Gang I-sik is the name given to the Goguryeo commander in the 590s. He is mentioned in the genealogy of

Jinju Jinju () is a city in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. It was the location of the first (1592) and second (1593) Sieges of Jinju by Japanese forces during the Imjin War. The Republic of Korea Air Force Education and Training Command is ...

Gang clan and the

Joseon Sanggosa ''Joseon Sanggosa'' (literally ''Ancient history of Korea'') is a book written in 1931 by Shin Chaeho, and which describes the ancient history of Korea. It covers the history of Korea from Gojoseon to the destruction of Baekje. It was published s ...

, written by

Shin Chaeho Sin Chaeho, or Shin Chae-ho (; November 7, 1880 – February 21, 1936), was a Korean independence activist, historian, anarchist, nationalist, and a founder of Korean nationalist historiography (민족 사학, ''minjok sahak''; sometimes shortene ...

. In ''

Samguk Sagi ''Samguk Sagi'' (, ''History of the Three Kingdoms'') is a historical record of the Three Kingdoms of Korea: Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla. The ''Samguk Sagi'' is written in Classical Chinese, the written language of the literati of ancient Korea, ...

'' and ''

Book of Sui The ''Book of Sui'' (''Suí Shū'') is the official history of the Sui dynasty. It ranks among the official Twenty-Four Histories of imperial China. It was written by Yan Shigu, Kong Yingda, and Zhangsun Wuji, with Wei Zheng as the lead author. ...

Interpretation in the Joseon Sanggosa

In 598, King Yeongyang launched a joint preemptive invasion with the

Malgal The Mohe, Malgal, or Mogher, or Mojie, were an East Asian Tungusic people who lived primarily in the modern geographical region of Northeast Asia. The two most powerful Mohe groups were known as the Heishui Mohe, located along the Amur River, a ...

against Chinese

Sui Dynasty The Sui dynasty (, ) was a short-lived imperial dynasty of China that lasted from 581 to 618. The Sui unified the Northern and Southern dynasties, thus ending the long period of division following the fall of the Western Jin dynasty, and layi ...

outposts along the border in present-day

Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, an ...

province. Sui Emperor Wendi ordered his fifth and youngest son, Yang Liang (assisted by the co-prime minister Gao Jiong), and Admiral

Zhou Luohou Zhou Luohou (, 542–605), courtesy name Gongbu (), was a Chinese general and administrator serving under the Chen and Sui dynasties. He died in the battles against Yang Liang's rebel remnants. His posthumous name was Zhuang (, "strong"). Durin ...

, to conquer Goguryeo with an army and navy totaling 300,000. Yang Liang's army faced the early rainy season when it reached Goguryeo. The unseasonably heavy rain made the army's progress almost impossible and hampered the transport of provisions. Constant attacks by Goguryeo forces and illness inflicted heavy casualties. Coming to the conclusion that the army could not achieve the objective on its own, Yang Yang decided to combine with Zhou's naval fleet and proceed. Zhou's navy also came across their own challenges, contending with rough seas, losing many ships despite staying close to the coastline. Whenever they anchored, Goguryeo detachments were present to attack the Sui sailors. The fleet engaged in a battle against a Goguryeo fleet totaling 50,000 led by Admiral Gang I sik, presumably on the present

Bohai Sea The Bohai Sea () is a marginal sea approximately in area on the east coast of Mainland China. It is the northwestern and innermost extension of the Yellow Sea, to which it connects to the east via the Bohai Strait. It has a mean depth of a ...

. Already weakened by ambushes and nature's onslaught, the Sui fleet suffered a devastating loss. The Sui forces were all defeated, both at land and sea. Historical texts record that about 90% of the Sui troops perished. Goguryeo casualties are thought to be almost nonexistent compared to those of Sui. Yang Yang faced no option but retreat. In 612, Sui Emperor Yangdi ordered preparations for a war against the Goguryeo. The force gathered by year's end was one of the greatest in civilization according to the

. An estimated 1,133,000 combat troops were mobilized. King Yeongyang appointed him to both: land and sea supreme commander (수륙양군병마도원수, 水陸兩軍兵馬都元帥).

Chapter 10, Written by

in 1931. The Sui army and navy made a vigorous attack.

Eulji Mundeok Eulji Mundeok (을지문덕) (Ulchi Mundok) was a military leader of early 7th century Goguryeo, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, who successfully defended Goguryeo against Sui China. He is often numbered among the greatest heroes in the m ...

, another supreme commander, repulsed the assailants. General Eulji dislodged the Sui army from the

Battle of Salsu The Battle of Salsu was a major battle that occurred in the year 612 during the second campaign of the Goguryeo–Sui War between Goguryeo of Korea and Sui of China. Goguryeo won an overwhelming victory over the numerically superior Sui forces ...

. With the victory over Sui dynasty in Salsu, Goguryeo eventually became the victor of the war itself, while the Sui Dynasty started to crumble from within and was finally brought down by internal strife. General Gang died during the reign of King Yeongnyu at a very old age. He is the ancestor of the present-day

Gang clan.

Notes

References

Doosan Encyclopedia Online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gang, Isik Goguryeo people Goguryeo Korean generals

Interpretation in the Joseon Sanggosa

See also

Notes

References