Gyeongbokgung () is a former royal palace in Seoul, South Korea. It was the first royal palace of the Joseon dynasty, having been established in 1395.
The palace was among the first landmarks to be established in Seoul. It flourished under the 1418–1450 reign of Sejong the Great, who invented the native Korean script Hangul at the palace. In 1592, amidst the Imjin War, the palace was completely burned down. Plans to repair the palace fell through amidst funding shortages after the war. It would not be restored until the late 19th century, during the reign of the penultimate monarch Gojong.
In 1910, Japan colonized Korea. As the palace was a symbol of the Korean monarchy's authority, Japan systematically demolished and altered it. Almost all of its around 500 structures were sold off and demolished. In their place, modern-style buildings like the Government-General of Chōsen Building were established. Significant efforts to restore the palace began in the 1980s. Since then, the 1990–2010 First Gyeongbokgung Restoration Plan and 2008–2045 Second Gyeongbokgung Restoration Plan have attempted to restore the palace to its pre-colonial state. Dozens of buildings and structures in the palace have since been recreated, with dozens more scheduled for the future.
Establishment
After establishing Joseon in 1392 (Korean calendar), the founding king Taejo () began work in establishing a new capital for his state. , an expert in feng shui, was placed in charge of choosing the location of the capital. In 1392, he chose a site near the mountain Gyeryongsan in South Chungcheong Province. After facing opposition, in the 8th month of 1394, it was decided that Hanyang (now "Seoul") would be the capital. There was fierce debate over where the palace and city proper should be, with eight candidate sites in the region identified. One proposed location for the palace was slightly north of its current location on the site of a Goryeo-era palace now called Namgyŏng Igung (), but it was decided that the space was too small.
The location was finalized by the 1st day, 9th month of 1394, Taejo established a temporary office dedicated to designing Hanyang and establishing a new palace for it. Construction began on it in the 12th month. Workers were gathered from around the region: 4,500 from west and 5,500 from east Gyeonggi Province, as well as 5,500 from Chungcheong Province. The palace was completed in the 25th day, 9th month of 1395. The palace's original scale, while smaller and less developed than its later form, is difficult to precisely determine; varying estimates have been provided. Various scholars have claimed that it had 390 rooms () or 755 rooms. On the 28th day, 12th month, Taejo moved into the palace. Around that time, the palace walls ( or ) did not yet exist. Construction began on them in either 1397 or 1398. They were completed in 1399 or 1400. Amidst the 1398 First Strife of the Princes, Joseon's capital was changed to Kaegyŏng (now Kaesong), then back to Hanyang in 1905. The palace was abandoned for about ten years.
In 1404, King Taejong () ordered that the palace Changdeokgung be established in Hanyang. Upon his return to the city in 1405, he began to reside in that palace. In 1406, he began efforts to repair Gyeongbokgung. In the 9th month of 1411, Taejong had a nearby stream Myeongdangsu () redirected into the palace, making it a (palace stream). He also had a pond dug out and in 1412 constructed the pavilion Gyeonghoeru. Around this time, the gwageo (civil service examinations) began to be held in the palace. Despite these efforts, Taejong functionally avoided Gyeongbokgung and resided in Changdeokgung. Architect Im Seok-jae theorized that this was because he associated the site with unpleasant memories from political turmoil and thought some of its feng shui qualities ominous. Until the Imjin War, Taejong and his successors had Gyeongbokgung as their official palace (), but had secondary palaces () that they often resided in more or moved between.
Before the Imjin War
In 1421, Sejong the Great () made Gyeongbokgung his primary palace. By 1427, he officially moved out of Changdeokgung, although he moved between them often. Sejong greatly renovated and expanded the palace. It was during Sejong's reign that Gyeongbokgung became fully-fledged and functional. Under Sejong, the palace hosted a number of scientific devices, including the water clock Borugak Jagyeongnu, a facility for producing movable type, and the astronomical observatory . The palace was then host to the Hall of Worthies and , which assisted Sejong in developing Hangul.
The palace remained in much the same form from Sejong's reign for around a hundred years. Sejong's son Sejo moved out of Gyeongbokgung and preferred Changdeokgung. Gyeongbokgung saw use especially for events and hosting foreign dignitaries. In 1461, the office Suridogam () was put in charge of maintainining and restoring the palace. The palace experienced a fire on the 15th day, 12th month of 1467. In the 9th month of 1528, the palace was extensively renovated.
On the 14th day, 9th month of 1553, the palace experienced a major fire. The fire destroyed much of the inner palace area (; where the king conducted daily private politics, and ; the king's bedchambers). In that area of the palace, only the main hall Geunjeongjeon was left standing. Numerous treasures, books, records, royal seals, clothing, and even horses that had been in the royal family for generations were lost. In the aftermath of the fire, the royal family moved to Changdeokgung. Repairs began in the 3rd month of 1554. They were overseen by a temporary office (). 2,200 soldiers and monks and 1,500 paid workers were mobilized for the effort. Repairs were completed by the 18th day, 9th month of that year.
