Little Goguryeo (; ko, 소고구려; alternatively Lesser Goguryeo, Little Gaogouli or Lesser Gaogouli) is the name of a state thought to have existed on the

Liaodong Peninsula The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River ...

, proposed by the Japanese scholar Kaizaburo Hino ( :ja:日野開三郎). The existence of the state is debated among scholars. The state was mentioned in historical records, with its leaders recorded as Governors-General subject to the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

in the documents of the Tang government. It was supposedly established by the refugees 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 mos ...

(Gaogouli) after its defeat by the Tang dynasty. Following Gorguryeo's destruction by the Tang–

Silla Silla or Shilla (57 BCE – 935 CE) ( , Old Korean: Syera, Old Japanese: Siraki2) was a Korean kingdom located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms o ...

alliance, the Liaodong Peninsula was administered by the Tang dynasty. The theory is that the Tang dynasty eventually lost effective control of the region due to rebellions staged by Goguryeo refugees, and Liaodong became a

buffer zone A buffer zone is a neutral zonal area that lies between two or more bodies of land, usually pertaining to countries. Depending on the type of buffer zone, it may serve to separate regions or conjoin them. Common types of buffer zones are demili ...

between the Tang dynasty and

Balhae Balhae ( ko, 발해, zh, c=渤海, p=Bóhǎi, russian: Бохай, translit=Bokhay, ), also rendered as Bohai, was a multi-ethnic kingdom whose land extends to what is today Northeast China, the Korean Peninsula and the Russian Far East. It ...

(Bohai). Although Lesser Goguryeo declared itself an independent kingdom, it was soon absorbed into Balhae.

Establishment

In 699, the Tang government sent former Goguryeo prince

Go Deokmu Go Deokmu (고덕무, 高德武) (r. 699-?) was a prince of Goguryeo and the founder of Lesser Goguryeo. He was the third son of King Bojang. Revival movement Go Deokmu was appointed to the position of Governor of the Protectorate General to P ...

, the third son of Goguryeo's last ruler, King Bojang, to

, naming him "King of Chaoxian" and Governor of the Yodong Commandery of the

Protectorate General to Pacify the East The Protectorate-General to Pacify the East () was an administrative division of the Chinese Tang dynasty in Manchuria and the northern part of the Korean Peninsula. It was established after the Tang dynasty defeated Goguryeo and annexed its ter ...

. Like his father, Go Deokmu had plans to rebel against the

Tang Tang or TANG most often refers to: * Tang dynasty * Tang (drink mix) Tang or TANG may also refer to: Chinese states and dynasties * Jin (Chinese state) (11th century – 376 BC), a state during the Spring and Autumn period, called Tang (唐) ...

, to revive Goguryeo and to provide a kingdom for the Goguryeo people. The Tang Empire at the time was undergoing several crises, especially the

An Lushan Rebellion The An Lushan Rebellion was an uprising against the Tang dynasty of China towards the mid-point of the dynasty (from 755 to 763), with an attempt to replace it with the Yan dynasty. The rebellion was originally led by An Lushan, a general off ...

. Along with these major events was also the pressure given by the Empire of

. These and many other pressures allowed Go Deokmu to take full control of the

and allegedly to establish a kingdom. The Little Goguryeo kingdom was established during that year with Go Deokmu as its first king. Very little is known about how the neighboring kingdoms reacted to the establishment of Little Goguryeo. It tis known that Balhae was on good terms with Lesser Goguryeo with respect to the similar purposes that the two kingdoms possessed.

Fall

At around 820, after two generations of ruling the Liaodong Peninsula and other former regions of Goguryeo, Lesser Goguryeo was absorbed into Balhae during the reign King Seon of Balhae.

References

{{Reflist Goguryeo History of Manchuria History of Korea Former countries in Chinese history Former countries in Korean history Former countries in East Asia Former monarchies of East Asia 699 establishments

Establishment

Fall

See also

References