Goryeo - Part 5

-1122- The Khitan (Liao dynasty) had fallen to the Jurchens (Jin dynasty)!
   -Also, King Yejong had died, replaced by his son, King Injong.
-King Injong was like 12, heavily influenced by the Lee clan.
   -The other courtiers didn't like the power that the Lee clan now wielded, and wanted to removed the patriarch of the Lee clan from the court.  The king was also a part of this push as well.
      -However, the clan found out and staged a coup in 1126, sacking the palace, killing a bunch of people, and sacking the king!
         -The clan now enacted an autocratic rule under the patriarch, Lee Ja-gyeom, with King Injong remaining as their puppet.  Under Lee Ja-gyeom's rule, Goryeo agreed to submit to the Jin Dynasty as a tributary state.
   -Eventually, the king was able to rally enough support to strike back and overthrow the patriarch and exile him to the south.
      -It seems like a light penalty, but like the other Goryeo kings before him, King Injong was a devout Buddhist.
-King Injong regained power in 1127, but immediately had trouble reorganizing the court because it was divided between Confucians and Buddhists.
   -The Buddhists, led by a monk named Myo-cheong, derived power from their large monastic holdings as well as rural clans with huge estates.  Favored by King Injong.
   -The Confucians, led by Kim Bu-sik, derived power from the intellectuals and the merchant class.
-Myo-cheong preached that the capital should be moved to Pyeongyang from Gaeseong due to Buddhist geomancy.  Also, conveniently enough, it was Myo-cheong's hometown and base of support, which is why he wanted Pyeongyang, and not Seoul, which was apparently equally viable as the main capital.
   -King Injong conceded and began to start projects that would make Pyeongyang a more suitable capital.  Myo-cheong also tried to make various "miracles" happen that would influence the king's attitude (but who knows if these stories are literal or exaggerated/metaphorical).
      -This made King Injong disenchanted because he saw through Myo-cheong's bullshit.
         -Obviously, Myo-cheong got butthurt, so in 1135 he called on all Korean Buddhist monks to join his army, occupying Pyeongyang, and claimed themselves to be a sovereign state.  This lasted about a month before the rebellion was quelled.
-Ever since 1018 there was a rough pattern that can be seen with the Goryeo court: the king was influenced by Buddhist monks who abused and disrespected the Confucian officials who then took out their anger on military officials.
-1145- King Injong commissions Kim Bu-sik to write a historical saga, the Samguk Sagi, which is where a ton of the previous info in these notes comes from and is the major source of what we know about about Korean history.
   -The Samguk Sagi was influenced by Han Chinese scholarly histories and compiled from Chinese sources, Silla chronicles, Hwarang records, and records from Baekje and Gogoryeo as well.  For whatever reason, Japanese sources weren't used.
      -None of the Korean sources of the Samguk Sagi draws from have survived to this day, so the Samguk Sagi is extremely important.  It has also only been partially translated into English.
         -It is also obviously biased towards Confucian thought since it was written by Confucians.  In the next century, the Buddhists would try and replace it with the Samguk Yusa.
-1146- King Injong died, replaced by his son, King Uijong.
   -Not a very devout Buddhist, he was mostly interested in building additions to the palace, gambling, drinking, and having sex!!
-1160s- A fleet was sent to Ulleongdo, an island 75 miles east of Korea.  The island had actually been conquered by Silla in 512, but it didn't actually become part of Goryeo until 930.  It had been constantly raided and fucked up by pirates in the 11th century, so King Uijong wanted to go there to see WTF the deal with the place was.  The fleet reported that the island was actually uninhabited, and so they decided not to fuck with it and didn't send settlers to repopulate it.
