Gojong and Sunjong: History of the Turbulent Late Joseon Period and Secret Stories of the Korean Empire Royal Family

(26th King and First Emperor of the Korean Empire) Gojong: Gwangmuje, Who Tried to Protect a Country Like a Candle Before the Wind

Gojong (reigned 1863–1907) was the son of Heungseon Daewongun and ascended the throne at the young age of 12. He broke the power politics of the Andong Kim clan, stood against the invading forces of Western powers, changed the country's name to the Korean Empire to save a declining Joseon, and rose to the position of Emperor as a fated monarch seeking independent modernization.

1. From a 'Beggar at a Funeral' to the Father of a King: Gojong's Dramatic Ascension Process:

• The Passing of a Childless King and the Queen Dowager's Decision: In 1863, when the 25th King Cheoljong passed away without a son, a national crisis struck as the direct royal lineage was cut off. The authority to designate the next king lay with Queen Shinjeong (Queen Dowager Jo), the highest elder of the royal family at the time. Queen Shinjeong seized the golden opportunity to oust the power politics of the Andong Kim clan—who had monopolized power and suppressed the royal family for a long time—and reclaim authority.
• Heungseon-gun's Ambition Disguised as a 'Beggar at a Funeral': Yi Ha-eung, Heungseon-gun, a royal clansman descending from King Yeongjo's line, deliberately lowered himself to survive the strict surveillance and death threats of the Andong Kim clan. He hung around marketplace merchants, begged for money, and played the fool, inviting mockery as a 'beggar at a funeral.'
  However, this was a high-level political act to lower the guard of the Andong Kim clan. Secretly contacting Queen Dowager Jo, Yi Ha-eung made a secret promise that if Cheoljong died, he would place his second son, Yi Myeong-bok (Gojong), on the throne.
• Ascension of a 12-Year-Old Boy and the Dawn of the Daewongun Era: As soon as Cheoljong breathed his last, Queen Dowager Jo immediately issued a royal decree according to the pre-prepared scenario, placing 12-year-old boy Yi Myeong-bok on the throne. This boy was none other than Gojong, the 26th king of Joseon. Upon Gojong's accession, the Andong Kim clan instantly lost power, and Gojong's father Yi Ha-eung was titled Heungseon Daewongun (the Prince Regent, father of the reigning king), taking actual control of Joseon into one hand.

2. Gojong's Direct Rule Out of Daewongun's Shadow, and the Waves of Incoming Foreign Powers:

• In the early years of his reign, his father Heungseon Daewongun seized power, abolished Confucian academies (Seowon) to elevate royal authority, and rebuilt Gyeongbokgung Palace, though excessive construction drew complaints from the people. He also erected anti-cheokhwabi monuments and tightly shut the national doors.
• Fierce Battle Against French Forces in Ganghwado, Byeongin Yangyo (1866): When Daewongun harshly persecuted Catholicism, French warships invaded Ganghwado in protest, sparking a war. General Yang Heon-su and Korean troops risked their lives at Jeongjoksanseong Fortress and other sites to defeat the French forces; however, retreating French forces raided Oegyujanggak, the royal library in Ganghwado, plundering Uigwe—the ultra-precise records that were treasures of the Joseon royal family—along with numerous cultural assets in a painful ordeal.

• Opert's Plot to Plunder Tomb of Namyeon-gun, a Sacrilegious Crime Arousing Daewongun's Extreme Rage, Oppert's Tomb Robbery Incident (1868): An unprecedented incident where German merchant Ernst Oppert attempted to rob the tomb of Namyeon-gun (Gojong's grandfather and Heungseon Daewongun's father) to force trade negotiations with Joseon.
  Because the tomb was reinforced with hardened lime and sand, the grave robbery failed; however, it inflicted unerasable humiliation and great shock upon Joseon society and Daewongun, who valued filial piety above all state values. This incident served as a decisive catalyst that led Daewongun to define Westerners as barbarians and adhere even more strongly to his policy rejecting commerce and diplomacy (isolationist policy).

