Consort Gang (Gung Ye's wife)

Last updated
Queen Kang
Queen consort of Taebong State
Tenure901–915
Coronation 901
PredecessorDynasty established
SuccessorDynasty abolished
(Queen Sinhye as the first Goryeo Queen consort)
Born?
Sincheon-gun, Hwanghaenam-do, Later Three Kingdoms
Died915
Cheorwon-gun, Gangwon-do, State of Taebong
Spouse Gung Ye
Issue Sin Gwang
Cheong Gwang
Names
Lady Kang (부인 강씨, 夫人 康氏)
House Sincheon Gang (by birth)
House of Gim (by marriage)
FatherGang Yeonchang
MotherLady Baek
Religion Buddhism
Korean name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised Romanization Gang-bi
McCune–Reischauer Kang-p'i

Queen Kang of the Sincheon Gang clan (died 915) [1] was the daughter of a wealthy and strong family in Sincheon during the Later Three Kingdoms periods. She was the wife of Gung Ye and later became the queen consort in 901 following his ascension to the throne as a short-lived King of the State of Taebong. [2]

Contents

Historical life

Lady Kang was married to Gung Ye (궁예) and bore him 2 sons: Cheong-gwang (청광) and Sin-gwang (신광). [3] However, Gung Ye suspected that she might have committed adultery and accused her of doing such things, [4] then used a fiery hot iron pestle to mutilate(or pare) her vagina and killed their sons. [5] As Gung Ye often boasted that he could read people's minds, he practiced a harsh government of terror, such as killing several generals and servants for treason just like Kang. [6]

Legends

Legend from Cheorwon

According to a legend passed down in Cheorwon, Gangwon Province, it was said that Lady Kang was actually married her far-relative, Wang Geon, but forced to marry Gung Ye and couldn't forget Wang Geon. From this, it was described that she was killed by Gung Ye after discovered for having an affair with Wang Geon.
[7] [3] [8]

Legend from Gapyeong

Meanwhile, according to a legend passed down in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province that contrary to history, Queen Kang asked Gung Ye to stop his tyranny government, but instead make Gung Ye becomes anger and she then exiled to the one of Gapyeong's mountain. Later on, as Gung Ye ran away when Wang Geon's counter-revolution broke out, he couldn't forget Kang's advice for him and went to Gapyeong, where she was exiled. However, Kang had already died when Gung Ye was there.
[9]

In the novel

In a novel titled "Crown Prince Maui" (마의태자) by Lee Kwang-soo (이광수), Lady Kang was named as Kang Na-young (강나영) and described as a person with outstanding martial arts and resourcefulness. However, she was disappointed with Gung Ye's tyranny and stalked Wang Geon while eventually died in Gung Ye's hand.
[10]

In the TV series

In the KBS1 TV series "Taejo Wang Geon", Lady Kang was named as Kang Yeon-hwa (강연화), which "Yeon-hwa" resembles the image of a single lotus blooming in the mud. She was said to originally betrothed with Wang Geon since childhood and loved each other, but were separated after Wang's father, Wang Ryung declined this betrothal. Described as an ideal wife due to her beautiful, strong personality, and wise, she was respected by many. Being aware of her position, she never tried to get involved in country affairs more than necessary, but she must live twisted upon becoming an unwanted empress.

Regardless of the fact that she couldn't connect with her loved one and her husband never showed any affection at all although she served Gung Ye with all of her heart as a husband and king. As soon as their children were born, they were taken away by him and Kang couldn't raise any of them herself. Due to Gung Ye's circumstances, the country was literally living hell and whenever Kang went to an event or public speaking, Gung Ye became mad and all kinds of slaughter took place. Although she wanted to try to do something, she couldn't get involved in politics due to her position as a woman and then tried her best to advise Gung Ye, which instead made Gung Ye's madness getting worse. She later abused Gung Ye and openly encouraged Wang Geon to revolt, which she and her two sons were sacrificed for Gung Ye's madness at the end.
[11] [12] [13] Queen Kang is portrayed by Kim Hye-ri and Jung-hoo in the 2000-2002 KBS1 TV series Taejo Wang Geon . [14]

Family

Ancestors

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taebong</span> Former country

