Daewon-kun

A politician and father of King Gojong, the 26th king of the Yi Dynasty of Joseon. His surname was Yi Haeung. In 1863, when the 25th king Cheoljong died, he had no children of his own, so he had his second son ascend the throne as Gojong. When a king has no direct heir to the throne, the next king is chosen from within the royal family, and Daewongun is an honorific for the king's biological father. Although it is not a proper noun, today it generally refers to Yi Haeung. Daewongun himself took power as regent, rebuilt the feudal system that was beginning to crumble, and tried to resolve the crisis in the dynasty. First, he abolished the 60-year-old power politics of the Andong Kim clan, who were his maternal relatives, and promoted talented people widely. He also abolished the Seowon schools, which had been the source of party strife, except for 47 Seowon schools, and established a legal system by publishing the Six Codes and the Daejeon Hoetong, thus establishing a centralized political organization. He also abolished the Bihensi and separated administrative and military powers, while also starting tax reforms, reducing the burden on farmers and strengthening the national treasury. However, at the same time, in order to demonstrate the dignity of the Yi royal family, he started rebuilding Gyeongbokgung Palace, which had been left burning, and forced people to make donations to procure insufficient financial resources, making life even harder for the people. He also adopted a strict policy of isolationism towards foreign countries and severely oppressed Christians. In 66, he repelled the American merchant ship Sherman, which had invaded up the Taedong River. Furthermore, in September of the same year, they repelled a French fleet that had invaded Ganghwa Island under the pretext of "revenge for the persecution of Christians." They erected "monuments of reconciliation" throughout the country, further strengthening their isolationism.

However, the yangban forces, whose power had been taken by Daewongun, rallied around Queen Min, Gojong's wife. In 1873, under the pretext of direct rule by the king, they seized power from Daewongun and Queen Min's family seized power, and the conflict between the two parties deepened. In 1882, they briefly seized power during the Imo Rebellion, but Queen Min's machinations led to the Qing army being called in, and they were captured by Ma Jianzhong and others sent from the Qing Dynasty and imprisoned in Baoding Prefecture, Tianjin for four years. In 1885, they returned to Korea and lived in seclusion at the Unhyeon Palace, waiting for an opportunity to make a comeback, but when Queen Min was assassinated in 1895, they seized power with the backing of Japanese envoy Miura Goro. However, his political mission had already ended, and he was merely a puppet of Japan. Daewongun retired when Miura was summoned. The relationship between father and son had deteriorated to the point that Gojong did not even attend Daewongun's funeral.

[Setsuko Miyata]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

李(り)氏朝鮮第26代王高宗の父で政治家。姓名は李昰応(りしおう)。1863年、第25代王哲宗が死ぬと、哲宗に実子がなかったので、自分の第2子を高宗として即位させた。国王に直系の王位継承者がないとき、王族内から次の王を選ぶが、大院君とは、その王の実父の尊称。固有名詞ではないが、今日では一般に李昰応をさす。大院君自らは摂政(せっしょう)として政権を握り、解体しつつあった封建体制を建て直し、王朝の危機を打開しようとした。まず60年続いた外戚(がいせき)安東金氏の勢道(せどう)政治を廃し、広く人材を登用する一方、47か所の賜額書院を除いて、党争の根源となっていた書院を撤廃し、「六典(りくてん)条例」「大典会通」などを刊行して法律制度の確立を図るなど、中央集権的な政治機構を樹立した。さらに備辺司(びへんし)を廃止して行政権と軍事権を分離する一方、税制の改革にも着手、農民の負担を軽くし、国庫の充実をも図ろうとした。しかし同時に、李王家の威厳を誇示するために、炎上したままになっていた景福宮の再建に着手、不足な財源を調達するために願納銭を強制し、民衆の生活苦を加重させた。また外国に対しては徹底した鎖国政策をとり、キリスト教徒には大弾圧を加えた。66年、アメリカの商船シャーマン号が大同江をさかのぼって侵入したのを撃退。さらに同年9月、「キリスト教徒弾圧への復報」を名目としたフランス艦隊の江華島侵入をも撃退した。全国に「斥和碑(せきわひ)」を立て、ますます鎖国を強化した。

　しかし大院君によって権力を奪われた両班(ヤンバン)勢力は、高宗の妃である閔(びん)妃を中心に結集。1873年には国王親政を名目に、大院君から政権を奪い、閔妃一族が権力を握り、以後両者の対立は深まった。82年、壬午(じんご)軍乱で一時権力を握ったが、閔妃の策動で清(しん)国軍が出動し、清国から派遣された馬建忠らによって捕らえられ、天津(てんしん)保定府に4年間幽閉された。85年帰国し、雲峴(うんけん)宮に蟄居(ちっきょ)して再起の機会をうかがっていたが、95年閔妃が殺害されると、日本公使三浦梧楼(ごろう)の後押しで政権を掌握した。しかし、すでに彼の政治的使命は終わっており、日本の傀儡(かいらい)にすぎず、三浦の召還で大院君も隠退した。高宗は大院君の葬儀にも出席しないほど父子関係は悪化したまま終わった。

［宮田節子］

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