   -The king also decided to set up a goofy new system of tax collecting, which replaced the original tax collects with eunuchs, and whoever could collect the most taxes would be rewarded with land taken from the aristocracy (which obviously pissed off the aristocracy).
      -He also spent his time chilling with his inner circle and never bothered to invite anyone from the military or aristocracy to join him.
         -So naturally, things started falling apart, and everyone hated King Uijong, even the peasants, due to his push for ruthless tax collection and high taxes.  Slaves were being overworked, and talk of rebellion began to spread, not just against the king, but against the corrupt local lords and Buddhist monasteries.
-1170- King Uijong was captured in a military coup, and lots of eunuchs and officers were slaughtered.  They wanted to kill King Uijong, but they didn't want the Jin dynasty to find a reason to invade as their "older brother" to maintain order.  So, they exiled him to a small island and enthroned his brother, King Myeongjong.
-King Uijong tried to regain power by being re-appointed by an army official that wanted him back on the throne for whatever reason, but this army was defeated, and then King Uijong was murdered.
   -This pissed off lots of King Uijong's Buddhist monk supporters, and they staged mass protests in Gaeseong, but the military didn't give a fuck and burned several Buddhist libraries and temples, and raided several monasteries as well.
-Goryeo was becoming increasingly unstable, with regional powers in the kingdom beginning to vie for dominance.  The most powerful region outside of Gaeseong was centered around Pyeongyang.
   -So, a battle occurred between Gaeseong and Pyeongyang, with Gaeseong emerging victorious.
      -Eventually, Pyeongyang was besieged, with its population either fleeing or being executed by Gaeseong forces.
-Meanwhile, chaos was breaking out everywhere, with rebellions popping up in multiple regions.  The people were starving, turning to thievery and brigandry.
   -The military even sent troops to capture girls from the countryside to bring them back to Gaesong as sex slaves, and ancestral temples were looted.
-King Myeongjong was still the puppet ruler during this time, living a life of decadence.
   -After many years of chaos, with different rebellions, King Myeongjong was finally dethroned in 1197 and replaced by his brother, King Sinjong.
-Unfortunately, King Sinjong was completely dominated by the military, specifically by General Choi Chong-heon.  General Choi had dubbed himself Prime Minister and "Protector of the Realm".
   -One historian (Homer Halbert) called General Choi "the first shogun of Korea".
   -General Choi had a bodyguard of 3000 elite troops, each of whom were paid very well.
   -The peasants didn't like General Choi's rule, and there were numerous revolts.
      -People were starving because so many resources went to the military, and they couldn't get help from the temples because they were predatory lenders when it came to working in exchange for food.
         -They would essentially be slaves to the temples, and would also have to make up the armies of these warrior monks (thugs).
      -There was even one revolt that tried to revive Silla!
         -It was actually successful at first, but it was ultimately put down.
      -Another revolt was a slave rebellion, led by one of General Choi's slaves, but it wasn't successful either.
-During this time, Goryeo was nearing complete collapse.  However, for whatever reason no one in East Asia seemed to notice that there was an insanely powerful barbarian horde amassing in Central Asia, led by a mysterious man named Temujin...

