Seong Sam-mun (1418 — 8 June 1456) was a scholar-official of early Joseon who rose to prominence in the court of

King Sejong the Great Sejong of Joseon (15 May 1397 – 8 April 1450), personal name Yi Do ( Korean: 이도; Hanja: 李祹), widely known as Sejong the Great ( Korean: 세종대왕; Hanja: 世宗大王), was the fourth ruler of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. Initi ...

(r. 1418–1450). He was executed after being implicated in a plot to dethrone

King Sejo Sejo of Joseon (2 November 1417 – 23 September 1468), personal name Yi Yu (Korean: 이유; Hanja: 李瑈), sometimes known as Grand Prince Suyang (Korean: 수양대군; Hanja: 首陽大君), was the seventh ruler of the Joseon dynasty of K ...

(r. 1455–1468) and restore his predecessor King Danjong (r. 1452–1455), and is known as one of the ''sayuksin'' (사육신, the

six martyred ministers The six martyred ministers or Sayuksin were six ministers of the Joseon Dynasty who were executed by King Sejo in 1456 for plotting to assassinate him and restore the former king Danjong to the throne. The Six were Seong Sam-mun, Pak Paeng-ny ...

) with reference to this plot.

Biography

Sam-mun was born in

Hongseong Hongseong (''Hongseong-gun'') is a county in South Korea, and the capital of South Chungcheong Province. The current governor is Yeoung Lock Lee. The original name of the city is ''Hongju''. Symbols * The flag represents the Joyang Gate along w ...

(then Hongju),

South Chungcheong 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 i ...

province to a

yangban The ''yangban'' () were part of the traditional ruling class or gentry of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The ''yangban'' were mainly composed of highly educated civil servants and military officers—landed or unlanded aristocrats ...

family of the Changnyeong

Seong Seong, also spelled Song or Sung, is an uncommon Korean family name, a single-syllable Korean given name, as well as a common element in two-syllable Korean given names. The meaning differs based on the hanja used to write it. Family name The fa ...

clan (창녕 성씨, 昌寧成氏). He passed the lower examination at the regular triennial administration in 1438. He soon gained the favor of

King Sejong Sejong of Joseon (15 May 1397 – 8 April 1450), personal name Yi Do (Korean: 이도; Hanja: 李祹), widely known as Sejong the Great (Korean: 세종대왕; Hanja: 世宗大王), was the fourth ruler of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. Initial ...

, and was appointed to the

Hall of Worthies The Hall of Worthies, or Jiphyeonjeon (; ), was a royal research institute set up by Sejong the Great of the Korean Joseon Dynasty in March 1420. Set up during the beginning of his reign, King Sejong staffed the Hall of Worthies with talented sc ...

. From 1442 to 1446, he cooperated with other members of that body to compose the ''

Hunmin Jeongeum ''Hunminjeong'eum'' () is a document describing an entirely new and native script for the Korean language. The script was initially named after the publication but later came to be known as hangul. Originally containing 28 characters, it was ...

'', in which the

hangul The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The le ...

alphabet was first presented to the world. The level of his involvement in the creation of the Korean alphabet

Hangul The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The le ...

(and that of other Hall of Worthies scholars) is disputed, although he and other scholars were sent on trips to consult with a

Ming Chinese The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peop ...

phoneticist several times, presumably because one of the first uses the new alphabet was put to was to transcribe the sounds of

hanja Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom. (, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, ...

, or Sino-Korean characters. In 1447, Sam-mun achieved the highest score on the higher literary examination. In 1455, Prince Suyang (one of Sejong's sons) forced the young King Danjong, his nephew, to abdicate, taking the throne instead as

. Following secret orders from his father Seong Seung, Sam-mun along with Bak Jungrim, Bak Paengnyeon and others plotted to assassinate the new king and restore King Danjong to the throne. The plot was exposed and the plotters all arrested. Sam-mun and his father were executed along with other plotters. Before his execution, Sam-mun condemned the king as a pretender. The ''sayuksin'' and the ''saengyuksin'' (생육신, the six retainers who lived), who refused to accept King Sejo as the legitimate king, were praised by later generations for holding fast to the Confucian value of staying loyal to the true king.

Poems for his loyalty

He made several poems during imprisonment and before his execution. The following is his

death poem The death poem is a genre of poetry that developed in the literary traditions of East Asian cultures—most prominently in Japan as well as certain periods of Chinese history and Joseon Korea. They tend to offer a reflection on death—both in g ...

. 擊鼓催人命 (격고최인명) -둥둥 북소리는 내 생명을 재촉하고, 回頭日欲斜 (회두일욕사) -머리를 돌여 보니 해는 서산으로 넘어 가려고 하는구나 黃泉無一店 (황천무일점) -황천으로 가는 길에는 주막조차 없다는데, 今夜宿誰家 (금야숙수가) -오늘밤은 뉘 집에서 잠을 자고 갈거나 As the sound of drum calls for my life, I turn my head where the sun is about to set. In the afterlife, there is not a single inn This night, at whose house shall I rest ? Another poem in prison written in

sijo ''Sijo'' () is a Korean traditional poetic form that emerged in the Goryeo period, flourished during the Joseon Dynasty, and is still written today. Bucolic, metaphysical, and cosmological themes are often explored. The three lines average 14 ...

format Another poem (using 7 words in each line)Of Sayuksin, "Seong Sam-mun"
from 생육신, 사육신 홈페이지

