Japanese army sacks the city of Busan.
The siege of Busanjin was a battle fought at
Busan
Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, ...
on 24 May 1592, between Japanese and Korean forces. The attacks on Busan and the neighboring fort of
Dadaejin were the first battles of the
Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–98)
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diasp ...
.
Background
The Japanese invasion force consisting of 400 transports bearing 18,700 men under the command of
Konishi Yukinaga departed from
Tsushima Island
is an island of the Japanese archipelago situated in-between the Tsushima Strait and Korea Strait, approximately halfway between Kyushu and the Korean Peninsula. The main island of Tsushima, once a single island, was divided into two in 1671 by ...
on 23 May and arrived at
Busan
Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, ...
harbor without any incident. The commander of Busan,
Jeong Bal, spotted the invasion fleet while hunting on Yeong Island off Busan Harbor and rushed back to Busan to prepare defenses. A single vessel bearing the ''
daimyō
were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominal ...
'' of
Tsushima Sō Yoshitoshi
was a Sō clan ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the domain of Tsushima on Tsushima Island at the end of Japan's Sengoku period, and into the Edo period. His name is sometimes read as Yoshitomo.Papinot, Jacques. (2003)''Nobiliare du Japon'' -- Sō ...
(who had been a member of the Japanese mission to Korea in 1589) detached from the Japanese fleet with a letter to the commander of Busan, Jeong Bal, demanding that the Korean forces stand down to allow the Japanese armies to proceed on towards China. The letter went unanswered, and the Japanese commenced landing operations from 0400 the following morning.
The
Joseon fleet of 150 ships did nothing and sat idle at port while
Gyeongsang Left Navy Commander
Bak Hong reported to Gyeongsang Right Navy Commander
Won Gyun
Won Gyun (; 12 February 1540 – 27 August 1597) was a Korean general and admiral during the Joseon Dynasty. He is best known for his campaigns against the Japanese during Hideyoshi's invasions of Korea. Won was a member of Wonju Won family, ...
, who thought the invasion might have been a really large trade mission.
The commanders of the Japanese forces were Konishi, Sō,
Matsura Shigenobu,
Arima Harunobu
was a Japanese samurai lord who was the daimyō, daimyo of Shimabara Domain and the head of the Hizen-Arima clan''.'' In his early years, he was a retainer of Ryūzōji clan.
Biography
Harunobu was born in Hinoe Castle, the Hizen-Arima clan, Ar ...
,
Ōmura Yoshiaki
was a ruling head of the clan of Ōmura throughout the latter Sengoku period of Feudal Japan. As Yoshiaki was the respective son of Ōmura Sumitada, he followed his father in succession at some variable time, at which relations with the Jesuits a ...
and
Gotō Mototsugu, all of whom (with the exception of Matsura) were
Kirishitan
The Japanese term , from Portuguese ''cristão'' (cf. Kristang), meaning "Christian", referred to Catholic Christians in Japanese and is used in Japanese texts as a historiographic term for Catholics in Japan in the 16th and 17th centuries. ...
s, as were many of their men. A portion of this force led by Konishi attacked a nearby fort called
Dadaejin, while Sō led the main contingent against Busan.
Battle
Early in the morning of May 24, 1592, Sō Yoshitoshi once again called up Joeng Bal to stand down, assuring that he and his men would be safe if they would stand aside and allow the Japanese to pass. Joeng refused, stating that he was duty bound to oppose the Japanese advance unless he received orders from Seoul to do otherwise, and the Japanese attack then commenced. The Japanese tried to take the south gate of Busan Castle first but took heavy casualties and were forced to switch to the north gate. The Japanese took high ground positions on the mountain behind Busan and shot at Korean defenders within the city with their
arquebus
An arquebus ( ) is a form of long gun that appeared in Europe and the Ottoman Empire during the 15th century. An infantryman armed with an arquebus is called an arquebusier.
Although the term ''arquebus'', derived from the Dutch word ''Haakbus ...
s until they created a breach in their northern defenses. The Koreans, armed primarily with bows and spears, were outranged by Japanese firepower, and soon ran out of arrows. Commander Jeong Bal was struck by a bullet and died at around nine AM, causing morale to collapse and the swift fall of the city.
Aftermath
Once within the walls of the fortification, the Japanese massacred thousands. "Both men, women, and even dogs and cats were beheaded." According to Japanese records, 8500 Koreans were killed in at Busan and 200 were taken prisoner.
Gyeongsang Left Navy Commander Bak Hong watched the fall of Busan from a distance. He then scuttled his fleet of 100 ships, which included more than 50 warships armed with cannon, and destroyed his weapons and provisions, so that they would not fall into Japanese hands. Abandoning his men, he fled to
Hanseong
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 ...
.
The following day, Konishi recombined his forces, and then advanced towards the fortress of
Dongnae
Dongnae District is a '' gu'' in central Busan, South Korea.
Administrative divisions
It has a population of about 300,000, and an area of 16.7 square kilometers. It was once a separate city, the principal port of southeastern Korea. Numerous ...
located ten kilometers northeast on the main road to Seoul.
Legacy
With the port in Japanese hands, the area became the primary landing ground for subsequent Japanese deployments to Korea during the Japanese invasion, notably the large army led by
Kato Kiyomasa Kato or Katō may refer to:
Places
*Kato, Guyana, a village in Guyana
*Katō, Hyōgo, a city in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan
*Katō District, Hokkaido, a district located in Tokachi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan
*Katowice, a city in Southern Poland, ...
and the slightly smaller army led by
Kuroda Nagamasa
was a ''daimyō'' during the late Azuchi–Momoyama and early Edo periods. He was the son of Kuroda Kanbei, Toyotomi Hideyoshi's chief strategist and adviser.
Biography
His childhood name was Shojumaru (松寿丸). In 1577, when Nagamasa was a ...
. It was also the primary Japanese supply base throughout the conflict.
To commemorate the battle, there is a statue of Jeong Bal next to the Japanese Consulate in Busan.
See also
*
Castles in Korea
Korea has a variety of fortresses, including ''sanseong'' (mountain fortress), ''jinseong'' (camp fortress), and ''eupseong'' (city fortress). This is a list of notable fortresses.
Ancient
* Hwando Fortress (Hangul: 위나암성 Hanja: 尉 ...
Citations
Bibliography
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* 桑田忠親
uwata, Tadachika ed., 舊參謀本部編纂,
yu Sanbo Honbu 朝鮮の役
housen no Eki(日本の戰史
ihon no SenshiVol. 5), 1965.
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External links
Chungnyeolsa Shrine
{{coord missing, South Korea
1592 in Asia
1592 in Japan
Busan
Busanjin
Busanjin District is a '' gu'' in central Busan, South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North K ...
Busan
Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, ...
Busan
Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, ...
Conflicts in 1592