• Desperate Struggle at Gwangseongbo Against the American Fleet, Sinmi Yangyo (1871): Using the burning of an American merchant ship (General Sherman) in Pyongyang as a pretext, the US Asiatic Fleet sailed warships to invade Ganghwado. General Eorae-yeon and Joseon soldiers hung the symbolic Commander's Flag (Sujagi) at Gwangseongbo and fought desperately. Outnumbered and outgunned by modern US cannons and rifles, they scattered dirt and fought bare-handed when ammunition ran out, fighting nobly to the last man in a heartbreaking fierce battle.
  Immediately after experiencing these two Yangyo conflicts, Daewongun erected anti-cheokhwabi monuments prohibiting peace agreements with Western powers across every corner of the country.

3. Opening Ports and the Beginning of Modernization, Along with Mixed Fortunes:

• Opening Ports and Reform Steps: When Heungseon Daewongun stepped down in 1873 and Gojong began direct rule, Joseon opened its doors and tried to actively accept modern civilization. Gojong created a new military unit, the Byulgigun, to reform the country, but this rapid change sparked clashes with conservative forces. In the process, foreign powers like Qing China and Japan stationed troops in Joseon, turning the country into a battlefield for imperialist powers.
• Joseon's First Unequal Treaty, Treaty of Ganghwado (Japan-Korea Treaty of 1876): In the exact manner they themselves suffered military threats from US Commodore Perry to open their country, Japan sailed modern warships (Unyo) in 1875 to unlawfully shell Chojijin fortress in Ganghwado in a show of force (Unyo Incident).
  Ultimately, Joseon yielded to this coercion and signed a treaty with Japan in Ganghwado in 1876. While Joseon's first modern treaty, it was a representative unequal treaty that unconditionally conceded extraterritoriality (consular jurisdiction)—allowing Japanese criminals in Joseon to escape local prosecution—and coastal surveying rights authorizing Japan to arbitrarily survey and map Joseon's three seas. Starting here, Busan, Wonsan, and Incheon opened sequentially, accelerating foreign encroachment on national sovereignty.
• Unlimited Grain Export and Livelihood Destruction, Skyrocketing Rice Prices: Under trade rules annexed to the Treaty of Ganghwado, Japanese merchants gained the right to unlimitedly ship Joseon rice back to Japan without tariffs or regulations. As Japan—facing food shortages due to industrialization—ruthlessly swept up Joseon's rice, internal grain storage emptied, and rice prices skyrocketed crazily. General citizens suffered economic ruin without enough rice for a single daily meal, serving as a core social flashpoint that would later explode into the fury of old-style soldiers (Imo Incident).