Goryeo - Part 4

-1031- King Hyeonjong died, replaced by King Deokjong.
   -King Deokjong immediately began fortifying the north and building the Cheolli Jangseong ("thousand "li"wall) to keep out the Khitan (Liao dynasty) hordes.
      -Although Gogoryeo also built one in the 7th century, when talking about it most people are referring to the one built by Goryeo.
      -It was modeled after the Great Wall of China and Gogoryeo's Cheolli Jangseong.
-1034- King Deokjong died, replaced by his younger brother, King Jeongjong.
   -Wanted to build up Goryeo's army, but also was really into Buddhism.  Decreed that 1 out of every 4 sons MUST join a Buddhist monastery, suppressed the acquisition of luxury goods, and passed a number of other wacky laws.   He did, however, abolish the death penalty.  Then he married his sister (!).
-Meanwhile, the Jurchen hordes continued to rise in power, and began simultaneously trading with and raiding Goryeo, although they ultimately looked to Goryeo as their older, civilized brother.
-1046- King Jeongjong died, replaced by King Moonjong.  He, too, married his sister (!!).  He also became concerned about the Jurchen and Khitan, so he began to contemplate asking the Song dynasty for help.
-1056- A Japanese envoy arrives at court requesting a bunch of Buddhist relics and texts and shit, and returned a few years later with Japanese gifts.
   -Also, one of King Moonjong's sons, Uicheon, went on to a become a Buddhist thinker who founded the Cheonjae school of Buddhism.
-King Moonjong made some interesting administrative choices as king.
   -He removed the emergency iron supply from the armory and made them into nails to be distributed to build Buddhist temples all over Goryeo.
   -He donated nobles' houses (and even houses belonging to his own family members) to the Buddhist clergy.
   -1 out of every 3 sons now had to join a Buddhist monastery.
      -However, it should be noted that a lot of these policies weren't actually enforced because no one liked these laws to begin with.
-1084- King Moonjong died, replaced by his eldest son, King Soonjong.  However, King Soonjong died this same year, so he was replaced by his brother, King Seonjong.
   -King Seonjong completely abolished the civil service exam, which was heavily influenced by Confucianism, and replaced it with a version that was instead heavily influenced by Buddhism only.
      -Tried to synthesize traditional Buddhism with the new school of Korean Seon (Zen) Buddhism.
         -Seon Buddhism is still practiced at various temples today in Korea.
-1094- King Seonjong dies, replaced by his son, King Heonjong.  He was a really smart kid!
-1095- King Heonjong gets "sick" and dies, replaced by his uncle, King Sookjong.
   -Implemented a system of copper coinage around 1100, but counterfeit was rampant.
-1104- Jurchen hordes invade from the north!
   -King Sookjong sent his top general, Yun Gwan, to repel them, although they wouldn't be ready until the next year.
      -Yun Gwan was the leader of Goryeo's new Byeolmuban ("Star Army"), which was a revamped fighting force made up several divisions- cavalary, warrior monks, infantry, camp followers, slaves, and volunteers.
         -This was also the first Korean army to use gunpowder, which had been obtained from the Song dynasty.
            -It was imported by the Koreans because they didn't have the technology themselves to create it.
-Due to Korean Buddhist geomancy, King Sookjong was persuaded to order the construction of a new southern capital, since Gaeseong was "losing its magical energy", according to the Goryeo court's wizards.
   -The new southern capital was to be Seoul.
-1106- King Sookjong dies, replaced by his son, King Yejong.
   -Really into herbs and herbal medicine, so he sent a bunch of rare Korean plants to China in exchange for rare Chinese plants.
   -He was also really into Taoism, and this became trendy among the nobility.
-1107- the Star Army was ready to march!  About 170,000, they left Pyeongyang to attack the Jurchen in the north, but achieved only mixed results.  Eventually, they were recalled back into Goryeo territory for defense instead of offense.
-By 1114, the Jurchen had managed to unite themselves under a working government, and by 1115 they declared themselves a sovereign state (just like the Khitan had done), complete with their own ruler, Emperor Taizu of the Jin dynasty (not to be confused with the old Jin dynasty)!
-Meanwhile, the Liao dynasty felt threatened by the new rising power of the Jin dynasty, so they tried to get Goryeo to ally with them.
-Also during this time, the Song dynasty sent a bunch of expensive, beautiful musical instruments to Goryeo to curry favor with them, and then sent even more the next year in hopes that Goryeo would join them to attack the Liao dynasty.  Unfortunately, Goryeo weren't convinced.
-Through some diplomatic mix-ups, the Jin dynasty also agreed for Goryeo to expand its territory from the Cheolli Jangseong up to the Yalu River, but Goryeo didn't realize that the Jin dynasty was expecting for Goryeo to become their tribute state!
-1121- The Jin and Song dynasties join forces to to take out the Liao dynasty.
   -The Song army wasn't very successful, but the Jin army kicked major ass and took over a bunch of territory; they even sacked the capital Nanjing (Beijing) and killed Emperor Tianzuo, thus ending the dynasty.
      -Obviously, the Jin dynasty were now major players in the game.
      -Goryeo was divided on how to react to this- to they submit to the Jin dynasty, or fight?
-1122- King Yejong dies, replaced by his son, King Injong.
-As an aside, how was Goryeo divided?
   -8 provinces (a bit different than how Joseon dynasty divided them, though, and different names).
      -Each had over 100 prefectures.
         -Within these prefectures were over 400 sub-prefectures, which included over 900 "special villages".

