Chapter II.
Tan-jong becomes king.... “The Tiger”.... conspiracy.... king’s uncle virtual ruler.... sericulture encouraged.... king abdicates.... people mourn.... king banished.... a royal captive’s song.... king strangled.... the usurper’s dream.... character of the new king.... reforms.... trouble with the emperor.... policy in the north.... more reforms[reforms].... official history of the land.... medicine.... hostility to Buddhism.... king’s concern for the people.... army cared for.... literary work.... a standing Buddha.... a voluminous work.... dangerous rebellion in the north.... emperor pleased.... king retires.... Great Bell hung.... The Pyo-sin.... a new king.... foreign relations.... Buddhists driven from Seoul.... examinations.... convents broken up.... war against Buddhism.... a termagant.... a prosperous land.... law against the marriage of widows.... military operations in the north.... celebrated history written.... king reproved.... a foe to Buddhism.... reform in music.
It was in 1452 that king Mun-jong died and his little son Hong-wi ascended the throne. The title of the latter is Tan-jong Kong-eui Tă-wang, and of all the kings of Korea, whether of this dynasty or of any other, his fate is the most calculated to excite the pity of the reader.
His uncle, Prince Su-yang, was a bold, unscrupulous man with whom natural affection did not affect the balance by a feather weight. He was at the head of a powerful faction and it was only the jealous vigilance of the Prime Minister, Kim Chong-so, that the boy ever came to the throne at all. The people said that “The Tiger” must be killed before the boy could come to his rights. Prince Su-yang saw that the people were with the young prince to a man and he knew that he must brush from his path these powerful friends of the young king before he ever could come to the throne himself. To this end he conspired with Kwŭn Nam, Han Myong-whe and some thirty others. The Prime Minister was the first object of attack for he was the most strenuous supporter of the king. Prince Su-yang, in company with one Im Un, armed with iron bludgeons, went to the house of the Prime Minister and there the former feigned to have lost one of the wings from his palace hat and asked the Minister to lend him one for the day. The Minister could not refuse and sent his little son to bring one, but ere the lad returned the father was laid dead by a blow from the bludgeon in the hands of Im Un. The prince then hastened to the palace and told the boy-king that the Prime Minister had been conspiring against the government and so it had been necessary to put him to death. Boy though he was, King Tan-jong saw straight through this falsehood and his first words were, “I beg of you to spare my life.” From that moment all power slipped from the hands of the king and the Prince Uncle was virtual ruler of the land. Placing heavy guards at the palace gates, he sent messengers summoning the king’s best friends, and as soon as they appeared they were cut down. In this manner Whang Po-in, Cho Keuk-gwan, Yi Yang, Yun Cho-gong and Min Si were killed. Besides these many others were banished, so that soon the court was deprived of almost every supporter of the king except the aged Sŭng Sam-mun who was such a venerable man and held in such esteem by the whole nation that even this bold prince did not dare to lay hands on him. This done, Prince Su-yang began to center in himself all the high offices of the realm and became an autocrat, dispensing offices and regulating the affairs of the country according to his own ideas. Yi Cheung-ok, the governor of Ham-gyŭng Province, was a strong supporter of the king and so, though far from the scene of this intrigue, emissaries were sent who murdered him in cold blood.
The only important act of this short and unfortunate reign was the encouragement given to sericulture. The young king sent large numbers of silk worms to various districts and rewarded those who did well with them and punished those who made a failure of it.
All the time the wily prince had been urging upon the king the necessity of abdicating in his favor. We know not what threats and cajolery were used, but true it is that early in 1456, after all the other uncles of the king had been banished to distant parts to get them away from the person of the king, that unhappy boy, as yet but fifteen years old, bereft of every friend he had ever known, hedged in by the threats of his unnatural uncle, finally called the officials to a council and repeated the lesson he had been undoubtedly taught. “I am too young to govern the realm rightly and I desire to put the reins of government into the hands of my uncle, Prince Su-yang.” As in duty bound they all went through the formality of demurring at this but the king was firm and ordered the seals to be handed to the prince. Among these officials there were two who looked with disfavor upon this. They were Pak P‘ăng-yŭn and Sŭng Sam-mun. The former stepped forward as if to give the seals to the prince, but when they were once in his hands he made a dash for the door and tried to throw himself into a lotus pond. Sŭng Sam-mun caught him by the garments and whispered in his ear, “Wait, all this will be righted, but we must live to see it done.” So the young king Tan-jong stepped down from the throne. The usurper is known by his posthumous title Se-jo Hye-jang Tă-wang.
After King Tan-jong had abdicated he was held under strict surveillance in the palace and was practically a prisoner. It is said the people congregated at the Great Bell in the center of the city and wailed over this fulfillment of their worst fears.
But the dethroned king was not left entirely without help. Six of the officials conspired to assassinate the usurper at a dinner given to a Chinese envoy, but someone betrayed them to him and they were seized, tortured with red-hot irons, decapitated and dismembered. These six men were Pak P‘ăng-yŭn, Sŭng Sam-mun, Yi Gă, Ha Wi-ji, Yu Sŭng-wŭn and Yu Eung-bu. Their wives, parents and children perished with them.
Chöng In-ji, one of the new king’s creatures, memorialized the throne as follows:—“All this difficulty arose about the ex-king. He should therefore be put to death.” This was rather more than the king dared to do but the unfortunate boy was banished to Yong-wŭl in Kang-wŭn Province. His brother Yu was also banished at the same time. The banished king lived beside a mountain stream and is said to have sung this plaintive song to it:
A long, long road, a long good-bye.