Hideyoshi's invasions of Korea
Hideyoshi's invasions of Korea in 1592-1593 and 1597-98
- Japanese: 朝鮮出兵 (Chôsen Shuppei)
- Korean: 壬辰倭乱 (The Japanese war of the Imjin Year--Imjin 壬辰 is a cyclic year date)
There were two, related, invasions, the Bunroku no Eki 文禄の役 of 1592 (Bunroku 1)-1593 and the Keichô no Eki 慶長の役 of 1597 (Keichô 2)-1598
First Invasion (Bunroku no eki)
The Ming Court sent forces led by Li Rusong to aid the Koreans in repelling the Japanese invasion.
Yi Sun-shin led the Korean navy, including the famous "turtle ships", to victory in three particularly decisive naval battles, including especially the Battle of Hansando, regaining control of the sea lanes from the Japanese.
Second Invasion (Keichô no eki)
Aftermath
According to some sources, as many as 50-60,000 Koreans were taken back to Japan as prisoners in the two invasions combined. Repatriation of captives became one of the key Korean demands in negotiations to reopen trade and diplomatic relations in the following decades. Such negotiations were at the center of three Korean embassies to Japan between 1607 and 1624, as well as two in 1636 and 1643. In the end, only around 7500 Koreans were repatriated.[1]
Historical materials
References
- ↑ Arano Yasunori. "The Formation of a Japanocentric World Order." International Journal of Asian Studies 2:2 (2005). p197. citing Naitô Shunpô. "Jinshin-teiyû eki ni okeru hiryo Chôsenjin no sakkan mondai ni tsuite" 壬申丁酉役における被慮朝鮮人の刷還問題について [The Repatriation of Korean Captives of Hideyoshi's Invasions]. Parts 1-3. Chôsen gakuhô 29 (1963), 33 (1964), 34 (1965).