Goryeo - Part 3

-993- The Khitan (Liao dynasty) send a horde to invade Goryeo!
   -Goryeo defended itself, but sent off an envoy to China to try and get help from the Song dynasty.
      -This was funny because the Song Dynasty had tried for a long time to get Goryeo's help to fight the Khitan, but Goryeo had refused.
   -The Khitan were able to successfully invade parts of Goryeo, but Goryeo forces held them at bay via guerrilla tactics.
      -The Khitan knew that they could crush Goryeo, but it would be a pain in the ass, so they tried to sue for peace and annex all of the old Balhae lands (which would be everything north of Pyeongyang) along with tribute and submission of the Goryeo crown to the Liao dynasty.
         -Goryeo refused, so the hordes marched on Pyeongyang!  Luckily, General Seo-hui (Goryeo) was able to convince the Khitan to back down by agreeing to cut off ties with the Song dynasty, who threatened Khitan territory.  Somehow, he also convinced the Khitan to allow for Goryeo to have access to the Yalu River for trade and communication purposes.
   -As soon as the Khitan packed out of Goryeo territory, Goryeo quickly built new fortresses and resumed its relations with the Song dynasty, which pissed off the Khitan immensely.
-997- King Seongjeong dies, replaced by King Mokjong, his son.
   -However, the true power lay in the hands of his aunt, Queen Heonae, who was acting as regent since Mokjong wasn't quite old enough yet.
      -Eventually, Queen Heonae decided to try and overthrow her nephew completely in a coup- the king's palace was burned and the king fled, summoning his top general to protect him.  However, the general decided to betray the king and kill him.
-1009- King Mokjong was dead, so he replaced by a grandson of King Taejo, King Hyeonjong.  Of course, King Hyeongjong was too young, so he didn't have any power.
-1010- The Khitan decide to have another go at Goryeo!  They were still pissed about what happened the first time, and also at apparently the corruption that was going on in Goryeo's court (good excuse, anyway).
   -A Khitan horde of 400,000 reached all the way to Pyeongyang (again), and the Gaeseong court fled to the south, hoping to overextend the horde.
      -During this time, the Goryeo dynasty also produced the Tripitaka Koreana, a collection of woodblock prints with a bunch of Buddhist stuff.
      -The Khitan horde continued to push into Goryeo, and they sacked Gaeseong!  In the carnage and destruction, tons of historical records and treasures and shit were destroyed, some of the treasure even dating back to the pre-Three Kingdoms period!
         -King Hyeonjong tried to sue for peace, but the Khitan only would agree if the king went up to the Liadong Peninsula and personally bent the knee to Emperor Shengzong (Liao dynasty).
-1014- Northern Goryeo was now under Khitan occupation, but far from pacified.
   -It was too much trouble to keep it under control, so the Khitan began to pull out, losing thousands of troops in the process, and finally sued for peace with Goryeo.
      -Meanwhile, northern Goryeo was in shambles.
-The aftermath of the Goryeo-Khitan Wars:
   -Goryeo saw the rise of a new powerful military class due to the conflict and need for a strong army.
   -New ethnic diversity as the Khitan conquests brought in new people and Khitan slaves.
      -These new ethnicities were usually heavily discriminated against, and usually had shitty jobs, eventually becoming the Korean version of the "untouchables" ("baekcheong"), the lowest of the low, who couldn't even serve in the military.
         -This class would actually exist all the way up into the 20th century!
   -Also caused an increase in contact with the Jurchen hordes that occupied the area of Manchuria north of the Khitan.  The Jurchen desperately wanted to become civilized and copy Goryeo society and culture (and who would eventually succeed in doing so and develop into a legit empire (the Jin dynasty)).
-1024- Arab traders arrive in Gaeseong, and it's possible some of them some of them stayed and settled in Goryeo!

Goryeo - Part 2

-The source material at this point changes to the Goryeosa, which was written during King Sejong's reign.

-King Taejo dies in 943, replaced by his son, King Hyejong.

   -Almost immediately began to face opposition from the nobility due to his "low birth", as his mother, the queen, came from a non-elite family.

      -A civil war actually broke out around this time, with the winners being King Hyejong's brothers (King Taejo's other sons), Wang Yo and Wang So.

-King Hyejong died in 945 due to stress and disease, but it's entirely possible that he was just poisoned or something.

   -The nobility came together and appointed Wang Yo, who was crowned King Jeongjong.

-King Jeonjong was really worried about a Laio dynasty invasion, so he built a massive fortress at Pyeongyang.  

   -BTW, Pyeongyang was really flourishing at this time!  Schools, education, Buddhism, art, etc.