Taebong was a state established by Gung Ye on the Korean Peninsula in 901 during the Later Three Kingdoms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gung Ye</span> King of the short-lived Hugoguryeo on the Korean peninsula

Gung Ye was the king of the short-lived state of Taebong (901–918), one of the Later Three Kingdoms of Korea. Although he was a member of the Silla royal family, he became a victim of the power struggle among the royal family members during the late 9th century. He became a rebel leader against the unpopular Silla government, which almost abandoned the affairs of their subjects for the struggle for power among royal family members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taejo of Goryeo</span> Founder of the Goryeo Dynasty

Taejo of Goryeo, also known as Taejo Wang Geon, was the founder of the Goryeo dynasty, which ruled Korea from the 10th to the 14th century. Taejo ruled from 918 to 943, achieving unification of the Later Three Kingdoms in 936.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">House of Wang</span> Royal family of Goryeo dynasty

The House of Wang was the royal ruling house of the Goryeo dynasty (918-1392) of Korea.

Hyejong of Goryeo was the second King of Goryeo. He was preceded by King Taejo and succeeded by Jeongjong, 3rd Monarch of Goryeo.

<i>Taejo Wang Geon</i> (TV series) 2000-02 South Korean historical period drama

Taejo Wang Geon is a 2000 Korean historical period drama. Directed by Kim Jong-sun and starring Choi Soo-jong in the title role of King Taejo. The drama aired from April 1, 2000 to February 24, 2002 in a total of 200 episodes. In the scene dealing with the end of Gungye, it gained a lot of popularity, recording the highest viewership rating of 60.4% in the metropolitan area.

Princess Hwahyeop, or Princess Hwahyop was the seventh daughter of King Yeongjo of the Joseon dynasty in Korea.

Wang Ryung, also known as Wang Yung, was a Korean hojok, or local regional lord of Song-ak, who lived during the Later Three Kingdoms period. He was the father of Wang Geon, the founder of the Goryeo dynasty. He was later posthumously honoured with a temple name of Sejo and a posthumous name of King Wimu the Great by his descendants.

<i>Dream of the Emperor</i> 2012 – 2013 South Korean television series

Dream of the Emperor is a South Korean television series that aired on KBS1 from September 8, 2012 to June 9, 2013 on Saturdays and Sundays at 21:40 for 70 episodes.

<i>Happy Home</i> (TV series) 2016 South Korean television series

Happy Home is a 2016 South Korean television series starring Kim Yeong-cheol, Won Mi-kyung, Kim So-yeon, Lee Sang-woo and Lee Pil-mo. It aired on MBC every Saturdays to Sundays at 20:45 (KST) for 51 episodes from February 27 to August 21, 2016.

Queen Sindeok, of the Goksan Kang clan, was a posthumous name bestowed to the second wife and queen consort of Yi Dan, King Taejo; the first monarch of the Korean Joseon Dynasty. She was queen consort of Joseon and was honoured as Queen Hyeon (현비) from 1392 until her death in 1396. She was a political advisor of King Taejo and had a great influence on the founding of Joseon. She was posthumously called as Sindeok, the High Empress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queen Janghwa</span> Queen consort of Goryeo

Queen Janghwa of the Naju Oh clan was the second Goryeo queen consort through her marriage as the second wife of Wang Geon, its founder and became the mother of his heir and oldest son, King Hyejong.

Queen Sinhye of the Chŏngju Yu clan was the first Goryeo queen consort through her marriage as the first wife of Wang Geon, its founder. As the wife and mother of the new nation, she supported her husband's national affairs with a good plan and received great favor and preferential treatment from many people, also become his favourite wife.

Queen Jeonghwa of the Sincheon Gang clan, personal name Gang Jin-ui, was the second daughter of Gang Bo-yuk who would become the great-grandmother of Wang Geon, founder of the Goryeo dynasty. As a figure from the Later Silla period, she is the first one from among the ancestors of King Taejo to be accurately reported by the left records.

Lady Sinjuwon of the Sincheon Gang clan was the daughter of Gang Gi-ju who became the 23rd wife of Taejo of Goryeo.