4. Soldiers' Fury Explodes, the Imo Incident and Foreign Interference:

• Explosion of Discriminated Soldiers, Imo Incident (1882): A large-scale military mutiny instigated by old-style soldiers who suffered severe discrimination and failed to receive proper pay (rice) compared to the new military unit, Byulgigun. When rice pay finally arrived after 13 months, it was heavily mixed with sand and chaff, pushing anger to extremes. Enraged soldiers rushed to the royal court to punish corrupt officials of Queen Myeongseong's family faction and attacked the Japanese legation pressing for port opening.
• Daewongun's Short Return to Power and a Peculiar Queen's Funeral: As soldiers' fury grew uncontrollable and royal courts fell under the blade of armed troops, Gojong had no choice but to respond to the fierce demands and pressure of armed soldiers to reinstate Daewongun and hand over power, entrusting Heungseon Daewongun with full authority to resolve the crisis.
  Regaining power after roughly 10 years, Daewongun was warmly welcomed by old-style soldiers as he immediately abolished the new military unit Byulgigun and tried to return the country to his isolationist era.
• In particular, to send excited soldiers home and cut off any pretext for the Queen's return alive, he falsely declared that "Queen Myeongseong had already passed away during the chaos," holding a bizarre funeral (state funeral) without a body, using only clothes worn by the Queen, and forced its execution.
• Qing Military Intervention and Daewongun Kidnapping: Hearing of this bizarre funeral from her hiding place, Queen Myeongseong wept tears of blood and actively begged Qing China to dispatch troops. Taking her secret letter as a pretext, Qing troops led by force to take over Hanyang and carried out a kidnapping operation, seizing Heungseon Daewongun and deporting him to Tianjin, China. Thus Daewongun's power ended in a mere one month (33 days), and Joseon began swaying under heavy Qing interference.
• Japan's Military Pressure and Humiliation in the Treaty of Jemulpo: As the Japanese legation burned and Japanese citizens suffered casualties during the mutiny, the Japanese government immediately sailed warships and led troops under the pretext of protecting nationals and claiming compensation, staging a show of force. Ultimately, Joseon yielded to Japanese threats and signed the Treaty of Jemulpo. Through this treaty, aside from paying massive reparations, Joseon fatefully permitted Japanese troops to be stationed inside the Hanyang capital walls under the excuse of protecting the Japanese legation. This was a tragic shackle allowing regular Japanese troops to strut proudly with weapons at Joseon's beating heart.

4. Queen Myeongseong's Shadow, Shaman Jinnyeong-gun, and the Shade of In-law Power Politics:

• Daewongun's Resignation and Revival of the Yeoheung Min Clan In-law Power: When Heungseon Daewongun stepped down in 1873, Queen Myeongseong began actively interfering in politics alongside Gojong. However, as her maternal relatives of the Yeoheung Min clan monopolized key official positions, the evils of in-law power politics—which Daewongun had barely managed to eradicate—revived, causing rampant office-selling and corruption.
• Shamanistic Politics Born from Imo Incident Trauma: Having barely escaped and survived angry soldiers during the 1882 Imo Incident, Queen Myeongseong suffered from severe anxiety. When a shaman she met in hiding accurately predicted the date of her return to the palace, the Queen summoned her to court and trusted her absolutely, even granting her the meritorious title 'Jinnyeong-gun'.
• State-Destroying Corruption and Shamanistic Rituals: Shaman Jinnyeong-gun stayed in the palace, meddling in state affairs and serving as the center of office-selling where official posts were bought and sold for money. Furthermore, under the pretext of praying for royal peace, large-scale shamanistic rituals were held daily in the palace, wasting massive budgets by offering rice and money across every peak of Mt. Geumgang. With in-law tyranny and shamanistic manipulation overlapping, Joseon's state finances prior to the Korean Empire faced runaway ruin.

5. Dream of Reform Ending in Three Days, Gapsin Coup:

• Young Scholars' Desire for a Modern State and Action: As Qing China constantly interfered in Joseon following the Imo Incident, progressive reformers like Kim Ok-gyun, Park Yeong-hyo, Seo Jae-pil, and Hong Yeong-sik tried to completely transform Joseon into an independent, modern state modeled after Japan's Meiji Restoration. Trusting a promise by the Japanese minister to provide troops, they set December 4, 1884, the day of the opening banquet for Ujeongchongguk—Joseon's first modern post office—as the day for their coup. Amidst chaos from fires outside the banquet hall, they succeeded in removing conservative officials who blocked reforms relying solely on Qing power and seized the palace.
• Joseon's First Abolition of the Class System, 14-Article Reform Program: Seizing power, the young reformers immediately announced Joseon's most revolutionary 14-Article Reform Program. They severed humiliating tributary ties with Qing China to proclaim external sovereign independence, and promulgated a nation where social classes and noble lineages were entirely abolished so all citizens had equal rights before the law. They also integrated state finances for transparent management and abolished corrupt Bobusang merchant privileges, presenting progressive modern reforms ahead of their time.
• Cowardly Japan and Qing Intervention, Three-Day Reign: However, this blueprint for reform met a tragic end in just three days (46 hours). Feeling threatened, Qing general Yuan Shikai—responding to an urgent request from Queen Myeongseong—led an army of 1,500 to launch a surprise attack on the palace. The Japanese troops, who had promised strong military support, panicked at the might of Qing forces and fled without fighting. Eventually, figures directing the coup like Hong Yeong-sik were brutally killed in the palace courtyard, while Kim Ok-gyun and Park Yeong-hyo fled into exile in Japan. With this vain failure, Qing dominance over Joseon reached its peak, and Joseon's modernization clock stopped completely.

