Francis Yi Ku (December 29, 1931 July 16, 2005) was a Korean prince who was head of the

House of Yi The House of Yi, also called the Yi dynasty (also transcribed as the Lee dynasty), was the royal family of the Joseon dynasty and later the imperial family of the Korean Empire, descended from the Joseon founder Yi Seong-gye. All of his descendan ...

from 1970 until 2005. He was a grandson of

Emperor Gojong Gojong (; 8 September 1852 – 21 January 1919) was the monarch of Korea from 1864 to 1907. He reigned as the last King of Joseon from 1864 to 1897, and as the first Emperor of Korea from 1897 until his forced abdication in 1907. He is known ...

of the

Joseon dynasty Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and re ...

Early life

Ku was born in Kitashirakawa Palace (which is currently the Akasaka Prince Classic House, formerly part of the Akasaka Prince Hotel), Kioicho, Kojimachiku,

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

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 Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

; his parents were Crown Prince Yi Un of Korea and

Yi Bangja Yi Bangja ( ko, 이방자, 4 November 1901 – 30 April 1989) was Queen of the Korean Empire as the wife of King Euimin of Korea. Birth Born Princess Masako of Nashimoto ( ja, 方子女王), she was the first daughter of Japanese imperial ...

. Ku attended the Gakushuin Peers' School in Tokyo. He later attended

Centre College Centre College is a private liberal arts college in Danville, Kentucky. It is an undergraduate college with an enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. Centre was officially chartered by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1819. The college is ...

Danville, Kentucky Danville is a home rule-class city in Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 17,236 at the 2020 Census. Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes ...

and studied architecture at

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

both in the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Adult life

He was employed as an architect with

I.M. Pei Ieoh Ming Pei
– website of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners ( ; ; April 26, 1917 – May 16, 2019) was ...

& Assocs,

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

from 1959 to 1964. Made stateless by

in 1947, Ku acquired

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

citizenship in 1959 and

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

n citizenship in 1964. He married

Julia Mullock Princess Julia Lee of Korea (March 18, 1927 – November 26, 2017) was an American member of the Korean Imperial Household. She became the wife of Gu, Prince of Korea. The two were not married in accordance with Korean custom,Syngman Rhee Syngman Rhee (, ; 26 March 1875 – 19 July 1965) was a South Korean politician who served as the first president of South Korea from 1948 to 1960. Rhee was also the first and last president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Ko ...

, he returned to Korea in 1963 with the help of the new president

Park Chung-hee Park Chung-hee (, ; 14 November 1917 – 26 October 1979) was a South Korean politician and army general who served as the dictator of South Korea from 1961 until his assassination in 1979; ruling as an unelected military strongman from 1961 ...

, moving into the New Building of Nakseonjae hall,

Changdeok Palace Changdeokgung (Hangul: 창덕궁, Hanja: 昌德宮; literally, "The Palace of Prospering Virtue"), also known as Changdeokgung Palace or Changdeok Palace, is set within a large park in Jongno District, Seoul, South Korea. It is one of the " Five ...

with his mother and wife. He lectured on architecture at

Seoul National University Seoul National University (SNU; ) is a national public research university located in Seoul, South Korea. Founded in 1946, Seoul National University is largely considered the most prestigious university in South Korea; it is one of the three "S ...

and

Yonsei University Yonsei University (; ) is a private research university in Seoul, South Korea. As a member of the "SKY" universities, Yonsei University is deemed one of the three most prestigious institutions in the country. It is particularly respected in the ...

and also managed his own airline, Shinhan. When that went bankrupt in 1979, he went to Japan to earn money. In 1982, his family forced him to divorce his wife because she was sterile; his mother died in 1989. He started living with a Japanese astrologer, Mrs. Arita. In November 1996, he decided to reside permanently in Korea.

Death

Restlessly going back and forth between Japan and Korea, he eventually died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

, at the age of seventy-five, on July 16, 2005 at the Akasaka Prince Hotel, the former residence of his parents in Tokyo, Japan. His funeral was held on July 24, 2005 and his posthumous title decided as "Prince Imperial Hoeun" () by the

Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association The Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association ( ko, 전주이씨대동종약원) is a family association from South Korea, and it was founded by the Jeonju Yi (Lee) clan, the household of Joseon and the Korean Empire, which were the ruling house of the ...

. He is buried at the Hoeinwon Royal Tomb near his father and mother. Yi Ku didn't have an heir. According to the

Yi Won Yi Won () (born Yi Sang-Hyeob on 23 September 1962) is a great-grandson of Gojong of Korea and one of several who claim to be current head of the House of Yi. He worked as a general manager of Hyundai Home Shopping, a Hyundai Department Store ...

, Yi Ku's first cousin once removed, was appointed as the heir by him. Yi Ku already considered adopting an heir for the imperial line of succession and Yi Won was considered; after meeting Yi Won several times, he was satisfied about the foreign language abilities of his cousin and allowed Won to be his successor. As of July 10, 2005, less than a week before his death, Yi Ku met the chairman of the association, Lee Hwan-ey (이환의, 李桓儀), for the last time, and Yi Ku formerly signed to adopt Yi Won as his heir. Despite that Yi Ku died soon afterwards, the Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association held a meeting for the adoption legitimacy in July 21, and in the next day, July 22, 2005, Yi Won was officially recognized by the association to be the successor of late Yi Ku.

References

External links

Korean royalty

obituary in the English edition of Dong-A Ilbo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yi, Ku 1929 births 2005 deaths Centre College alumni MIT School of Architecture and Planning alumni House of Yi American architects Japanese emigrants to the United States American people of Korean descent South Korean people of Japanese descent South Korean Roman Catholics Pretenders to the Korean throne Zainichi Korean people People from Tokyo Korean anti-communists