      -King Jeonjong wanted to focus more power into the city since it was further north than its southern co-capital, Gaeseong.

-949- King Jeonjong dies, replaced by his brother, Wang So, who was crowned King Gwangjong.

   -Appointed a Chinese dude as his advisor, and then tried to set up a Chinese-style civil service exam as a pre-requisite for working in the government, as opposed to the goofy birthright crap like the bone-rank system used by Silla.

      -The new class of government workers was called the "yangban" ("men of the sacred bone"), and was divided into two sections- military and civilian.

         -In times of war, however, the civilian section actually controlled the military section, for some reason.

         -Over time, the the civilian yangban began to evolve into its own "educated elite" class.

   -Consolidated military power by conscripting warriors from the nobility's own private armies in the name of national security.

      -He actually got about 300,000 troops by doing this!

   -He also freed a bunch of slaves that allegedly were from free households before the foundation of Goryeo, but they (or their parents) had been enslaved during the wars.

      -This further undermined the power of the nobility.

   -King Gwangjong established relations with the Song dynasty in 972.

-975- King Gwangjong dies, replaced by his son, King Gyeongjong.

-King Gyeongjong set up the "Jeonsigwa" ("Land Allotment System").

   -Confiscated a bunch of private estates owned by government officials and bureaucrats, which was usually a sign of corruption.  These lands were confiscated once the owners died.  This allowed for Goryeo to use these lands as rewards for government offices, but they weren't hereditary, so a family couldn't grow too powerful with them.

   -Passed a flat tax too, only military land and Buddhist monasteries were exempt.

   -During this time, more and more Chinese scholars were brought in to work for the government.

-981- King Gyeongjong suddenly dies of an illness, replaced by his King Seongjong, another grandson of King Taejo.

   -At this point there were a ton of Chinese courtiers.  They couldn't believe that King Seongjong and the Korean kings weren't ruling as complete autocrats, and also were surprised that the provincial lords had any power at all.

      -They convinced King Seongjong to set up the Office of Remonstrance, which was meant to centralize power with the king's government and his inner circle of advisors, and thus weaken the power of the provincial lords.

      -The officials were then sent to each province to oversee its administration.

-Meanwhile. the Song dynasty began to pressure Goryeo into helping them attack the Liao dynasty, and the Liao also tried to get Goryeo to be friendly with them.

   -However, King Seongjeong felt it was too risky to attack the Liao, but he felt that they were still too savage and barbaric to be trusted with peace terms.

Goryeo - Part 1

-936- The peninsula is once again reunited.
   -Towards the former lands of Silla, Goryeo was merciful and respectful.
      -Aristocrats are able to keep their massive estates and wealth.
      -From the Silla royalty and aristocracy, King Taejo had 6 queens, 23 official concubines, and probably hundreds of other sex partners.  Because he had so much offspring from so many different mixes in bloodline, the bone rank lost its meaning and died out.
   -However, King Taejo was still pissed off at Hubaekje, and kept them isolated from power.
      -Goryeo's power was concentrated in Pyeongyang and Gaeseong in the north.
-Meanwhile, King Taejo looked to the north for invasion.
   -He had always flirted with the idea of invading Balhae, but now that the kingdom had fallen and the land was overrun with Khitan hordes.
      -The Khitans also set up shop in Manchuria/Northern China, occupying these lands as the Tang Dynasty crumbled.
         -They actually began to transform themselves into a legit empire, with lots of Chinese culture, tribal/clan chieftain bureaucracies, and even the Khitan leader crowning himself emperor of his own Khitan empire, now known as the Liao dynasty.
            -The Khitans had invaded Balhae and had used the oppressed Malgal population to rise up against their Gogoryeo overlords, and then, under Khitan rule, the Gogoryeo aristocracy who didn't flee the kingdom ended up being enslaved!
      -It's also possible that the Khitans could have invaded Goryeo, but they were more interested in invading more Chinese lands instead.
-Anyway, why were there two capitals of Gaeseong?
   -This is because Gaeseong is the very center of the Korean peninsula (hence why it's right on the DMZ).   Also, a Seon (Zen) monk prophesied that a powerful ruler would come out of Gaeseong due to its significant location in accordance with Korean geomancy.  This ruler would have the "Mandate of Heaven".
      -This was a big deal because in East Asian history, this was only reserved for Chinese emperors.  So King Taejo was comparing himself to a Chinese emperor, complete with Pyeongyang being his own imperial city.
         -Soon, Seoul and Gyeongju were made imperial capitals as well.
-King Taejo died in 943.
   -He warned future rulers of blindly copying Chinese culture and styles of governing, but obviously this was inevitable.
   -Also, before he died, the Khitans tried to make peace in order to not have to worry about Goryeo attacking them, but King Taejo had refused.  He was pissed at them for conquering Balhae, and future rulers would continue to have frosty relations with them.
   -He also died still hating Hubaekje, and decreed that the former kingdom would not have any imperial buildings built there or any government officials come from there, believing that they were a "perverse and rebellious people".
   -He also had supported Seon geomancy.  He considered present-day Jeolla Province and South Chungcheong Province to be bad places of moral decay, and this belief continued even into the Joseon Dynasty.  That's why there aren't any government official tombs built southwest of Seoul!
   -He was also very particular about respecting geomancy and keeping Korean Buddhism in line with its rules in order to have the empire last.  He took Buddhist celebrations and religious holidays out from under the control of the aristocracy (which was rife with corruption) and restored them under royal control.
   -Finally, he encouraged future rulers to be well-educated and to study history, so it could serve as a warning or guide for future rulers.

