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King Taejo, also known as Yi Sŏnggye, was the founder of the Korean [[Joseon Dynasty]].

King Taejo, also known as Yi Sŏnggye, was the founder of the Korean [[Joseon Dynasty]].

He was born the son of [[Yuan Dynasty]] officials of Korean ethnicity, and was raised in the Shuangcheng (K: ''Ssangseong'') commandery of the Yuan Empire, what is today North and South Hamgyeong province. There, he grew up in a fairly multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment, surrounded by [[Jurchens]], [[Mongols]], [[Han Chinese]], and Koreans.

He was born the son of [[Yuan Dynasty]] officials of Korean ethnicity, and was raised in the Shuangcheng (K: ''Ssangseong'') commandery of the Yuan Empire, what is today North and South Hamgyeong province. There, he grew up in a fairly multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment, surrounded by [[Jurchens]], [[Mongols]], [[Han Chinese]], and Koreans. Ssangseong was re-captured by [[Goryeo Dynasty]] Korea from the Mongols in [[1356]], and when the [[Ming Dynasty|Ming Chinese]] court demanded the region back in [[1388]], Taejo initially gathered troops to attack the Ming. Ultimately, however, he decided that attacking the Ming was futile; he turned back, and used his army to attack and overthrow Goryeo.<ref>Ji-Young Lee, “Diplomatic Ritual as a Power Resource: The Politics of Asymmetry in Early Modern Chinese-Korean Relations,” ''Journal of East Asian Studies'' 13 (2013), 318.</ref>

The head of a faction of military officials who allied with literati (civil) officials in seeking social reform, his preference for negotiation with [[Ming Dynasty]] China rather than military means of solving a territorial dispute over his home region of Ssangseong played a role in causing the fall of the [[Koryo Dynasty]], and the establishment of his own, new, Joseon Dynasty, in [[1392]].<ref>Kang, David C. “Hierarchy and Legitimacy in International Systems: The Tribute System in Early Modern East Asia.” ''Security Studies'' 19, no. 4 (2010): 612</ref>

The head of a faction of military officials who allied with literati (civil) officials in seeking social reform, his preference for negotiation with Ming Dynasty China rather than military means of solving a territorial dispute over his home region of Ssangseong led to the fall of the Goryeo Dynasty, and the establishment of his own, new, Joseon Dynasty, in [[1392]].<ref>Kang, David C. “Hierarchy and Legitimacy in International Systems: The Tribute System in Early Modern East Asia.” ''Security Studies'' 19, no. 4 (2010): 612</ref>

The court produced twenty-six formal portraits of King Taejo; however, only one is known to survive today. The surviving painting, today in the collection of the [[National Museum of Korea]], is an [[1872]] copy of an original, enshrined in Gyeonggijeon Hall in Jeonju in [[1410]], and restored in [[1763]]. Gyeonggijeon Hall was one of six official portrait halls established by the court to host royal portraits in the provinces, thus extending the sense of royal authority out into the countryside.<ref>Gallery labels, National Museum of Korea.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/39629479372/sizes/h/]</ref>

The court produced twenty-six formal portraits of King Taejo; however, only one is known to survive today. The surviving painting, today in the collection of the [[National Museum of Korea]], is an [[1872]] copy of an original, enshrined in Gyeonggijeon Hall in Jeonju in [[1410]], and restored in [[1763]]. Gyeonggijeon Hall was one of six official portrait halls established by the court to host royal portraits in the provinces, thus extending the sense of royal authority out into the countryside.<ref>Gallery labels, National Museum of Korea.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/39629479372/sizes/h/]</ref>