Lady Uiseongbuwon of the Uiseong Hong clan was the daughter of Hong-Yu who became the 27th wife of Taejo of Goryeo. Her father was one of the helper and supporter for Wang Geon in established the new Goryeo dynasty along with Sin Sung-gyeom (신숭겸), Bak Ji-gyeom (복지겸) and Bae Hyeon-gyeong (배현경), also they all defeated Gung Ye. Hong-Yu also served Taejo as his Three Grand Masters (삼중대광) and with Taejo, she had a son, Grand Prince Uiseongbuwon who later married Lady Ryu, 3rd daughter of Queen Jeongdeok.

Lady Heungbokwon of the Hongju Hong clan was the daughter of Hong-Gyu, Hongju Hong clan 's founder. who became the 12th wife of Taejo of Goryeo.

Yu Cheon-gung or also known as Local Chief Yu was a rich-nobleman in the Later Three Kingdoms Period who became the father of Queen Sinhye and father in-law of Wang Geon, Goryeo dynasty's founder.

Queen Sinmyeong of the Chungju Yu clan or long-called as Queen Sinmyeongsunseong was the third Goryeo queen consort through her marriage as the third wife of Wang Geon, its founder and become the mother of his 5 sons and 2 daughters.

The Chŏngju Yu clan (Korean: 정주 유씨; Hanja: 貞州 柳氏 is a Korean clan. Their Bon-gwan is Chŏngju, in modern-day Kaepung, Kaesong. It was founded by Yu Cheon-gung who was a nobleman from Chŏngju and served as one of the Three Major Grand Masters.

References

Citations

  1. ↑ From many Korean Queens who have their own royalty names which different from their clans, there was exception for the three queens that simply called with their clan/surname and "queen/consort" (비, 妃). They were: Queen Kang (her, 강비); Queen Jo (King Chungseon's wife, 조비); and Queen Min (King Gojong's wife, 민비). Although Jo and Min were called like that, but they still received some honorary/posthumous name not like Kang who didn't receive any of that.
  2. ↑ 월간 중앙 (in Korean). University of California: Jungang Ilbo. 2000. p. 345.
  3. 1 2 Seo Gu-jung, Park Hong-kap (2012). 필원잡기 (in Korean). CommunicationBooks. ISBN   9791130434292.
  4. ↑ Doo-jin, Kim (1996). "궁예". encykorea.aks.ac.kr (in Korean). Encykorea . Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  5. ↑ Samguk Sagi,Book 50,Gungye "貞明元年，夫人康氏以王多行非法，正色諫之。王惡之曰：「汝與他人奸，何耶？」康氏曰：「安有此事？」王曰：「我以神通觀之。」以烈火熱鐵杵撞其陰殺之，及其兩兒。"
  6. ↑ Sinya, Kang (1989). 간신 의 처 [Barely A Wife] (in Korean). University of Michigan: Literary World Club. p. 173.
  7. ↑ Ki-duk, Kim (2005). 영상역사학 (in Korean). University of Michigan: 생각의나무. p. 125. ISBN   9788984984776.
  8. ↑ < "철원군에 있었던 태봉국의 시작과 끝". Local culture story (in Korean). Retrieved April 23, 2022.
  9. ↑ Sisa chŏnŏl, Volumes 534-539 (in Korean). University of California: Kukche Ŏllon Munhwasa. 2000.
  10. ↑ Kwang-soo, Lee (2013). 이광수 문학전집 소설 8- 마의태자 [A Collections of Lee Kwang-soo novel 8- Crown Prince Maui] (in Korean). SINYUL. ISBN   9788966980208.
  11. ↑ 월간 중앙, Volume 26, Issues 6-7 [Monthly Joongang, Volume 26, Issues 6-7] (in Korean). University of California: Joongang Ilbo. 2000. pp. 231, 345.
  12. ↑ "비운의 여인KBS 대하드라마 태조 왕건 강비역 김혜리". Hankyung News (in Korean). 17 March 2000. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
  13. ↑ "태조 왕건' 그들의 최후". The Korea Times (in Korean). 22 May 2001. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
  14. ↑ In this series, the Queen appears with name Kang Yeon-hwa (강연화).
  15. ↑ Firstly lived in Buso Mountain and later moved to Songak; son of General Seonggol (성골장군) who travelled Baekdu Mountain and settled in Buso Mountain, Songak (송악).
  16. ↑ She came from the wealth Gu family clan in Western River, Yeongan Village.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.