Goryeo
- Korean/Japanese: 高麗 (Goryeo/Koryŏ, J: Kourai)
Goryeo, also known as Koryŏ, was a Korean kingdom lasting from 918 until 1392.
Goryeo was first established by Wang Geon, aka King Taejo of Goryeo, in 918, and conquered United Silla in 935. Beginning in the 10th century, Goryeo adopted a system akin to the Chinese imperial examinations to find and appoint officials.
The dynasty saw the first carving of woodblocks for a printing of the complete Buddhist Tripitaka, in 1011-1087.
The height of production of Goryeo celadon wares, and the invention of moveable type, was in the 12th-13th centuries.
Goryeo sent tributary embassies to Song Dynasty China from 968 to 1020. Goryeo was then invaded by the Liao Dynasty (Khitans) in the 990s, and by the Mongols beginning in 1231.[1] The kingdom fell under Mongol control in 1259, but the dynasty is considered to have continued until 1392, when it was succeeded by the Joseon Dynasty.
In 1370, two years after the founding of China's Ming dynasty, King Gongming became the first king of Goryeo to receive investiture from the Ming.[2]
Goryeo first established formal relations with the Okinawan kingdom of Chûzan in 1389, three years before the dynasty fell, but relations are believed to have continued relatively uninterrupted through that transition. Goryeo also enjoyed imports from Southeast Asia, including sappanwood, aloeswood, and other tropical products, carried via Chinese or Japanese merchants.[3]
Kings of Goryeo
- King Taejo of Goryeo (r. 918-?)
- King Gwangjong (r. 925-975)
- King Yejong of Goryeo (r. 1105-1122)
| Preceded by: United Silla |
Goryeo Dynasty 918-1392 |
Succeeded by: Joseon |
References
- Gallery labels, Art of Korea, LACMA.
- ↑ Evelyn Rawski, Early Modern China and Northeast Asia: Cross-Border Perspectives, Cambridge University Press (2015), 130.
- ↑ Tomiyama Kazuyuki, Ryûkyû ôkoku no gaikô to ôken, Yoshikawa Kobunkan (2004), 34.
- ↑ Geoffrey Gunn, History Without Borders: The Making of an Asian World Region, 1000-1800, Hong Kong University Press (2011), 217.
