Wikipedia

Heonjong of Joseon

Heonjong (Korean: 헌종; Hanja: 憲宗; 8 September 1827 – 25 July 1849), personal name Yi Hwan (이환; 李烉), was the 24th monarch of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. His father was Crown Prince Hyomyeong, who died at the age of 20 before becoming king, and his mother was Queen Sinjeong of the Pungyang Jo clan.

Heonjong
헌종
憲宗
Portrait of King Heonjong
King of Joseon
Reign13 December 1834 – 25 July 1849
PredecessorSunjo
SuccessorCheoljong
RegentRoyal Queen Dowager Myeonggyeong (1834–1841)
Born8 September 1827
Gyeongchunjeon Hall, Changdeokgung, Hanseong, Joseon
Died25 July 1849(1849-07-25) (aged 21)
Junghuidang Hall, Changdeokgung, Hanseong, Joseon
Burial
Gyeongneung Mausoleum, Dongguneung Cluster, Guri, South Korea
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1837; died 1843)​
​
(m. 1844⁠–⁠1849)​
Issue1 daughter
Names
Yi Hwan (이환; 李烉)
Posthumous name
Joseon: King Gyeongmun Wimu Myeongin Cheolhyo the Great (경문위무명인철효대왕; 經文緯武明仁哲孝大王)
Temple name
Heonjong (헌종; 憲宗)
ClanJeonju Yi
DynastyYi
FatherMunjo of Joseon
MotherQueen Sinjeong
ReligionKorean Confucianism (Neo-Confucianism)
Korean name
Hangul
헌종
Hanja
憲宗
Revised RomanizationHeonjong
McCune–ReischauerHŏnjong
Art name
Hangul
원헌
Hanja
元軒
Revised RomanizationWonheon
McCune–ReischauerWŏnhŏn
Birth name
Hangul
이환
Hanja
李烉
Revised RomanizationI Hwan
McCune–ReischauerI Hwan
Courtesy name
Hangul
문응
Hanja
文應
Revised RomanizationMuneung
McCune–ReischauerMunŭng

Biography

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Yi Hwan was born to Crown Princess Jo and Crown Prince Hyomyeong on 8 September 1827 in Gyeongchunjeon (경춘전; 景春殿) within Changdeok Palace. It was said that when the day before he was born, she dreamt of giving her son a box containing a tree carved with jade, and on the day of his birth, a group of cranes flew from the front room and went around for a long time. She and the others considered it to be strange.[1]

The young Heonjong ascended to the throne in 1834 at the age of 7 after his grandfather, King Sunjo, died. Heonjong was the youngest monarch to ascend the throne in Joseon's history.[2] Like King Sunjo, Heonjong took the throne at a young age and his grandmother, Queen Sunwon served as queen regent. Although King Heonjong ascended to the throne, he had no political control over Joseon. When Heonjong reached adulthood, Queen Sunwon refused to give up control. In 1840, the control over the kingdom was then handed down to the Andong Kim clan, the family of his grandmother Queen Sunwon, following the anti-Catholic Gihae persecution of 1839. During Heonjong's reign, he built the Nakseonjae complex and insisted that his beloved concubine, Kim Gyeong-bin, be given sole use of the complex which was an unprecedented move in Joseon's history.[3]

King Heonjong died after reigning for 15 years in 1849 at the age of 21. He was buried at the Gyeongneung tomb within the Donggureung Tomb Cluster in Seoul, where several kings and queens of the Joseon Dynasty were buried, with Queen Hyohyeon and Queen Hyojeong.[4] As King Heonjong died without an heir, the throne passed to a distant descendant of King Yeongjo, King Cheoljong.

As was customary with the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, the chronicle of Heonjong's reign was compiled after his death, in 1851. The compilation of the 16-volume chronicle was supervised by Jo In-yeong, her mother's uncle.

Family

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Consort(s) and their respective issue

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Ancestry

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ 헌종 대왕 행장(行狀)
  2. ^ Kim, Hyung-eun. "New life for the palace of sighs". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  3. ^ Kim, Hyung-eun. "New life for the palace of sighs". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  4. ^ "Donggureung Tombs, Gyeonggi, South Korea - 동구릉 (東九陵), 경기 구리시". Asian Historical Architecture. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
Heonjong of Joseon
Born: 8 September 1827 Died: 25 July 1849
Regnal titles
Preceded by King of Joseon
1834–1849
with Queen Sunwon (1834–1841) 		Succeeded by
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