6. The Convention of Tianjin, the Qing-Japan Double-Edged Sword That Sealed Joseon's Fate:

• Simultaneous Troop Withdrawal and Joint Dispatch Promise: To clean up after the Gapsin Coup, Li Hongzhang of Qing China and Ito Hirobumi of Japan signed a convention in Tianjin, China. The main content was that both countries would simultaneously withdraw stationed troops from Joseon, but if a rebellion occurred in Joseon in the future and one side dispatched troops, they must first notify the other in writing and dispatch troops simultaneously.
• Aggressive Promise Ignoring Joseon's Sovereignty: This convention was an explicit violation of sovereignty where foreign powers agreed among themselves on joint ruling rights over Joseon's territory and national rights. Above all, it prepared a legal pretext for foreign powers to march in troops regardless of Joseon's intentions.
• Pretext Firing the Fuse of the First Sino-Japanese War: When the Donghak Peasant Revolution exploded 9 years later in 1894 and the Joseon government requested reinforcement from Qing China, Japan used the simultaneous troop dispatch clause of the Convention of Tianjin as a pretext to immediately land large-scale warships and troops in Joseon. Ultimately, both nations' troops entered the Korean Peninsula simultaneously, serving as the decisive spark for the First Sino-Japanese War that stained Joseon soil with blood.

7. An Egalitarian World Dreamed by the Grassroots, Donghak Peasant Revolution:

• Torches Against Corrupt Local Officials: Amidst disrupted agricultural tax systems due to corrupt in-law politics, the wicked tax extortion and tyranny of Gobu Magistrate Jo Byeong-gab in Jeolla-do crossed lines. Unable to endure further, peasants led by Green Bean General Jeon Bong-jun took up bamboo spears and rose up to capture the Gobu government office (1894). This uprising spread across Jeolla-do instantly, and peasant armies successively defeated government troops at Hwangtohyun and other battles, finally capturing Jeonju Fortress, the center of Honam, in a single stroke.
• Voluntary Disbandment for the Country and Gabo Reform: As the government—having lost Jeonju Fortress—requested reinforcements from Qing China, and Japanese troops flocked to Joseon in response under the Tianjin Convention, the peasant army felt a sense of crisis and made a crucial decision. To prevent foreign armed conflict, they struck a grand compromise with the government (Jeonju Truce), laid down weapons voluntarily, and returned home to independently establish self-governing reform organs called Jipgangso, practicing independent reforms toward a new world such as abolishing the class system and distributing land equally.
• Desperate Resistance at Ugimchi Pass and Broken Dreams: However, when Japanese troops ignored demands to withdraw and unlawfully invaded Gyeongbokgung Palace, the peasant army rose up massively once more to defend the country (Second Uprising).
  At Ugimchi Pass in Gongju, the peasant army fought desperately against a coalition of Japanese troops and government forces armed with cutting-edge machine guns and cannons. Wearing thin hemp clothes and armed with bamboo spears and bows, peasants climbing the pass fell like autumn leaves before a hail of bullets, ultimately facing a devastating defeat. Although leaders like Jeon Bong-jun were captured and executed, ending the rebellion in failure, surviving peasants became the solid pillars of future anti-Japanese righteous armies (Uibyeong).

