1. 1. Brief Overview and Introduction Of Koryo
1.1. Named Koryo after Koguryo which was in the Northern part of the Peninsula.
1.2. Koryo had been very difficult to unify because it was pretty much an alliance of Warlords
1.3. Three Warring Kingdoms previously: Baekje (Southwest Peninsula), Goguryeo(North and Central), Silla. (Southeast)
1.4. Headquarters were in Kaesong which is North of the Han River
1.5. Pyongyang was his secondary capital and called it Sogyong which means Western Capital
1.6. Many historians accept that the "Mandate of Heaven" had been passed on to the new dynasty
1.7. Adopted many beliefs from China but wanted to be their own country, while China felt like they were "barbarians of the North"
1.8. In 936 the Three Kingdoms of Korea were all united which was the first time in Korean history that had ever occured and it that way until 1948 when Korea was divided by north and south by Russian and US occupation forces
1.9. Viewed as a succesor to Gorguryeo, married into the Kyongju Kim family of Silla and incorporating many elite families into the power structure of Koryo
2. 5. Culture and Society
2.1. In 958 the Civil Examination System was created with the help of the advisor named Shuang Ji
2.1.1. Three types of tests were there included the civil examinations: the composition exam, the miscallaneuous exam, the classics examination,
2.1.1.1. composition examination tested the their skill in various Chinese literary forms such as poetry, rhyme prose, and sacrificial odes and in writing problem solving essays
2.1.1.2. classics examination tested the candidates knowledge of chinese classics
2.1.1.3. the miscellaneious examinations were less prestiges but were used to find officials with knowledge in areas like law, medicine, divination, and geomancy.
2.1.1.4. Overall 252 exams were given, over 6,0000 received the composition degree and about 450 the classics degree
2.1.2. The Kwago was a primary method of recruiting officials for example sons would receive an automatic appointment to office through the "um" privaledge.
2.1.3. The examinination system was mostly a mark of their land's civilized attainment
2.1.4. This list of unclean professions included butchers (Baekjeong), shamans, shoemakers, metalworkers, prostitutes, magicians, sorcerers, jailkeepers and performers like the kisaeng. nobi (slaves), and they were banned from taking the exam
2.1.5. Miscellaneous examinations (jabeop) were administered in various fields. One among these was Buddhism; monks who passed received a special clerical title, beginning with daeseon, or "monk designate
2.2. In 982 a national academy named Kukchagam was established in Gaegyeong
2.2.1. Provided a total of 6 courses of study, 3 restricted to children of the highest ranking officials which studies confucian classics and took 9 years
2.2.2. the other three divisions were open to children as low as the 8th rank and were seohak (secretearial training), sanhak (arithmetic), and Yulhak (law) Each took 6 years to complete
2.2.3. There was a 7th division which was added in 1104 which provided military training but it was removed in 1133 due to tensions between aristrocracy and the military
2.3. Tipitaka which is 6,0000 volums of Buddha
3. 2. History of Wang Kom and His Rise To Power
3.1. Chose the name Chonsu which means Heaven Given which validates his "mandate of heaven"
3.2. Died in 943 and caused some power struggles between his inlaws because he had 29 wives
3.3. Born Jan 877 and died July 943
3.4. Joined the military in 895 under the rule of Gung Ye when he led his forces into the far northwestern part of Silla.
3.5. Regarded as a brother by Gung Ye because of his military conquests.
3.6. In 900 he led a successful campaign against local clans in Lter Baekje in the Chungju area
3.7. In 903 he led a famous naval campaign against the southwestern coastline of Hubaekje
3.8. In 918 four top ranked officials met secretly and agreed to overthrow Gung Ye's rule and Crown Wang Geon as their king
3.9. In 935 the last King of Silla realized that there was now way to revive the kingdom of Silla and surrendered all of his land to Taejo
3.10. Wang Kom Means "kingly founder"
3.11. In 913 was appointed Prime Minister under the newly renamed Taebong. The king Gung Ye, had founded the kingdom but began to refer to himself as Budha and persecute people who did not agree. Even murdering his own wife and two sons
4. 3. List of Rulers & their accomplishments
4.1. 1. King Hyejong - Took power in 943-945 and was proclaimed Crown Prince and Royal Successor from General Bak Sul-Hui.
