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| Korean name | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | 영은문 |
| Hanja | 迎恩門 |
| Revised Romanization | Yeongeunmun |
| McCune–Reischauer | Yŏngŭnmun |
The Yeongeunmun (gate of welcoming imperial favors) was a gate located in Seoul, present-day South Korea. During the Joseon Dynasty, the Korean king himself welcomed embassies from the emperor of China there. It was removed a year after the Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895.
Located just outside the West Gate (敦義門) of the walled capital city, the Yeongeunmun was was on the road to Beijing as an adjacent to the Mohwagwan (慕華館), literally hall of longing for China). Its nearest post station was the Hongjewon (弘濟院).
Embassies were occasionally sent to Korea by the emperor of China to announce imperial succession, investiture of a crown prince and others. When they reached the Hongjewon, they took off their traveling clothes and changed into formal attire. The next day, they received a reception from the king himself in front of the gate. The rite performed by the king changed several times. To take an example, King Jungjong performed a rite named "wu bai san koutou" (五拜三叩頭, to kneel 5 times on the ground and kowtow 3 times) with the crown prince and his followers, to show his allegiance to the Chinese emperor. After the reception, the envoys entered the capital.
The Mohwagwan was first built in 1407 as "Mohwaru" (慕華楼) and then renovated in 1430. As an adjacent to the Mohwagwan, a gate with rosewood pillars was build on the road.
In 1537 the gate was rebuilt in accordance with Chinese customs. It was roofed with blue tiles and had "Yeongjomun" (迎詔門), literally gate of welcoming imperial decrees, written on the front tablet. In 1539 it was renamed to "Yeongeunmun" because the name of "Yeongjomun" was accused by the Chinese ambassador Xue Tingchong (薛廷寵). He claimed that since the imperial envoys carried imperial orders (勅), imperial decrees (詔) and imperial gifts, it was inappropriate to mention only imperial decree. The tablet was written by Zhu Zhifan (朱之蕃), who came to Korea as an ambassador in 1606.
As a result of the Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895), China recognized the "full and complete independence and autonomy" of Korea. In the next year Yeongeunmun was demolished leaving its two stone pillars. In front of the remnant, the Independence Gate was build by Philip Jaisohn.
Footnotes
- To be precise, this routine was established during the Manchu Qing Dynasty. Before the Hongjewon was constructed, the nearest station was the Byeokjegwan in modern-day Goyang. Due to its great distance from the capital, the envoys' arrival at the capital was often delayed until night. Fore more information, see Tongmungwan-ji 通文館志, Vol. 5, Sadae 事大, Gyoyeongui 郊迎儀.
- Jungjong Sillok 中宗實錄: the dingwei (10th) day of the 4th month, Jungjong 34
- Taejong Sillok 太宗實錄: the guimao (22nd) day of the 8th month, Taejong 34
- Sejong Sillok 世宗實錄: the yiyou (15th) day of the 12nd month, Sejong 12
- Jungjong Sillok 中宗實錄: the renwu (2nd) day of the 1st month, Jungjong 32
- Ŏ Sook-kwon 魚叔權: Folkloristic Notes (P'ae-kwan Chap-ki 稗官雜記), Im Dong-kwun et al ed. Korean Folklore Texts in Chinese Characters, pp. 98-99, Taipei, 1971.
References
- Keijō-fu 京城府: Keijō-fu shi 京城府史, Vol. 1, pp. 375-376, 1934.