Hong Pok-wŏn (; 1206–1258) was a

Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean state founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korea, Korean Peninsula until the establishment of Joseon in 1392. Goryeo achieved what has b ...

commander who later served as an administrator of the

Mongol Empire The Mongol Empire was the List of largest empires, largest contiguous empire in human history, history. Originating in present-day Mongolia in East Asia, the Mongol Empire at its height stretched from the Sea of Japan to parts of Eastern Euro ...

. Descended from a northwestern warlord family, Hong Pok-wŏn defected to the Mongols in 1231 and eventually settled around

Liaoyang Liaoyang ( zh, s=辽阳 , t=遼陽 , p=Liáoyáng) is a prefecture-level city of east-central Liaoning province, China, situated on the Taizi River. It is approximately one hour south of Shenyang, the provincial capital, by car. Liaoyang is hom ...

and

Shenyang Shenyang,; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly known as Fengtian formerly known by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a sub-provincial city in China and the list of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Liaonin ...

, where he was installed him as an administrator of Goryeo defectors. Hong Pok-wŏn had seven sons and one daughter. One of his sons,

Hong Ta-gu Hong Ta-gu (; 1244–1291) was a Goryeo commander of the Yuan dynasty. His given name was Chun-gi (俊奇; 준기, Jùnqí), but he was more well known by his courtesy name Ta-gu. Born to a northwestern warlord family that defected to the Mongol ...

, served in the military of the

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...

Early life

Hong Pok-wŏn was born to Hong Tae-sun (), a ''toryon'' (military commander) under the ''Chujingun'' system in the region of Inju. He had about 3,000 armed men under his command. ''Toryons'' were often referred to as ''t'oho'' (powerful familities) because they behaved like autonomous warlords.Oleg Pirozhenko, 'Political Trends of Hong Bog Won Clan in the Period of Mongol Domination', International Journal of Korean History, Vol. 9 (2005); available at http://ijkh.khistory.org/journal/view.php?number=469; English translation here: http://ijkh.khistory.org/upload/pdf/9-08_oleg%20pirozhenko.pdf Hong Pok-wŏn and his father first encountered the

Mongols Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China ( Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family o ...

in 1218 when they invaded Goryeo in pursuit of Khitan rebel groups. There is no record of Hong Tae-sun taking orders from the Goryeo court to coordinate an attack on the Mongols. The ''t'ohos'' of Northwestern Goryeo were at odds with the central court due to their control over their trade activities with northern nomads.

Mongol service

When the Mongols invaded Goryeo in 1231, Hong Pok-wŏn defected to their side with his subordinates numbering 1500 families. He was given the post of ''Koryo kunmin manho'' ("the commander of ten thousand families of Koryo warriors"). He persuaded 40 Goryeo fortresses to surrender to the Mongols. After the Mongols left, the Goryeo court gave him the title of ''rangjang'' of Sŏgyŏng, which indirectly acknowledged that they had no real control over him and sought to compromise with the warlord. Hong Pok-wŏn rebelled in Sŏgyŏng in 1233 and killed Chŏng Ŭi, the general assigned to Sŏgyŏng to defend elite interests. The rebellion was defeated and Hong Pok-wŏn escaped to Mongol territory. His father and brother, Hong Paek-su, were captured and taken to

Kaesong Kaesong (, ; ) is a special city in the southern part of North Korea (formerly in North Hwanghae Province), and the capital of Korea during the Taebong kingdom and subsequent Goryeo dynasty. The city is near the Kaesong Industrial Region cl ...

. After fleeing, he went to

where he begged the Mongols to allow him to stay, and they appointed him ''kwanryong kuibu koryo kunmin changgwan'' ("the Commander of Submitted Koryo Warriors"). He became the leader of Goryeo defectors. In 1234, he was ordered to attack Goryeo. In 1238, about 2,000 Goryeo men under Cho Hyon-seup and Lee Won-ja submitted to the Mongols and were placed under Hong's command. In 1250, Hong had a quarrel with Wang Chun, a Goryeo royal hostage sent to the Mongols who stayed in his house. In 1252, Hong assembled his men and received permission to attack Goryeo. The next year, Hong instigated an attack on Goryeo by claiming that the king of Goryeo had no intention of returning the capital to Kaesong. He demanded bribes from the Goryeo court. The court responded the next year with large amounts of silver, gold, and leather. In 1256, Hong took part in the invasion of Goryeo as a commander of Goryeo troops. In 1258 he was executed because of defamation by Wang Chun.

Death

Prince Wang Chun of Goryeo married a Mongol princess and started gaining influence among the Mongol elite. He was part of the Goryeo-Mongol reconciliation process that

Wonjong of Goryeo Wonjong (5 April 1219 – 23 July 1274), personal name Wang Chŏng, was the 24th ruler of the Goryeo dynasty of Korea, reigning from 1260 to 1274. His rule was briefly interrupted by that of King Yeongjong in 1269, although the legitimacy of th ...

successfully utilized to overthrow the military's power, and thus threatened Hong Pok-wŏn's position as the primary military expert on Goryeo operations. The Mongols were also worried about Hong's rise in Shenyang and

and hoped to use a divide and conquer strategy to balance Hong's influence. The ''

Goryeosa ''Goryeosa'' (), or ''History of Goryeo'', is an extensive historical record of the Goryeo dynasty, compiled by the officials of Goryeo's successor state, Joseon. Its compilation started during the reign of Taejo of Joseon, Taejo (the founding ...

'' provides an account of personal conflict involving Hong, Wang Chun, and his Mongol wife who used her influence to cause the execution of Hong. The ''

History of Yuan The ''History of Yuan'' (), also known as the ''Yuanshi'', is one of the official Chinese historical works known as the '' Twenty-Four Histories'' of China. Commissioned by the court of the Ming dynasty, in accordance to political tradition, t ...

'' merely remarks that Hong and Wang Chun struggled for power over the Goryeo warrior defectors and Hong died after losing the contest. According to ''

'', one day, he was angry with Prince Wang Chun and said: "I've done you favors for a long time. How could you frame me like this? You're a dog biting its own master!". But Wang Chun's wife got to hear him and rebuked him furiously: "I'm from the imperial family and his imperial majesty declared that prince Wang Chun is from the royal family of Goryeo and married me off to him. So I've served him day and night without any doubt. If he's a dog, how could there be anyone dwelling at his place? I ought to tell his imperial majesty." Although Hong panicked and begged crying for his life, she accused him in Möngke Khan's presence and he was sent dozens of champions to 'kick him to death'. After Hong Pok-wŏn's death, the Goryeo people of Liaoyang were left under the control of the Hong clan while Wang Chun was left in control of some 2,000 Goryeo families in Shenyang.

Family

*Father: Hong Daesun () *Mother (name unknown) **Younger brother: Hong Paek-su () *Wife (name unknown) **1st son:

() **2nd son: Hong Kun-sang () **Daughter: Lady Hong ()

In popular culture

*Portrayed by Lee Won-jae in the 2012 MBC TV series ''

God of War A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in polytheism, polytheistic religions. Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been portrayed in their ...

''.

References