8. Flames of War and Modern Great Reform, First Sino-Japanese War and Gabo Reform:

• Assault on Gyeongbokgung and Provocation of the First Sino-Japanese War (1894): Japanese troops dispatched under the Tianjin Convention refused to withdraw even after Donghak peasant forces disbanded, launching a dawn sword attack to unlawfully occupy Gyeongbokgung Palace where Gojong resided. Practically holding Gojong prisoner, Japan established a pro-Japanese government and launched a surprise artillery bombardment on the Qing fleet off Pungdo in the Yellow Sea, sparking the First Sino-Japanese War. Victorious in this war, Japan completely ended Qing China's long-standing influence over Joseon and undertook monopolistic encroachment on national sovereignty.
• Joseon's First Modern Great Reform, Gabo Reform: Initiated under Japanese threats, the reform proposals fully reflected the independent modernization blueprints envisioned by reformist politicians and the innovative tax-reform demands of the Donghak peasant army. Gojong proceeded to Jongmyo Shrine to proclaim the 14-Article Hongbeom, the guideline for sovereign independence and modern reform, fundamentally overhauling Joseon's systems.
• Dismantling a Millennium-Old Class System and Eradicating Medieval Vices: Through these reforms, the class system and hereditary class privileges lasting nearly a millennium were completely abolished, and public and private slave systems vanished into history. The civil service examination system was abolished to establish merit-based talent recruitment, while eliminating deeply rooted human rights abuses—such as banning early marriage, permitting widows to remarry, and abolishing torture and familial guilt by association (Yeonjwaje)—sprouting the seeds of modern human rights.

9. Joseon as an East Asian Battlefield and the Tragedy of the Eulmi Incident:

• Sino-Japanese War Victory and Russia's Triple Intervention: Japan—having won the Sino-Japanese War and occupied the Liaodong Peninsula—seemed to seize an opportunity for continental advance. However, Russia, seeking to expand its influence into the Korean Peninsula, joined hands with France and Germany to forcefully pressure Japan into returning the Liaodong Peninsula back to China (Triple Intervention). Witnessing Japan yield to Russia in a power showdown, Empress Myeongseong decisively switched to a pro-Russian political line to oust Japanese influence, tightening a noose around Japan.
• Japan's Reckless 'Fox Hunt', Eulmi Incident (1895): Feeling threatened, Japanese minister Miura mobilized Japanese ronin to raid Geoncheonggung (Okhoru) inside Gyeongbokgung Palace at dawn on October 8, 1895. 'Fox Hunt' was the operational codename planned by Japan to assassinate Empress Myeongseong. They stabbed Empress Myeongseong to death with swords and committed an unprecedented, barbaric act of spraying her body with oil to burn it behind Geoncheonggung.

10. The People's Weapons and Swords to Protect the Country, Anti-Japanese Righteous Army Movement:

• Eulmi Righteous Army Against the Hair-Cutting Edict and Eulmi Incident (1895): Formed mainly by conservative Confucian scholars enraged by the assassination of Empress Myeongseong and the compulsory hair-cutting edict (Danbalryeong). It was the first large-scale Righteous Army movement where common people rose up under the banner of avenging the Mother of the Nation and defending traditional culture.
• Eulsa Righteous Army and the Emergence of Commoner Righteous Army Commanders (1905): When diplomatic sovereignty was stripped away by the Eulsa Treaty, former officials and scholars like Choi Ik-hyeon, alongside Shin Dol-seok—a commoner-born Righteous Army commander—rose in revolt. Shin Dol-seok in particular struck severe blows against Japanese forces across the Taebaek Mountains using brilliant tactics.

11. Escape to the Russian Legation and Proclamation of the Korean Empire:

• The King's Tearful Flight, Agwan Pacheon (1896): Fearing for his life after his wife was brutally murdered inside the palace during the Eulmi Incident, Gojong executed Agwan Pacheon in 1896, escaping Gyeongbokgung Palace in a palanquin to take refuge in the Russian Legation. It was a painful period of national trial where the king of a country had to lodge inside another nation's legation to conduct state affairs.
• Banner of Sovereign Independence, Proclamation of the Korean Empire (1897): Returning to Gyeongungung Palace (today's Deoksugung) a year later, Gojong held an imperial ascension ceremony in 1897 to reclaim fallen royal dignity and sovereignty, proclaiming the country's name as the Korean Empire. Naming the era 'Gwangmu', he vigorously promoted independent modernization reforms (Gwangmu Reform) including land reform and establishing modern factories.

