Gwisil Jipsa (鬼室集斯, ? – 688), was the son of

Gwisil Boksin Gwisil Boksin (鬼室福信, ? – 663) was a military general of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He is remembered primarily as a leader of the Baekje Revival Movement to restore the kingdom after the capital fell in 660 to the Sill ...

(鬼室福信), a general of

Baekje Baekje or Paekche (, ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BC to 660 AD. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. Baekje was founded by Onjo, the third son of Goguryeo's founder Jum ...

, one of the

Three Kingdoms of Korea Samhan or the Three Kingdoms of Korea () refers to the three kingdoms of Goguryeo (고구려, 高句麗), Baekje (백제, 百濟), and Silla (신라, 新羅). Goguryeo was later known as Goryeo (고려, 高麗), from which the modern name ''Kor ...

. The

Gwisil The Gwisil clan (Kwi-sil; 鬼室氏, Japanese: Kishitsu) were a collateral branch of the royal family of the Korean kingdom of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea who settled in Japan. They descended from the third son of the 26th king, Se ...

clan was a collateral branch of the royal family, the Buyeo clan (扶餘氏). He settled in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

after the fall of the kingdom and death of his father where he became a member of the Japanese court where they called him ''Kishitsu Shushi'' after the Japanese reading of his name.

Fall of Baekje

Before Jipsa moved to Japan he was a Dalsol (達率, 2nd court rank) in Baekje's 16 rank system. When Paekche fell in 660 his father tried to save the nation by raising an army and proclaiming

Buyeo Pung Buyeo Pung (扶餘豊, 623–668) was a prince of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He was son of the last king, Uija of Baekje. When Baekje fell to the Silla–Tang alliance in 660, he was a hostage who mortgaged the alliance of Bae ...

(扶餘豊), the son of the last recognized king of Baekje,

King Uija Uija of Baekje (599?–660, r. 641–660) was the 31st and final ruler of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. His reign ended when Baekje was conquered by an alliance of the rival Korean kingdom Silla and China's Tang dynasty. Backg ...

, as the next king under the name King Pungjang (豊璋王). In 663, the Silla–Tang alliance counterattacked, and besieged the restoration movement at the fortress of Juryu Castle (주류성/周留城). Boksin was captured and then executed; his head was salted and pickled.

Japan

Three years after the death of his father, the Baekje army was destroyed at the

Battle of Baekgang The Battle of Baekgang or Battle of Baekgang-gu, also known as Battle of Hakusukinoe ( ja, 白村江の戦い, Hakusuki-no-e no Tatakai / Hakusonkō no Tatakai) in Japan, as Battle of Baijiangkou ( zh, c=白江口之战, p=Bāijiāngkǒu Zhīzh ...

and Gwisil Jipsa came and settled in Japan with his family during the second year of

Emperor Tenji , also known as Emperor Tenchi, was the 38th emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'')天智天皇 (38)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession.Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', p. 5 ...

's reign (663). In February, 665, Naka no Ōe no Miko (

) granted the rank of "Lower Shokin" (小錦下) upon Jipsa and he became Chief of the Department of Education. He settled in Gamō-gun,

Omi Province is a hereditary noble title (''kabane'') of ancient Japan. It was given to the descendants of the Imperial Family before Emperor Kōgen. Along with ''Muraji'', ''Omi'' was reserved for the head of the most powerful clans during the Kofun perio ...

. Nihon Shoki: *"'' n A.D. 663 . . . The Minister Yeo Jasin, the Minister Gwisil Jipsa, and others, men and women, to the number of over 700 persons, were removed and settled in the district of Kamafu in the province of Afumi n A.D. 669" Nihongi (NII: 295) further records that the rank of Upper Daikin was conferred on the Baekje Minister Yeo Jasin and on Sataek Somyeong (second official of the Department of Ceremonies that was in charge of personnel administration); the rank of Lower on Gwisil Jipsa (Chief of the Department of Education); and the rank of Lower Daisen on the Dalsol Gongna Jinsu (who had military training ), . . . on Kim-su (acquainted with medicine ), . . . on Heo Sol-mo (who thoroughly understood the five classics), and on Kak Pyeongmu (skilled in the Yin and Yang). The rank Lower was conferred on the other Dalsol, more than fifty persons in all n AD 671''”

Kishitsu Shrine

Gwisil Jipsa died on November 8 or December 5 of 688. His tomb is located at Kishitsu Shrine (''Kishitsu-jinja'', 鬼室神社) in Ono, Hino-chō, Gamō-gun,

Shiga-ken is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,412,916 (1 October 2015) and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the northe ...

. His father, Boksin, is enshrined in the village of Eunsan-ri,

Buyeo County Buyeo County (''Buyeo-gun'') is a county in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. Buyeo-eup, the county's capital, was the site of the capital of Baekje from 538-660 AD, during which it was called Sabi Fortress. Famous people associated with B ...

South Chungcheong Province South Chungcheong Province ( ko, 충청남도, ''Chungcheongnam-do''), also known as Chungnam, is a province of South Korea. South Chungcheong has a population of 2,059,871 (2014) and has a geographic area of 8,204 km2 (3,168 sq mi) located in ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. Because of this Hino and Eunsan decided to become sister cities in 1990.

Legacy

Jipsa became ancestor of several Japanese clans including the

Kikuchi clan The of Higo Province was a powerful daimyō family of Higo, Kyūshū. The lineage was renowned for valiant service in defense of the emperor and against foreign invaders. They initially distinguished themselves during the Jürchen invasion of ...

, a powerful family of Higo Province,

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surroun ...

.Shinsen Shōjiroku He also brought a lot of knowledge from the continent that helped the Japanese greatly. Jipsa had an older brother named Gwisil Jipsin (鬼室集信, ''Kishitsu Shushin'') who is mentioned only once in the Japanaese '' Nihon Shoki''.

Notes

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References