. Under his rule, Goryeo also expanded its border further north, beyond the Chongchon River.

Supporting Buddhism

Gwangjong believed that religious institutions could help him control local lords. He chose the abbot of Haeinsa Temple to promote Buddhism among the people. He also took advice from skilled monks and encouraged the building of temples. For example, he built the Yongjusa Temple in Cheongju in 962.

The king also created an exam for Buddhist priests called seonggwa. This helped connect the government and the Buddhist church. He tried to unite different Buddhist schools, but this was not very successful.

Declaring an Empire

To show his absolute power, Gwangjong declared Goryeo an empire and himself an Emperor. This meant Goryeo was no longer a smaller kingdom that paid tribute to China. He called Kaesong the Imperial Capital and Pyongyang the Western Capital. He also used his own era names, Gwangdeok (meaning "shining virtue") and Junpung (meaning "exorbitant abundance"). By doing this, he wanted to show everyone that he had supreme power.

Dealing with Opposition

Not all of Gwangjong's changes were popular, especially with the powerful nobles and officials who had helped his father found Goryeo. Some nobles tried to rebel against him, but they failed.

Around 960, Gwangjong began to remove his opponents. He took action against those who disagreed with his reforms. This included some of his own relatives and powerful figures. By the end of these actions, only a small number of the original people who helped King Taejo were still alive.

Later Years and Death

Gwangjong's tomb.

In his later years, Gwangjong became even more devoted to Buddhism. In 968, he banned the killing of animals in his family after having a bad dream. In 971 and 972, earthquakes happened in Goryeo. The nobles and people blamed the king for these events. Gwangjong tried to handle the situation by granting amnesty to prisoners.

Gwangjong became very sick in July 975 and died a few days later at the age of 50. His tomb is called Heolleung and is located near Mount Songak in North Korea. His son, Wang Ju, became the next king, Gyeongjong.

Gwangjong's policies to limit the power of the nobles were passed on to his successors. However, they were not always able to continue these reforms. For example, the law freeing slaves was later canceled by the sixth king, Seongjong.

Gwangjong's Legacy

Gwangjong's bold changes helped weaken the power of the nobles and made the king's position much stronger. The national civil service examination also brought new, talented people into the government. He also encouraged marriages within the royal family to avoid problems with powerful in-laws.

He is seen as one of the most energetic kings in early Goryeo who worked hard to strengthen the royal power. His reforms greatly helped shape the new political system of the Goryeo kingdom. However, some people, like the scholar Choe Seungno, criticized Gwangjong. Choe Seungno believed that Gwangjong was too focused on Buddhism and public projects, which he thought put the kingdom in debt. He also called Gwangjong a tyrant because of his harsh actions against opponents.

Family

• Father: Taejo of Goryeo (고려 태조)
• Mother: Queen Sinmyeong (신명왕후)
• Wives and Children:
  • Queen Daemok of the Hwangju Hwangbo clan (대목왕후 황보씨); his half-sister.
    • Crown Prince Wang Ju (태자 왕주)
    • Prince Hyohwa (효화태자)
    • Wang Aji, Lady Cheonchu (왕아지 천추전부인)
    • Lady Bohwa (보화궁부인)
    • Queen Mundeok (문덕왕후)
  • Lady Gyeonghwa of the Jincheon Im clan (경화궁부인 임씨); his half-niece – No children.
  • Worthy Consort, of the Gim clan (현비 김씨) – No children.

See also

In Spanish: Gwangjong de Goryeo para niños

• List of Korean monarchs
• History of Korea
• List of Goryeo people