Munju of Baekje (?–477, r. 475–477
Il-yeon
Il-yeon (or Iryeon; 1206–1289) was a Buddhist monk and All-Enlightened National Preceptor () during the Goryeo Dynasty of Korea. His birth name was either Kim Gyeong-myeong () or Jeon Gyeon-myeong (), and his courtesy name was Hoe-yeon ().
He ...
: ''Samguk Yusa: Legends and History of the Three Kingdoms of Ancient Korea'', translated by Tae-Hung Ha and Grafton K. Mintz. Book Two, page 120. Silk Pagoda (2006). ) was the
22nd king 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 ...
. His reign saw considerable disunity within Baekje following the fall of its capital in present-day
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...
.
Background
He was the first king to rule Baekje from its new capital in Ungjin, present-day
Gongju
Gongju ([]; Gongju-si) is a city in South Chungcheong province, South Korea.
History
Gongju was formerly named Ungjin and was the capital of Baekje from AD 475 to 538. In this period, Baekje was under threat from Goguryeo. Goguryeo had overrun ...
, after the
Han River valley was lost to
Goguryeo
Goguryeo (37 BC–668 AD) ( ) also called Goryeo (), was a Korean kingdom located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula and the southern and central parts of Northeast China. At its peak of power, Goguryeo controlled most ...
. He ascended to the throne after his father’s death in the sack of the former Baekje
capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
at Hanseong.
Prior to 475, Munju served as chief minister (''Sang-jwa'pyeong'', 上佐平) under his father,
Gaero. In the Goguryeo assault of 475, he went to
Silla
Silla or Shilla (57 BCE – 935 CE) ( , Old Korean: Syera, Old Japanese: Siraki2) was a Korean kingdom located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms of K ...
to request help. According to the ''
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, ...
'', he returned with 10,000 Silla warriors but was too late to prevent the fall of the capital.
Reign
After the move of the capital, the Baekje power structure fell into chaos when the traditional
Buyeo
Buyeo or Puyŏ ( Korean: 부여; Korean pronunciation: u.jʌ or 扶餘 ''Fúyú''), also rendered as Fuyu, was an ancient kingdom that was centered in northern Manchuria in modern-day northeast China. It is sometimes considered a Korea ...
-descended aristocracy clashed with the local
Mahan-based clans; rivalry within the old aristocracy, suppressed by previous powerful kings, resurfaced.
He sought to refortify Baekje’s remaining defenses and strengthen the country's position against Goguryeo. He was successful in 476 in gaining suzerainty over the kingdom of
Tamna
Tamna, or Tamna-guk, was a state based on Jeju Island from ancient times until it was absorbed by the Korean Joseon dynasty in 1404, following a long period of being a tributary state or autonomous administrative region of various Korean king ...
on
Jeju island.
In the midst of this instability, the chief general and Minister of Defense,
Hae Gu
Hae Gu (? – 478) was a noble of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He was a member of the Hae clan (解氏), one of the "Great Eight Families" (''Daeseongpaljok'', 大姓八族). He held the position of Minister of Defense (''Byeong'gw ...
, took control of the military and killed Munju's brother
Buyeo Gonji
Buyeo Gonji (? – July, 477) was a member of the royal family of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He was a son of the 21st king, Gaero of Baekje and younger brother of the 22nd king, Munju of Baekje.
Life
According to the ''Samguk Sa ...
in 477. After this Hae Gu exercised effective rule over the country.
That year, Munju was murdered by an agent of
Hae Gu
Hae Gu (? – 478) was a noble of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He was a member of the Hae clan (解氏), one of the "Great Eight Families" (''Daeseongpaljok'', 大姓八族). He held the position of Minister of Defense (''Byeong'gw ...
.
Family
* Father:
Gaero of Baekje
Gaero of Baekje (?–475, 455–475) was the 21st king of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He was the eldest son of the 20th king Biyu. He died in battle as Baekje's capital in the present-day Seoul region fell to the northe ...
* Mother: unknown
** Brother:
Buyeo Gonji
Buyeo Gonji (? – July, 477) was a member of the royal family of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He was a son of the 21st king, Gaero of Baekje and younger brother of the 22nd king, Munju of Baekje.
Life
According to the ''Samguk Sa ...
(餘餘昆支, ?–477) – military commander and father of 24th King of Baekje,
Dongseong of Baekje. He was sent to Japan in 461 where he had a son with a Japanese woman.
** Queen: unknown
*** Buyeo Samgeol/Buyeo Imgeol (扶餘三乞/扶餘壬乞, ?–479) – 23nd King of Baekje,
Samgeun of Baekje.
See also
*
History of Korea
The Lower Paleolithic era in the Korean Peninsula and Manchuria began roughly half a million years ago.
Christopher J. Norton, "The Current State of Korean Paleoanthropology", (2000), ''Journal of Human Evolution'', 38: 803–825.
The earlies ...
*
List of Monarchs of Korea
This is a list of monarchs of Korea, arranged by dynasty. Names are romanized according to the South Korean Revised Romanization of Korean. McCune–Reischauer romanizations may be found at the articles about the individual monarchs.
Gojoseon
...
References
*
![CC BY-SA icon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/CC_BY-SA_icon.svg)
Content in this article was copied fro
Samguk Sagi Scroll 23at the Shoki Wiki, which is licensed under th
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 (Unported) (CC-BY-SA 3.0) license
{{s-end
477 deaths
Baekje rulers
5th-century monarchs in Asia
Year of birth unknown
5th-century Korean people