Destruction and disuse
In the 4th month of 1592, during the 1592–1598 Imjin War, Gyeongbokgung and the other two palaces in the city were completely burned down. It is debated who burned down the palaces, as surviving contemporary records are from intellectuals who did not witness the burnings. Various contemporary Korean texts, including the , report hearsay that it was Korean commoners who burned down the palace to destroy palace records. When the Japanese invaders entered the city on the 2nd day, 5th month of that year, Gyeongbokgung was still intact. Japanese discipline in the city was reportedly initially high, but when they began suffering defeats, they took their frustrations out on the city and locals, burning buildings and killing.
King Seonjo () had escaped Hanyang before the Japanese entered it. Upon his return to the city in 1593, he stayed in a temporary palace (which later became Deoksugung). The government department Ch'unch'ugwan researched Gyeongbokgung's past form and history using Joseon's extensive historical records, such as the Uigwe. By 1606, plans had been drawn up for the palace's reconstruction. However, Joseon's economy was still recovering from the devastating war and finances were tight; Gyeongbokgung's reconstruction was indefinitely postponed and the state's resources were mostly focused on rebuilding Changdeokgung. At least one of Seonjo's advisors argued that Gyeongbokgung was inauspicious and that it should be deemphasized, although finances were likely the dominant constraint.
Instead of rebuilding Gyeongbokgung, Seonjo's successor King Gwanghaegun () rebuilt Changdeokgung and Changgyeonggung and made the palaces and Gyeongdeokgung. For around 270 years afterwards, Gyeongbokgung went mostly unused and undeveloped. Guards were stationed at the ruins to ensure that its raw materials would not be scavenged. Over time, various kings expressed interest in rebuilding the palace, but did not act on this, due to financial constraints and the other palaces in the city being sufficient. There are a number of contemporary poems about literati visiting the ruins of the palace and appreciating the nature of the site, which had forests and flowers. In the 5th month of 1706, King Sukjong () ordered that the palace's walls be repaired. He hosted a banquet for 150 elderly civilians at the palace in the 9th month of 1706.
King Yeongjo () took a particular interest in the palace. He researched its history and saw its symbolic value. He stored various spirit tablets there and held ancestral rituals (). He also held a number of ceremonies at the palace. The first such event was in 1747. The next event he held was in 1763, and thereafter many more followed. He hosted the gwageo at the palace at least 17 times. In 1767 and 1772, two (memorial stele under a pavilion) were built in the palace.
Reconstruction On the 2nd day, 4th month of 1865, Queen Sinjeong, regent of the penultimate Korean monarch King Gojong (), ordered that the palace be reconstructed. The following day, the government department Yŏnggŏndogam () was established to manage the reconstruction. Construction began on the 13th day of that month. The queen delegated supervision of the reconstruction to Gojong's father, the Heungseon Daewongun, who went on to wield the monarchy's actual power for years afterwards. In this role, the Daewongun was able to consolidate his authority. Michael Kim evaluated the palace's construction as controversial amongst the elite, who criticized the expense of the project. The Daewongun tried to build enthusiasm for it. Records indicate that he went as far as to manufacture a positive omen: he had a piece of jade engraved with a message that warded off fire "discovered" at the construction site.
Historian Lee Gyu-cheol evaluated the construction effort as one of the largest and most expensive of the late Joseon period. Funding was procured through "voluntary payment" () from mostly yangban (upper class) people from around Korea; such payments were actually mostly explicitly or implicitly coerced or rewarded with government benefits or later compensation. Resources also needed to be procured, ideally cost-effectively, for the reconstruction. Various structures that were deemed non-essential in and around Hanyang were demolished and their materials recycled for the palace. For example, on the 9th day, 5th month of 1865, a stone bridge called Songgyegyo () was demolished for this reason. In the 8th month of 1865, it was ordered that all buildings except for five in Gyeonghuigung be demolished so that their materials could be used to reconstruct Gyeongbokgung. Gyeonghuigung ceased to be significantly used thereafter.
During the time of the palace's neglect, commoners had built houses and buildings right next to the palace walls. On the 12th day, 4th month of 1865, the first order to demolish such houses was issued. More demolitions were ordered in the following year. The monarchy demolished 4,502 private homes (1,872 with tile roofs and 2,553 with thatched roofs) around the palace during the reconstruction and paid compensation to those affected. The compensation was scaled according to estimated material value of the houses. Some estates were perceived to be so valuable that they were paid out many times the default payment, with one receiving a payment 450 times the default.
A total of 616,114 people either volunteered () or were implicitly coerced by their superiors to construct the palace, with most working in the first few months of construction. On the 25th day, 4th month of 1865, there were reportedly 36,479 volunteers present at the construction site, with most being residents of Seoul. There are accounts of high spirits and regional pride at the construction sites; workers showed off their hometowns and affiliations with flags and uniforms, and the government provided amenities such as traditional music and entertainment while they worked. Accommodations, food, and travel reimbursement were provided, especially to those who came from far away.