Queen Wonmok of the Icheon Seo clan (; d. 16 June 1057) was the granddaughter of

Seo Hui Seo Hui () (942 – 8 August 998) was a Korean politician and diplomat during the early days of the Goryeo Dynasty of Korea (918–1392). Seo is best remembered for his diplomatic skills that led 60,000 Khitan troops to withdraw from Goryeo wi ...

and the 6th wife of King Hyeonjong of Goryeo.

Biography

Ancestors and background

The future Queen Wonmok was born into the

Icheon Seo clan Icheon Seo clan () is one of the Korean clans. Their Bon-gwan is in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province. According to the research held in 2015, the number of Icheon Seo clan was 199792. Their founder was who was a descendant of King Jun of Gojoseon, the ...

as the daughter of Seo-Nul (서눌) and Lady Choe (부인 최씨). Her grandfather was a nobleman

(서희) who was famous for his diplomatic skills when led 60,000 Khitan troops withdraw from

Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificat ...

without a battle. She had a younger brother, Seo Su (서수, 徐琇) whom his descendants later held a noble position in the Goryeo Royal court.

Palace life

In 1022 (13rd year reign of

Hyeonjong of Goryeo Hyeonjong of Goryeo (1 August 992 – 17 June 1031, r. 1009–1031) was the 8th ruler of the Goryeo dynasty of Korea. He was a grandson of King Taejo. He was appointed by the military leader Gang Jo, whom the previous King Mokjong had calle ...

), she firstly entered the palace and honoured as Suk-Bi (숙비, 淑妃; "Pure Consort") and given a Royal title of Princess Heungseong (흥성궁주, 興盛宮主) while lived in "Heungseong Palace" (흥성궁, 興盛宮). In the same year, her father, Seo Nul held positions such as ''Jungchusahsangisangsi'' (중추사우산기상시, 中樞使右散騎常侍) and ''Seogyeongyusupansa'' (서경유수판사, 署經留守判事), also during King Deokjong's reign, Seo Nul became ''Munhasijung'' (문하시중, 門下侍中). Then, in 1026, Hyeonjong gave her biological mother, Lady Choe a title of "Grand Lady of Icheon County" (이천군대부인, 利川郡大夫人) and her stepmother, Lady Jeong a title of "Grand Lady of Icheon County" (이천군대군, 利川郡大君).

Later life, Death and funeral

She outlived at least 26 years since her late husband's death in 1031 and later died on 16 June 1057 during the 11st year reign of her stepson, King Munjong. Although she was also one of the king's stepmother, but since she didn't have her own child, so many Ministers in the court told Munjong to not wear the "Sang-bok" (상복, 喪服; "mourning clothes") and he followed it as a result. For the same reason, her ancestral rites were not held on the New Year's Day. Her body was cremated, but where her tomb's location is unknown since no records left about that. Under his command too, she was posthumously called as Queen Wonmok (원목왕후, 元穆王后).

References

External links

Queen Wonmok
on Goryeosa .
Queen Wonmok
on

Encykorea The ''Encyclopedia of Korean Culture'' is a Korean language encyclopedia published by the Academy of Korean Studies and DongBang Media Co. The articles in the encyclopedia are aimed at readers who want to learn about Korean culture and history, ...

.
원목왕후
on Doosan Encyclopedia . {{DEFAULTSORT:Wonmok, Queen 10th-century births Year of birth unknown 1057 deaths Consorts of Hyeonjong of Goryeo 11th-century Korean women Icheon Seo clan