4.2. 2. Jeonjong of Goyeo - Reigned 945-949 - The 2nd son of King Taejo. In 946 He spent 70,000 sakcs of grans from the royal storehouse to support Buddhism in the country and in 947 he create the fortress of Pyongyang. - Defeated the rebel Wang Kyu who was attempting to overthrow the government
4.3. 3. Kwangjong Reigned 949-975
4.3.1. Declared Himself as Emperor
4.3.2. Renamed the Capital the Imperial Capital or Hwangdo
4.3.3. Not until 1987 Would a korean king claim the imperial title
4.3.4. In 956 Kwangjon issued a A Slave Investigation Act - Attempting to Identify who was unfairly enslaved during the Three Kingdoms period in order to reduce the power of the aristocrats and consildate monarchal power
4.3.5. In 960 He launched a purge of powerful aristocats who held posts as Meritorious Subjects
4.4. 4. Kyongjong Reigned 975-981
4.4.1. Was not as imperial as the previous king
4.4.2. Attempted to strengthen the central government by using the Field and Woodland System
4.4.2.1. Individuals were given fixed incomes from designated lands according to rank.
4.4.2.2. It assisted in transforming the government from an aristrocratic cnfederation into a legit government
4.5. 5.Songjong Reigned 981-997
4.5.1. Issud a Finance Comission to handle financial affairs, Hallim Academy to draft royal edicts, and an inspectorate to check on the conduct of officials.
4.5.2. Married a member of the Silla royal in order to appease the aristocracy
4.5.3. In 983 established the twelve mok system
4.5.4. In 995 the nation was divided into ten provinces for the first time
4.5.5. married a woman of the Silla royal family in order to appease aristrocracy.
4.5.6. adopted the suggestion of a memorial written by confucian scholar Chloe Seung-ro and began to create a Confucian-Style government
4.5.7. One major point was that he established a policy by which all appointed district officials were appointed to the central government and all privately owned weapons were collected to be recast into agricultural tools
4.6. Mokjong of Goryeo Reigned 980-1009 - Known
5. Invasions of Different Societs and Reclaiming Their Independence
5.1. Khitan and Koryo Wars
5.1.1. War #1
5.1.1.1. King Songjong quickly mobilized the military and divided his forces into three army groups to take up defensive positions in the northwest. Advanced units of the Koryo army marched northwestward from their headquarters near modern Anju on the south bank of the Chongchon River. The seriousness of the situation compelled King Songjong to travel from the capital to Pyongyang to personally direct operations. That October, a massive Khitan army said to number nearly 800,000 men under the command of General Xiao Sunning swarmed out of Liao from the Naewon-song Fortress and surged across the Yalu River into Koryo. Waves of Khitan warriors swept across the river and fanned out over the countryside. They overran towns and farmlands, butchered whole populations, and laid waste to Koryo culture by razing national shrines, libraries, and monuments.
5.1.2. War #2
5.1.3. War #3
5.2. Mongol and Koryo Wars
5.2.1. In 1231, Ögedei Khan ordered the invasion of Korea. The experienced Mongol army was placed under the command of General Sartai (not to be confused with Sartaq, a later Mongol khan). The Mongol army crossed the Yalu river and quickly secured the surrender of the border town of Uiju. Choe U mobilized as many soldiers as possible into an army consisting largely of infantry, where it fought the Mongols at both Anju and Kusong. The Mongols took Anju; however, they were forced to retreat after the Siege of Kusong. Frustrated by siege warfare, Sartai instead used his armies' superior mobility to bypass the Goryeo army and succeeded in taking the capital at Gaesong. Elements of the Mongol army reached as far as Chungju in the central Korean peninsula; however, their advance was halted by a slave army led by Ji Gwang-su where his army fought to the death. Realizing that with the fall of the capital Goryeo was unable to resist the Mongol invaders, Goryeo sued for peace. However, Mongols demanded 10,000 otter skins, 20,000 horses, 10,000 bolts of silk, clothing for 1,000,000 soldiers and a large number of children and craftsmen who would become slaves and servants of the Mongol empire. General Sartai began withdrawing his main force to the north in the spring of 1232, leaving seventy-two Mongol administrative officials stationed in various cities in northwestern Koryo to ensure that Koryo kept his peace terms.[4]