12. The Hague Secret Envoys, Forced Deposition, and the Catalyst for the March 1st Movement:

• When Japan forcibly concluded the Eulsa Treaty stripping the Korean Empire of its diplomatic rights in 1905, Gojong dispatched secret envoys to the International Peace Conference held in The Hague, Netherlands, to protest.
• Using this dispatch of The Hague secret envoys as a pretext, Japan forcibly dragged Gojong down from the imperial throne. Afterward, Gojong lived in lonely confinement in Deoksugung Palace until his sudden passing in 1919; widespread rumors that he was poisoned by Japan served as the direct catalyst for the explosion of the March 1st Independence Movement, a nationwide anti-Japanese national movement timed to coincide with his state funeral.

13. Recommended Destinations: Scenes of Turmoil in Gojong's Era

• Ganghwa Museum of History and Gwangseongbo: A battlefield where desperate resistance was mounted against the US fleet during the Sinmi Yangyo (1871). The Ganghwa Museum of History houses General Eorae-yeon's commander flag 'Sujagi', which was plundered by US forces and returned in 2007, while Gwangseongbo preserves redoubt sites and tombs of fallen soldiers (Sinmiui-chong), honoring ancestral patriotic spirits.

• Ujeongchongguk: Opened in 1884, this is Korea's first modern post office and the historic scene where reform politicians like Kim Ok-gyun launched the Gapsin Coup for establishing an independent modern state on the day of the opening celebration banquet. Operating as a postal history museum, it conveys the start of modern communication and the aspirations of pioneers.

• Geoncheonggung at Gyeongbokgung Palace: Located deep inside Gyeongbokgung Palace, this was a small palace within a palace built when Gojong broke away from Heungseon Daewongun's regency. As the birthplace of electric lighting in Korea, it is also the tragic site of the Eulmi Incident (Okhoru) where Empress Myeongseong was assassinated by Japanese ronin in 1895, embracing both the bright and dark sides of modern history.
• Deoksugung Palace (Gyeongungung): The center of turbulent periods such as the proclamation of the Korean Empire (1897) and the conclusion of the Eulsa Treaty (1905), as well as the sad historical site where Gojong passed away, triggering the March 1st Movement. Remaining with Western-style Seokjojeon Hall and Junghmyeongjeon where the Eulsa Treaty was signed, it is the beating heart of the Korean Empire where you can experience both struggles for independent sovereignty and the pain of national subjugation.

  

  

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• Hwanggudan (Wongudan): The altar for rituals to heaven where Gojong held the proclamation of the Korean Empire and imperial ascension ceremony in 1897. It was a symbolic altar proclaiming to domestic and foreign realms that Joseon was an independent imperial state, but demolished during the Japanese colonial period; today, only remnants remain within the Chosun Hotel grounds—such as Hwanggungu, a 3-story spirit tablet storage building, and stone drums—representing burning aspirations for sovereignty protection.

  

  

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• Daehan Gwangbokdan Memorial Park: Located in Yeongju-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, this park honors the noble spirit of 'Daehan Gwangbokdan', the first military-style secret anti-Japanese organization formed in 1913. Uniquely, the faces of Ito Hirobumi and the Eulsa Five Traitors are drawn on the floor at the exhibition hall entrance so visitors must step on them with their feet to enter, serving as a historical education site of retribution. It is a profound space to realize unwavering determination not to forget the atrocities of arch-criminals and traitors who stole the country.

