''Gwanggaeto, The Great Conqueror'', also known as ''King Gwanggaeto the Great'', is a historical drama based on the life of the nineteenth monarch of

Goguryeo Goguryeo (37 BC–668 AD) ( ) also called Goryeo (), was a Korean kingdom located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula and the southern and central parts of Northeast China. At its peak of power, Goguryeo controlled most ...

Gwanggaeto the Great Gwanggaeto the Great (374–413, r. 391–413) was the nineteenth monarch of Goguryeo. His full posthumous name means "Entombed in ''Gukgangsang'', Broad Expander of Domain, Peacemaker, Supreme King", sometimes abbreviated to ''Hotaewang'' ...

. The drama was based on two sources, ''Gwanggaeto the Great'' by Jeong Jip, and ''Great Conquests of Gwanggaeto'' by Hyeong Minu.

Synopsis

Goguryeo, at the time of the protagonist's birth, is no longer as powerful as it used to be. Prior to his birth, his grandfather, King Gogugwon was killed by the

Baekje Baekje or Paekche (, ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BC to 660 AD. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. Baekje was founded by Onjo, the third son of Goguryeo's founder Jum ...

forces led by King Geunchogo. When his uncle King Sosurim died without an heir, his father King Gogugyang rose to the throne of Goguryeo. At the same time, they were also under attack by the

Later Yan Yan, known in historiography as the Later Yan (; 384 – 407 or 409) was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Xianbei people, located in modern-day northeast China, during the era of Sixteen Kingdoms. All rulers of the Later Yan declared them ...

forces, led by none other than the Emperor of Later Yan himself,

Murong Chui Murong Chui (; 326–396), courtesy name Daoming (道明), Xianbei name Altun (阿六敦), formally Emperor Chengwu of (Later) Yan ((後)燕成武帝) was a great general of the Xianbei-led Chinese Former Yan dynasty who later became the foundi ...

. After his father's death, he rises to the throne and vows to restore Goguryeo to its former glory. His struggle would later form the basis of a popular Korean legend. He would regain land lost to Baekjae, and he will defeat many other smaller kingdoms in the process. Near the end of the story, he manages to obliterate Later Yan and later subjugated her as a sister state.

Cast

* Lee Tae-gon as Damdeok (later as Supreme King Yeongnak, and afterwards Gwanggaeto the Great) *

Kim Seung-soo Kim Seung-Soo (born July 25, 1971) is a South Korean actor. Filmography Television series * '' Hur Jun'' (1999) * ''Bad Boys'' (2000) * ''Rookie'' (2000) * ''Cool'' (2001) * '' Mina'' (2001) * ''Fox and Cotton Candy'' (2001) * ''Remember' ...

as Go Un (also known as Gao Yun/Murong Un) Adopted son of Murong Bao and later king of Later Yan (Gae Yeonsu's son) *

Im Ho Im Ho (; born January 27, 1970) is a South Korean actor, best known for his roles mostly as an emperor in historical dramas. His notable roles were included in the television series ''Jang Hui-bin'' (1995) and ''Dae Jang Geum'' (2003). Personal ...

as Murong Bao (Crown Prince of Later Yan, later became Emperor) *

Park Jung-chul Park Jung-chul (born Park Chul on November 5, 1976) is a South Korean actor. Park made his acting debut in 1997 through a talent search by the KBS network, and has since starred in the romantic comedy film ''Oh! Happy Day'' (2003) and television ...

Asin Asin Thottumkal (born 26 October 1985), known mononymously as Asin, is a former Indian actress who appeared predominantly in Tamil, Hindi and Telugu films. She is a trained Bharatanatyam dancer. She has received three Filmfare Awards. She beg ...

(Prince and later King of

) *

Oh Ji-eun Oh Ji-eun (born December 30, 1981) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her roles in the weekend drama '' Three Brothers'', the daily drama ''Smile Again'', the sitcom ''Living Among the Rich'', the entertainment industry satire ''Th ...

as Doyoung (Damdeok's childhood friend & first wife; Gae Yeonsu's daughter) killed in the battle of Wiryeseong *

Lee In-hye Lee In-hye ( 이인혜; born 21 February 1981) is a South Korean actress. Career Lee started her career as child actress in 1992 at her age 11 years old, and appeared on a lot of TV dramas like ''The King's Path'' (1998, MBC), ''Spread Your Dr ...

as Yakyeon (Wife of Damdeok / Queen of Goguryeo; Ko Mu's stepdaughter)

Damdeok's followers

* Bang Hyung-joo as Yeo Seok-gae * Kim Jung-hyun as Dol Bisu (Member of Cheongun) * Hong Kyung-in as Yeon Salta (Killed in the battle of Sujuncheng) * Kim Chul-ki as Sagal Hyeon (Damdeok's Chief of Security; killed by Asin during the battle of Gwanmiseong) *

Kim Jung-hwa Kim Jung-hwa (born September 9, 1983)is a South Korean actress. She rose to fame in the 2002 sitcom ''Nonstop (South Korean TV series), Nonstop 3'', and has since played leading roles in the television series ''Something About 1%'' (2003) and ' ...

