Gojong of Goryeo

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Gojong of Goryeo

Hangul	고종
Hanja	高宗
Revised Romanization	Gojong
McCune-Reischauer	Kojong

Gojong of Goryeo (1192 - 1259, r. 1213 - 1259) was the twenty-third ruler of Goryeo in present-day Korea. Gojong's reign was marked by prolonged conflict with the Mongol Empire, which sought to conquer Goryeo, ending only when the kingdom was finally vassalized in 1259.

Although ascending to the throne in 1213, Gojong did not wield much power until powerful advisors were killed off. In 1216, the Khitan invaded but was defeated. In August 1232, Gojong moved the capital of Goryeo from Songdo to the island of Ganghwa and started the construction of significant defenses there, in order to better defend from the Mongol threat. Gojong resisted the Mongol invasion for nearly thirty years before the kingdom was forced to surrender to the Mongols in 1259; Gojong died soon after.

In 1251, the carving of the Tripitaka Koreana, a collection of Buddhist scriptures recorded on some 81,000 wooden blocks, was completed. The work was perhaps motivated by Gojong's hopes to change fortunes through the act of religious devotion; however the originals were later destroyed by the Mongols — the existing Tripitaka is a replica of Gojong's original, and was commissioned around one hundred years after the originals were lost.

Gojong was married to Anhye Taehu, daughter of Huijong, the twenty-first king of Goryeo. His tomb is located near the city of Incheon.