(27th King and Last Emperor of the Korean Empire) Sunjong: The Last Monarch Who Vanished Carrying the Sorrow of a Fallen Nation

Sunjong (reigned 1907–1910) was the son of Gojong and Empress Myeongseong, serving as the second Emperor of the Korean Empire and the final king to bring down the curtain on 519 years of Joseon Dynasty history. Having no children, he made his younger half-brother Crown Prince Yeongchin (Yi Eun) the Crown Prince after accession.

He was a sorrowful monarch who met a lonely end while experiencing firsthand the sorrow of losing a country as his military was disbanded and sovereignty was usurped under Japan's brutal pressure.

1. An Emperor Reduced to a Shell and Forced National Annexation:

• He ascended the throne after Emperor Gojong was forcibly deposed, but the country was already under Japan's complete control. Upon accession, the Japan-Korea New Treaty (Jeongmi 7-Treaty) was concluded, disbanding the army, and even judicial rights were stripped away, leaving zero authority as emperor.
• Ultimately, on August 29, 1910, the Gyeongsul Gukchi (Japan-Korea Annexation) treaty transferring national governing rights completely to Japan was forcibly promulgated, destroying the Korean Empire in 13 years and ending the long history of the Joseon Dynasty founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye with a tragic period.
• Eight Traitors Who Spearheaded National Destruction, Gyeongsul Gukjeok (庚戌國賊): Refers to the 8 senior officials who actively sympathized with and signed the treaty to completely hand over the country to Japan during the Gyeongsul Gukchi (Japan-Korea Annexation) in 1910. Following the Eulsa Five Traitors, those spearheading treason were Yi Wan-yong (Prime Minister), Yun Deok-yeong (Lord Chamberlain), Min Byeong-seok (Minister of the Imperial Household), Go Yeong-hee (Minister of Finance), Park Je-sun (Minister of Interior), Cho Jung-eung (Minister of Agriculture, Commerce and Industry), Yi Byeong-mu (Minister of Military), and Cho Min-hee (Head of Seungnyeongbu). Granted massive peerage titles (baron/marquis) and monetary grants by Japan as rewards for usurping sovereignty, they lived in luxury, recorded forever in our history as major traitors.

2. Demotion to King Yi and Lonely Later Years at Changdeokgung Palace:

• Sorrow of a Monarchy That Lost Its Country, Demoted to 'King Yi': Following the loss of national sovereignty, Sunjong's status was demoted from Emperor to 'King Yi', and he was practically confined to Changdeokgung Palace, spending lonely, sickly later years cut off from the outside under the strict surveillance of Japanese military police.
• Gojong's (Then King Yi Tae) Refusal to Visit Japan and Japanese Pressure: In 1917, Japan coerced Gojong into visiting Tokyo under the pretext of conveying gratitude for the annexation. When Yi Wan-yong conveyed this humiliating demand, Gojong stubbornly refused, stating, ""Even though we lost our country, we cannot bow our heads to the Japanese king.""
• Yun Deok-yeong's Vicious Asset Seizure and Privacy Blackmail: When Gojong refused to yield, Yun Deok-yeong stepped forward, slapping red warning tags (seizures) arbitrarily on royal assets to tighten economic chokeholds, even mobilizing vicious blackmail threatening to expose Gojong's past romantic affairs to the public to stubbornly compel a humiliating visit to Japan.
• Sunjong's (Then King Yi) Proxy Visit to Japan and the Humiliation of National Fall: Following persistent blackmail and pressure, Gojong ultimately compromised on the condition of sending his son Sunjong (then King Yi) to Tokyo in his place to offer forced expressions of gratitude to the Japanese Emperor. Consequently, Sunjong was dragged to Tokyo under Japanese surveillance to offer humiliating bows as the protagonist of a sorrowful history.
• Lonely Passing at Changdeokgung Palace and the June 10th Independence Movement: In April 1926, Sunjong closed his eyes lonely at age 53 in Daejojeon Hall of Changdeokgung Palace without children. His tragic death and state funeral served as the catalyst for the June 10th Independence Movement, where citizens enraged by colonial rule rose in revolt, accompanied by the passionate anti-Japanese aspirations and tears of the people until his final path.