as Seol Ji (Seol Doan's sister and later Damdeok's bodyguard) * Kim Young-ki as General Hae Mowol (servant of Gae Yeonsu and later Damdeok's follower) * Kim Jin-tae as Ko Mu (Damdeok's Grandfather and King Gogugwon's brother), died after the duel with Murong Chui during the second siege of Yodongseong Fortress by Later Yan and Biryeo Khitan forces * Nam Sung-jin as Ko Chang (Damdeok's Uncle and Ko Mu's son) * Lee Won-bal as Mo Duyeong * Im Dae Ho as Mo Duru (elder brother of Mo Duyeong) * Kim Myung-su as Hwang Hoe (leader of central army) * Yun Seung-won as Ha Muji (Damdeok's Military Advisor from Liuju; he was killed by Houyan general) * Park Seung-ho as Do Gwang (General who sided Murong Un and later died as Damdeok's follower)

Later Yan army

* Kim Dong-hyun as

(1st Emperor of Later Yan who was killed by his son Murong Xi by a poison) *

Jung Ho-keun Jung Ho-keun (born September 28, 1964) is a South Korean actor and shaman, who mostly was a supporting actor in television dramas. In 2008, Jung played the leading role in a stage musical production of ''Hi Franceska'', adapted from '' Hello F ...

Feng Ba Feng Ba (; died 430), courtesy name Wenqi (文起), nickname Qizhifa (乞直伐), formally Emperor Wencheng of (Northern) Yan ((北)燕文成帝), was an emperor (but using the title "Heavenly Prince" (''Tian Wang'')) of the Chinese state Northern ...

(loyal general of Later Yan/Houyan) * Kim Duk-hyun

Ministers of Goguryeo

* Choi Dong-joon as Gae Yeonsu (Prime Minister of Goguryeo; killed by Damdeok during the coup attempt) * Oh Wook-chul as Ga Raji (executed for arranging assassination attempt of Damdoek which ended up killing Dammang instead) * Im Byung-ki as Yeo Soyi (executed for being involved in the coup attempt led by Gae Yeonsu) * Ban Suk-jin as Yeon Dobu (Yeon Salta's Father; also executed for being involved in the coup attempt led by Gae Yeonsu) * Sun Dong-hyuk as Gye Pil (appointed as Prime Minister upon the execution of Gae Yeonsu) * Choi Sang-hoon as Lee Young (damdeok's uncle and younger brother of king Gogugyang)

Royal family of Goguryeo

Jung Tae-woo Jung Tae-woo (정태우) is a South Korean actor. Much of his work has been in the genre of Korean historical dramas such as ''Taejo Wang Geon (TV series), Taejo Wang Geon'', ''Dae Jo Yeong (TV series), Dae Jo Yeong'', and ''The King and I (TV s ...

as Dammang (Damdeok's elder brother; Saved Damdoek, sacrificed himself to pave the way for Damdeok; killed by Houyan spies while hunting) * Song Yong-tae as Iryeon (also as King Gogugyang, Gwanggaeto's father) *

Lee Bo-hee Lee Bo-hee (born 25 May 1959) is a South Korean actress. Lee won a number of awards for her film roles in the 1980s, including Best New Actress for ''The Green Pine Tree'' at the 22nd Grand Bell Awards, Best Actress for '' Eoudong'' at the 22nd ...

as Queen Goya (Damdeok's mother; killed during the coup attempt) *

Jo An Jo Kyung-jin (born November 14, 1982), known professionally as Jo An, is a South Korean actress. She is best known for the films ''Lifting King Kong'' (2009) and ''My Little Hero'' (2013), as well as the family drama '' Jolly Widows'' (2009) an ...

as Princess Damju (Damdeok's sister, Crown Princess of Later Yan/ Murong Bao's wife; Killed by Murong Xi) * Lee Hui-sung as Huwang (son of Murong Bao and Princess Damju)

Other people

Kim Kyu-chul Kim Kyu-chul (born April 6, 1960) is a South Korean actor. Kim spent more than a decade as a stage actor before he made his onscreen breakthrough in 1993 with Im Kwon-taek's ''Seopyeonje'', considered one of the classics of Korean cinema. Kim be ...

as Seol Doan (Supreme Chief of Malgal Tribe) * Lee Dal-hyung * Lee Dae-ro * Lee Ji-hyun as Ar Yi (Khitan soldier and later became Damdeok's follower) * Lee Jung-sung as foreign Leader (captured by Damdeok thru Baekje's General help) * Chongmeong (Ha Muji's sidekick and became Damdeok's follower)

References

External links

*
Gwanggaeto,The Great Conqueror Info,KBS Website (English)
* {{KBS World TV program, 1478 Korean Broadcasting System television dramas 2011 South Korean television series debuts Television shows based on manhwa Television shows based on South Korean novels South Korean historical television series Television series set in Goguryeo