Yangwon of Goguryeo (died 559) (r. 545–559) was the 24th ruler 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 ...

, the northernmost of the

Three Kingdoms of Korea Samhan or the Three Kingdoms of Korea () refers to the three kingdoms of Goguryeo (고구려, 高句麗), Baekje (백제, 百濟), and Silla (신라, 新羅). Goguryeo was later known as Goryeo (고려, 高麗), from which the modern name ''Kor ...

. He was the eldest son of Anwon of Goguryeo. During Yangwon's reign, Goguryeo gradually grew weaker and was obliged to take various urgent measures to block foreign invasions, eventually losing the

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

region to the alliance of the other two Korean kingdoms.

Family

*Father: King Anwon (안원왕, 安原王) **Grandfather: King Munja (문자명왕, 文咨明王) *Mother: ''Middle Lady'' (중부인, 中夫人) *Unknown wife **Son: Prince Yangseong (양성, 陽成)

Life and reign

He was confirmed as heir to the throne in 533, the third year of Anwon's reign. Although he was the heir, it is said that he was not able to simply assume power after his father's death. Anwon had three wives, and because the first did not bear him a son, the other queens strove to put their son on the throne. Yangwon's supporters won the military struggle and he was able to succeed to the throne. Preparing for war in 547, Yangwon rebuilt Baegam fortress and repaired Sin fortress. In 548, he sent 6,000 soldiers against

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 ...

Doksan Fortress Doksan Fortress (Hangul: 독산성, Hanja: 禿山城) is a Korean hill fort located in Osan, South Korea. It is known for the Siege of Doksan in 1593, where the Japanese failed to defeat Gwon Yul during the Imjin War The Imjin River ( in Sout ...

but the

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 of K ...

general Ju Jin led a relief army and the Goguryeo assault failed. In 550, Baekje invaded and sacked Dosal fortress. Goguryeo counterattacked and struck Baekje's Geumhyeon fortress, but Silla took advantage of this to seize two more Goguryeo castles. In 551, the emerging empire of the

Göktürks The Göktürks, Celestial Turks or Blue Turks ( otk, 𐱅𐰇𐰼𐰰:𐰉𐰆𐰑𐰣, Türük Bodun; ; ) were a nomadic confederation of Turkic peoples in medieval Inner Asia. The Göktürks, under the leadership of Bumin Qaghan (d. 552) and ...

invaded from

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...

and laid siege to Sin fortress; unable to take it, they attacked Baegam fortress instead. At this, Yangwon sent his general Go Heul and 10,000 troops against the Göktürks; they killed or captured 1,000. In the same year, Silla invaded once again and captured ten districts of the present-day Seoul region.. In 552, Jangan fortress was built. In 554, Yangwon's forces attacked Ungcheon fortress in Baekje, but failed to take it. In 553,

Northern Qi Qi, known as the Northern Qi (), Later Qi (後齊) or Gao Qi (高齊) in historiography, was a Chinese imperial dynasty and one of the Northern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties era. It ruled the eastern part of northern China ...

's Emperor Wenxuan sent ambassador Cui Liu to Goguryeo to request the return of Chinese civilians who had fled the turmoil during the end of

Northern Wei Wei (), known in historiography as the Northern Wei (), Tuoba Wei (), Yuan Wei () and Later Wei (), was founded by the Tuoba (Tabgach) clan of the Xianbei. The first of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Northern dynasties, Northern dynasties ...

. When Yongwon's court refused, Cui Liu became furious and punched Yangwon off his chair. Frightened, Yangwon apologised for refusing and agreed to return five thousand households. In 557, Yangwon designated the prince Go Yang-seong as heir to the throne. In the tenth lunar month of that same year, the commander Gan Juri of Hwando fortress rebelled, but the rebellion was put down and he was executed. Yangwon died in 559, after fifteen years on the throne.

References

{{s-end Goguryeo rulers 559 deaths Year of birth unknown 6th-century monarchs in Asia 6th-century Korean people

Family

Life and reign

See also

References