3. Tragedy of the Last Imperial Family Members Fading Under the Shadow of National Fall:

• Crown Prince Yeongchin and Lady Yi Bang-ja, Hostages of Fate: Crown Prince Yeongchin (Yi Eun), Gojong's fourth son and final crown prince, was dragged to Japan as a hostage at age 11, arranged in a political marriage with Japanese imperial relative Lady Yi Bang-ja (Masako) and living his life under surveillance.
  Even after liberation, entry refusals due to political checks by the Syngman Rhee regime prevented him from returning to his homeland until he finally returned in poor health in 1963, finishing his lonely remaining days at Nakseonjae in Changdeokgung Palace. Lady Yi Bang-ja stayed by her husband's side, remaining on Korean soil for life and dedicating herself to welfare projects for underprivileged groups and people with disabilities.
• The Saddest Flower of National Fall, Tragic Princess Deokhye: Princess Deokhye, Gojong's cherished late-born daughter in his sixties, was also forcibly sent to study in Japan in her teens, entering an unwanted political marriage with a Tsushima count family. Suffering severe personal tragedies—including her daughter's disappearance, divorce, and institutionalization for schizophrenia—she could finally return to her dream homeland in 1962, spending her final days guarding the final loneliness of the royal family at Nakseonjae Su-gang-jae in Changdeokgung Palace.

4. Recommended Destinations: Sorrowful History of the Late Joseon Period and Cries for Independent Sovereignty

• Injeongjeon Hall at Changdeokgung Palace: The main throne hall remodeled into Western styles inside after Emperor Sunjong moved his residence to Changdeokgung following accession. Inside the traditional wooden building, paper windows were replaced with glass windows and gorgeous curtains, while Western-style electric lights (chandeliers) were installed on the ceiling, and wooden flooring was replaced with yellowish-brown ceramic bricks (Jeondol).
  In particular, the main ridge of the building's roof features metallic decorations of five plum blossom (Ihwamun) patterns—the symbol of the Korean Empire's royal family—serving as a site showing the lonely transitional phase of a fallen imperial family where traditional Eastern palaces and modern Western culture awkwardly mixed.

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• Huijeongdang Hall at Changdeokgung Palace: The king's unofficial office and living space, whose interior was remodeled into a complete Western-style parlor by Japan during 1920 reconstruction. In particular, the building's front features a protruding Western-style stone porch (drop-off pavilion) allowing Emperor Sunjong's royal vehicle (automobile) to drive directly under the roof to board and alight without getting rained on, possessing a unique exterior letting you vividly observe the turbulent modernization site where new automobiles drove in and out of traditional Joseon palaces.

• Nakseonjae at Changdeokgung Palace: The final residence of the last imperial family members of the Korean Empire, including Crown Prince Yeongchin and Lady Yi Bang-ja, who lived and passed away here after returning to Korea. It is a historic site where you can retrace the pathetic and lonely life trajectories of the fallen final imperial members amidst the beauty of understated Hanok architecture.
• Remnants of Byeoksu Sanjang in Ogin-dong (Gate Pillar of Yun Deok-yeong's House): The sole remaining stone gate pillar (Munju) of 'Byeoksu Sanjang', a grand 20,000-pyeong luxury mansion built by pro-Japanese collaborator Yun Deok-yeong as a reward for selling the country. You can witness the vain greed of a traitor by looking at the pillars and stone foundations quietly embedded in the alleyway walls of Seochon.
• Hongneung and Yureung Tombs in Namyangju (Hongyureung): The resting place of Emperor Gojong and Emperor Sunjong, constructed following Chinese imperial tomb systems in accordance with the Korean Empire's imperial status, differing from existing Joseon royal tomb styles. It is great for reflecting on the end of an era while viewing unique stone statues guarding the tombs, such as elephants, giraffes, and lions.