Unified Silla - Part 3

-So, Silla was in trouble...the king had been reduced to a figurehead, while the aristocracy was the real power behind the government.
   -King Aejang, son of King Seosang, ruled from 800, but was killed by his uncle (King Heondeok, see below) in 809.
      -765-809 saw unchecked growth in aristocratic power due to the absence of a strong king.
-809- King Heondeok, brother of King Soseong and uncle of ing Aejang, had taken the crown for himself!  He faced a rebellion, led by Kim Heonchang and other descendents of King Muyeol, but they were quelled.
   -However, the real power lay in the office of the prime minister, almost exclusively available to the Kim clan.
   -Many aristocrats began to move out of Gyeongju to build their own private estates and live as kings in their own right.  They built castles and fortresses, without the king's permission, and raised their own armies and ruled their domains with absolute authority.  They also kept the taxes for themselves.
      -The king couldn't do anything because he didn't have an army that could enforce his will, since the army was made up of aristocrats.  Also, the peasantry was now controlled by the aristocratic lords, since it was the aristocracy who determined the peasants' food allocation and laws.
   -Many Korean merchants began to move to the Yalu River area, or in or around Tang China to trade.  However, the Yellow Sea was a scary place- choppy waters, storms, rocky coasts, and pirates!
      -Many Korean low-status nobles also went to Tang China to study in its courts or serve in their armies, so then when they returned to Korea they would have much more respect and higher status.
-King Heondeok died in 826, replaced by his younger brother, King Heungdeok.
-King Heungdeok ruled by 826-836, and died without an heir, so he was replaced by King Wonseong's grandson, King Huigang.
   -However, in 838 there was a coup, and King Huigang was toppled by Kim Myeong, the prime minister, who then crowned himself King Minae.
-839- King Minae was dethroned in another coup, and was replaced by King Sinmu, a descendant of King Wonseong.
   -However, King Sinmu ruled like 3 seconds before dying.
-839- King Munseong is enthroned.
   -However, there were more uprisings from aristocrats and prime ministers and shit, until he died in 857.  At this point, the king truly was just a figurehead and Silla had become a kingdom divided in fiefdoms.  The king was only around in order to keep the common folk united, and to the "protector" of the 3 sacred relics of Korean Buddhism that they believed kept Silla safe from disaster and bestowed luck upon the kingdom.
      -Most notable up the uprisings is that of the ruthless naval warrior Jang Bo-go, who rose to power as a leader of Silla's naval forces in the southwest against pirate raiders, and even tried to get into the bone rank with political maneuvering even though he came from peasant origins.
-The rest of the 9th century was very turbulent.  Famine and revolt plagued the kingdom.
-King Heonan, son of King Munseong, ruled from 857-871, same shit.
-King Gyeongmun, relative of King Munseong, ruled from 861-875, same shit.
-King Jeongang ruled from 886-887, same shit, died without an heir.
-Because Jing Jeongang had died without an heir, he was replaced by Queen Jinseong, Silla's third and final queen.
   -She was the daughter of King Gyeongmun, and she was really debauched and corrupt, although this is possibly sexist, biased, and maybe even a lie.  Prude Buddhist monks hated her and encouraged a revolution.
      -Order collapsed under her reign, as famine became intolerably brutal, the queen raised taxes, people abandoned their farms and jobs, and bands of brigands and mobs began to roam the land.
