Six martyred ministers

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Six martyred ministers
Hangul:	사육신
Hanja:	死六臣
Revised Romanization:	Sa yuksin
McCune-Reischauer:	Sa yuksin

The six martyred ministers or Sayuksin were six ministers of the Joseon Dynasty who were executed in 1456.^[1] They were executed by King Sejo on the charge plotting to return Danjong to the throne.

The Six were Seong Sam-mun, Pak Paeng-nyeon, Ha Wi-ji, Yi Gae, Yu Eung-bu, and Yu Seong-won. ^[2] Most were members of the Hall of Worthies, a high council of state, who had been appointed by King Sejong. King Munjong had charged them looking after his son King Danjong, and they reacted with outrage to Sejo's usurpation of the throne in 1455. Together with Kim Jil , they plotted a coup to coincide with the visit of a Ming Dynasty envoy. However, Kim Jil changed his mind at the last minute and betrayed the plot to Sejo. The Six were seized and tortured; when they refused to repent and insisted that their actions had been righteous, they were executed.

Although the Six were the most famous, more than 70 were put to death for their suspected involvement in the plot or sympathy with Danjong. As was common with purges in the Joseon Dynasty, the penalties were not limited to the individual but extended to the entire family. The men of the family were put to death and the women were made slaves.

In later years national opinion came to revere the Six as model subjects, and numerous shrines and seowon were erected in their memory. This attitude continued in the 20th century, with philosopher Ham Seok-heon praising their conduct and saying that " The shame of the five centuries of Yi Korea were more than offset by this event." The story of the Six has also been made into a historical drama in North Korea. This show, which will be the first North Korean drama to be aired in the South, is scheduled for broadcast in South Korea in August 2006.^[3]