Taebong

Taebong
태봉 (泰封)
← 901–918 →
Taebong at its height in 915.
Capital		Songak (901–905) Cheolwon (905–918)
Languages		Korean
Religion		Korean Buddhism, Korean Confucianism, Korean Taoism, Korean shamanism
Government		Monarchy
King
-	901–918	Gung Ye
History
-	Establishment	901
-	Fall	918

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Taebong or Later Goguryeo (Hugoguryeo) was a state established by Gung Ye (궁예, 弓裔) on the Korean peninsula in 901, during the Later Three Kingdoms period.

History

Gung Ye was known as a son of King Heonan or King Gyeongmun. A soothsayer prophesied that the new-born baby would bring disaster to Silla, so the King ordered his servants to kill him. However, his nurse hid Gung Ye and raised him secretly.^[1] He joined Yang Gil's rebellion force in 892. Silla, after nearly a millennium as a centralized kingdom, was quickly declining, and Gung Ye instigated his own rebellion and absorbed Wang Geon's force in Songak. In 898, He set up the capital in Songak. He eventually defeated Yang Gil and other local lords in central Korea to proclaim himself king of Later Goguryeo in 901.

He changed the state's name to Majin in 904, and eventually to Taebong in 911. Gung Ye transferred the capital from Songak to Cheolwon in 905. Taebong at its peak consisted of territory in the present-day provinces North Hwanghae and South Hwanghae, Gyeonggi, Gangwon-do (South Korea)/Kangwon-do (North Korea), Pyongyang, North Chungcheong and southern part of South Jeolla.

In his later days, Gung Ye proclaimed himself a Buddha and became a tyrant who sentenced death to anyone opposing him, including his own wife Lady Gang. As a result, in 918 four of his own generals – Hong Yu (홍유, 洪儒), Bae Hyeon-gyeong (배현경, 裵玄慶), Shin Sung-gyeom (신숭겸, 申崇謙) and Bok Ji-gyeom (복지겸, 卜智謙) – overthrew Taebong and installed Wang Geon as king.^[2] Soon thereafter, the Goryeo dynasty was proclaimed.

Taebong influenced Goryeo culturally. Gung Ye was originally a Buddhist monk. He encouraged Buddhism and changed the manners of national ceremonies Buddhist, including the Palgwanhoe (팔관회, 八關會) and Seokdeungnong (석등롱, 石燈籠). These changes survived the death of Gung Ye and the fall of Taebong.

See also

• List of Korea-related topics
• History of Korea

References