Family

* Great-Great-Great-Grandfather ** Seong Gung-pil (성공필, 成公弼) * Great-Great-Great-Grandfather ** Seong Gun-mi (성군미, 成君美) * Great-Great-Grandfather ** Seong Yeo-wan (성여완, 成汝完) (1309 - 1397) * Great-Great-Grandmother ** Lady Na (나씨, 羅氏); second daughter of Na Cheon-bu (나천부, 羅天富) * Great-Grandfather ** Seong Seok-yong (성석용, 成石瑢) (1352 - 26 April 1403) * Great-Grandmother ** Lady Kim (김씨, 金氏); second daughter of Kim Seong-ri (김성리, 金成利) * Grandfather ** Seong Dal-saeng (성달생, 成達生) (1376 - 1444) * Grandmother ** Lady Jo of the

Pungyang Jo clan The Pungyang Jo clan () is a Korean clan that traces its origin to Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province. According to the 2015 Korean census, the clan has 124,262 members. Origin Jo Maeng (조맹, 趙孟), who was also known by the name of Ba-woo or B ...

(풍양 조씨); daughter of Jo Woon-gae (조운개, 趙云价) * Father ** Seong Seung (성승, 成勝) (? - 8 June 1456) * Mother ** Biological - Lady Park of the Juksan Park clan (죽산 박씨); Seong Seung’s first wife *** Grandfather - Park Cheom (박첨) ** Step - Lady Mi-chi (미치, 未致); became a slave of Yi Heung-sang, Prince Gyerim (계림군 이흥상) after husband’s death ** Unnamed stepmother of commoner status * Siblings ** Younger brother - Seong Sam-bing (성삼빙, 成三聘) (? - 1456) *** Sister-in-law - Lady Ui-jeong (의정, 義貞); became a slave of Kwon Gae (권개, 權愷) after her husband’s death **** Nephew - Seong Han (성한) ** Younger brother - Seong Sam-go (성삼고(成三顧) (? - 1456) *** Sister-in-law - Kim Sa-geum (김사금, 金四今), Lady Kim (김씨, 金氏); daughter of Kim Ryeon (김련, 金憐), remarried to Kim Su-son (김수손, 金首孫) **** Niece - Lady Seong (성씨) ** Younger brother - Seong Sam-seong (성삼성, 成三省) (? - 1456) *** Sister-in-law - Lady Myeong-su (명수, 命守); became a slave of Hong Dal-son (홍달손, 洪達孫) after husband’s death ** Younger half-sister - Seong Seong-geum (성성금, 成性今), Lady Seong; became a slave of

Shin Suk-ju Shin Suk-ju ( ko, 신숙주, hanja: ; August 2, 1417 – July 23, 1475) was a Korean politician during the Joseon Dynasty. He served as Prime Minister from 1461 to 1466 and again from 1471 to 1475. He came from the Goryeong Shin clan (고령 ...

(신숙주, 申叔舟) after her father’s death ** Younger half-sister - Seong Ok-dong (성옥동, 成玉童), Lady Seong; became a slave of Park Won-hyeong (박원형, 朴元亨) after her father’s death * Wives and their children ** Lady Shin of the Ahju Shin clan (아주 신씨, 鵝洲申氏) — no issue. ** Kim Cha-san (김차산, 金次山), Lady Kim of the Yeonan Kim clan (연안 김씨, 延安金氏) *** Son - Seong Maeng-cheom (성맹첨, 成孟瞻) (? - 1456) **** Daughter-in-law - Lady Hyeon-bi (현비, 現非); became a slave of Jeon Gyun (전균, 田畇) *** Son - Seong Maeng-nyeon (성맹년) (? - 1456) **** Granddaughter - Lady Seong (성씨) ***** Grandson-in-law - Yu Jeub (유즙) of the Munhwa Yu clan *** Daughter - Seong Hyo-ok (성효옥), Lady Seong; unmarried and became a slave *** Daughter - Lady Seong (성씨, 成氏) (1439 - 1489) **** Son-in-law - Park Rim-gyeong (박림경, 朴臨卿) (1436 - 1485) ***** Grandson - Park Jeung (박증, 朴增) (1461 - 1517) ***** Grandson - Park Ho (박호, 朴壕) (1466 - 1533) ***** Grandson - Park Han (박한, 朴한) *** Daughter - Lady Seong (성씨, 成氏) **** Son-in-law - Eom Jeong-gu (엄정구, 嚴鼎耉) ***** Grandson - Eom Chan (엄찬) *** Son - Seong Heon (성헌) *** Son - Seong Taek (성택)

In popular culture

* Portrayed by

Hyun Woo Hyun Woo (; born Kim Hyun-woo on January 18, 1985) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles in the television series ''Pasta'' and the sitcom ''Living Among the Rich''. In 2009, he, Lee Jang-woo and No Min-woo formed the K-pop pro ...

in the 2011 SBS TV series ''

Deep Rooted Tree ''Deep Rooted Tree'' () is a 2011 South Korean television series starring Han Suk-kyu, Jang Hyuk and Shin Se-kyung. Based on the novel of the same name by Lee Jung-myung, it aired on SBS from 5 October to 22 December 2011 on Wednesdays and Thu ...

''.

References

External links

Shrine of Seong Sam-mun in Hongseong County
*

*

from

Dong-a Ilbo The ''Dong-A Ilbo'' (, literally ''East Asia Daily'') is a newspaper of record in Korea since 1920 with a daily circulation of more than 1.2 million and opinion leaders as its main readers. ''The Dong-A Ilbo'' is the parent company of Dong-A M ...