-In order to try and salvage this shitty situation, the southwest of the peninsula, still maintaining a Baekje identity, decided to break away and form its own kingdom under Gyeon Hwon, a disgruntled Silla general, and set up a new capital at Sangju.
   -Pledged to avenge the death of Baekje, this new kingdom moved quickly to carve out a kingdom that included Gwangju and Jeonju.  This new kingdom was called Hubaekje ("Later Baekje"), and the capital was at Wasanju (modern-day Jeonju).
      -The Tang Dynasty actually recognized the sovereignty of Gyeon Hwon as the new king of Hubaekje.
-Meanwhile, in the north, shit was getting bad, too.
   -Around Gaesong in the north, there were 4 rebellious warlords vying for power.
      -Eventualy, a new kingdom was established by a guy named Goong-yae at Gaesong, this kingdom was likewise called Hugogoryeo ("Later Gogoryeo", also later called Taebong), and soon after this they even controlled Pyeongyang, Gyeonggi-do, Gangwon-do, and other places.
         -This period is known as the Later Three Kingdoms Period.
-Hugogoryeo and Hubaekje found themselves with lots of hungry, talented workers who couldn't find jobs in Silla due to the bone rank and were in search of opportunity.
-One problem worth noting, however, is that Hugogoryeo, when they took over the regions south of the Han River, they had some problems because the people there were culturally Sillan, and didn't like being conquered by what they saw as northern barbarians.
   -Also, Goong-yae began to get cult-like, preaching a new kind of Buddhism and referring to himself as Buddha and that he had descended from heaven to spread peace and blah blah even though he was a brutal tyrant like most of every cult leader, ever.
      -While Hubaekje was busy attacking Silla, Hugogoryeo attacked Hubaekje!  This allowed for Hugogoryeo to gain territory.
         -Finally, Goong-yae began to grow even more paranoid and insane, and was finally slain in a military coup.   Thus, Wang Geon was installed as King Taejo of Taebang (name was now changed from Hogogoryeo) in 918, thus marking the beginning of the mighty kingdom of Goryeo!
-Meanwhile, King Gyeongmyeong still held onto Silla for dear life.
-King Gyeongmyeong died in 924, replaced by King Gyeongae.
   -War had broken out between Goryeo and Hubaekje.
-Suddenly, Balhae to the north fell to barbarian hordes- The Khitans, a Mongolian/Central Asian horselord army that devastated the kingdom.
   -Many refugees fled to Goryeo, and many of these refugees were actually ethnic Gogoryeons anyway, and lots of them flocked to Pyeongyang.
-King Taejo set up 2 capitals of Goryeo - Gaesong in the south, Pyeongyang in the north.
-Meanwhile, Hubaekje led its forces to attack Silla, and actually broke through Gyeongju's forces and entered the city in 927.
   -They found Silla's king, King Gyeongae, having a party haha.
      -He ended up killing himself before Goryeo forces could capture him.  Meanwhile, the Goryeo army looted the city.  They then installed a puppet king, King Gyeongsu, as the last king of Silla.
-Goryeo tried to attack Hubaekje forces as they returned to Jeonju, but they were unable to overtake them.
-928- The beginning of many battles between Hubaekje and Goryeo.
-934- Hubaekje sacks Gaesong, but can't keep the city and is driven back.
   -Finally, King Gyeon Hwon experiences a collapse of the stability of the royal family as his son tries to take the throne, and King Gyeon Hwon flees to Goryeo, where he was warmly received in 935.  He was dying from poor health, but begged Goryeo to go south and fuck up his son, Gyeon Singeom.
-935- Goryeo goes south and conquers Hubaekje.
   -Then king Gyeongsu stepped down and abdicated his throne to King Taejo of Goryeo.
-Goryeo had now taken the whole peninsula!  Victory!
   -King Taejo's offspring married into the royal Silla fmaily, thus joining the two houses and giving legitimacy to the Goryeo throne.

