Uiju Castle is a historic structure located on the

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

border, along the Yalu River in

Uiju County Ŭiju County is a kun, or county, in North Pyongan Province, North Korea. The county has an area of 420 km², and a population of 110,018 (2008 data). Name Ŭiju appears as Uiju in South Korea's Revised Romanization and as Yizhou in Chinese ...

, in

North Pyongan Province North Pyongan Province (Phyŏnganbukto; , also spelled North P'yŏngan), is a western province of North Korea. The province was formed in 1896 from the northern half of the former P'yŏng'an Province, remained a province of Korea until 1945, the ...

, North Korea. A structure first built during the Ri Dynasty was designed to serve as the main border town (Uiju) in the area and was one of the most important northern defense posts during this time (the area had been fortified since the time of the

Koryo dynasty 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 ...

). The present castle was built in 1520, it probably included parts of the old fortress. It is listed as one of the

National Treasures of North Korea A National Treasure (국보; 國寶 : ) is a tangible artifact, site, or building deemed by the Government of North Korea to have significant historical or artistic value to the country. History The first list of Korean cultural treasures was des ...

Description

As built, the castle surrounding the town was approximately in circumference. The castle walls were built using rough, square stones with a height of up to five meters. It had gates at each of the four

cardinal points The four cardinal directions, or cardinal points, are the four main compass directions: north, east, south, and west, commonly denoted by their initials N, E, S, and W respectively. Relative to north, the directions east, south, and west are at ...

and contained 43 wells. Much of the castle was destroyed during the Japanese colonial period, but the remains of the south gate are well-preserved; it is a majestic dragon gate in the style of Confucian Chinese architecture. Notably, the Tonggun Pavilion was the northern terrace of the Castle. It is cited as one of the Eight Scenic Spots in the Kwanso Area of the country.

History

During the Japanese invasions of Korea in 1592, King Seonjo of Joseon took refuge at Uiju, taking the ancestral tablets from Jongmyo and the shrines with him; the tablets were returned to Seoul in October of 1593.

Im Gyeong-eop Im Gyeong-eop (1594 – 1646) was a Korean general during the Joseon Dynasty. He participated in Korea's war against the Later Jin invasion of Joseon and Qing invasion of Joseon in the 17th century. After Ming forces surrendered to the Qing, I ...

was in charge of the castle in the early 17th century. During the Manchu invasion of Korea in 1636, Qing soldiers were able to sneak into the fortress through a drainage hole and opened the gate of the fortress. In June 2015, a painting dated from 1723 depicting the castle, was found in the collections of the

Yamaguchi Prefectural University is a public university in Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi, 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 ...

, having never before seen by the public. It was likely brought to Japan by

Terauchi Masatake Gensui Count Terauchi Masatake ( ja, 寺内正毅), GCB (5 February 1852 – 3 November 1919), was a Japanese military officer, proconsul and politician. He was a '' Gensui'' (or Marshal) in the Imperial Japanese Army and the Prime Minister o ...

, among other items smuggled into Japan by Masatake.

References

{{reflist National Treasures of North Korea