Queen Jangnyeol

Queen Jangryeol (16 December 1624 – 20 September 1688) also known as Queen Dowager Jaui (자의왕대비) was a wife and the Queen Consort of King Injo of Joseon, the 16th monarch of the Joseon Dynasty of Korea.

Biography

Three years after his first queen consort’s death, Injo of Joseon chose a new consort to be crowned as his queen, who was the fifteen-year old Queen Jangryeol.Her relationshop with Injo was not good due to the fact that she could not bear a son, thus she left the main palace at that time, Changdeok Palace, to live in Gyeongdeok Palace. After Injo’s death, she was elevated to the rank of a dowager and formally addressed as Queen Dowager Jaui. Disputes happened during the death of her stepson, Hyojong, and his wife, Queen Inseon, where the factions argued on the duration in which Queen Jangryeol would have to wear the mourning attire or sangbok. The incident was known as Yesong Dispute(예송논쟁): for Hyojong of Joseon’s funeral, it became an issue to determine whether the dowager should be mourning for three or one year, while for Queen Inseon, either one year or nine months. Hyeonjong of Joseon became the king and Queen Jangryeol officially became the great royal queen dowager. Since she did not have any children, she led a solitary life until her death during Sukjong of Joseon’s reign after living 50 years of her life as a woman of the royal palace.

Titles

• Queen Jangryeol (장렬왕후)
• Queen Dowager Jaui (자의왕대비)
• Great Royal Queen Dowager

In popular culture

• Portrayed by Kang Bu-ja in the 2003 KBS2 TV series Jang Hee-bin.
• Portrayed by Go Won-hee in the 2013 JTBC TV series Cruel Palace: War of Flowers.
• Portrayed by Lee Hyo-chun in the 2013 SBS TV series Jang Ok-jung, Living by Love.
• Portrayed by Chae Bin in the 2015 MBC TV series Splendid Politics.

References

• 장렬왕후 (in Korean). Doosan Encyclopedia. 

Notes