Unified Silla - Part 2

-Silla's golden age!  700-800.
-King Hyoso, King Sinmun's eldest son, was crowned king in 692.
   -Bone Rank aristocrats continued to try and undermine the crown during this time.  They even tried to revolt/stage a coup in the 700.
   -Silla also continued warm relations with the Tang Dynasty, and the Tang continued to export tons of culture to Silla as Silla paid tribute.
   -Also, Silla had replaced Baekje as the middle man between China (Tang dynasty) and Japan (Yamato) for trade.
   -King Hyoso died in 702, replaced by his younger brother, King Seongdeok.
-Meanwhile, the Tang was fighting many wars- against the Tibetans, Malgal hordes, Muslim armies from the Middle East, and even Balhae.
   -The Tang dynasty asked Silla for help to attack Balhae, and Silla agreed to help.  However, Silla was held back by a brutal blizzard.
      -Also, Silla built a huge wall to the north to protect themselves from Balhae.
-In Japan, the capital moved to Nara (Heijō-kyō), marking the end of the Asuka/Yamato period and the beginning of the Nara period.
   -Balhae sent a bunch of delegations to the new Japanese government, convincing them to recognize Balhae as the legit successor state to Gogoryeo, a former Yamato ally.  
      -Balhae also convinced the Japanese to raid the Silla coastline as pirates!
         -In response to this, Silla built a massive fortress to protect Gyeongju from the Japanese raiders (Mobeol Fortress).
-King Seongdeok tried to empower the common folk and limit the power of the aristocracy, which definitely improved his standing among the peasantry.
   -King Seongdeok died in 736/737, replaced by his second son, King Hyoseong.
      -Silla was in great shape, and Gyeongju was a wealthy, cosmopolitan city.
         -It had Buddhist monks from Japan and China, Arab traders, Roman and Byzantine goods, slaves, beautiful gardens, palaces, villas, etc.
            -The flourishing of the city was even noted in Japanese and Chinese sources!
         -One historian has even argued that in the 8th century, Gyeongju was the 3rd largest city in the world behind Chang'an (Tang dynasty) and Constantinople (Byzantine empire), with about 250,000 people!
-Around 737, a huge Tang dynasty coalition showed up with a huge force and tons of gifts tto try and convince Silla to ally with them in an attack against Balhae.   However, King Hyoseong died in 742, so this caused problems in getting Silla to get its shit together enough to attack.
-742- King Hyoseong died, so he's replaced by his younger brother, King Gyeongdeok.
   -Commissioned the Bronze Bell of King Seondeok, a huge ass bell that is said to be able to be heard from miles away.
   -He also built Bulguksa Temple in 751 at the site of some other old-ass temple.
-765- King Gyeongdeok died, replaced by his son, King Hyegong.
   -King Hyegong was only a young boy, but he still had a fairly secure grasp on power due to his queen mother who acted as regent.
   -However, she wasn't quite strong enough, and faced 4 coup attempts by aristocrats in 768, 770, 775, and 780.  This was possibly due to King Hyegong possibly being gay or at least overly-effeminate, and the aristocrats used this as an excuse to kill him (!).
780- So, King Hyegong was killed, replaced by King Seondeok, a descendant of King Naemul.
-785- King Seondeok dies, replaced by King Wonseong, another descendant of King Naemul.
   -King Wonseong was really into the Tang dynasty, especially their culture and power to back him as the legit king.  So, he sent a tribute to them, and his diplomats returned with news that the Chinese had developed a new civil service exam system.
-788- King Wonseong implemented his own Korean version of the Tang's civil service exam, called "The National Civil Service Examination" (과거).
   -However, King Wonseong's version was also based on Silla's bone rank system, whereas the Tang's was built on the Confucian system of merit only.
-798- King Wonseong dies in 798, replaced by his grandson, King Soseong.
   -King Soseong married a woman from the Sook clan, which meant that the power was beginning to shift from Kim to Sook.
-800, King Soseong dies, replaced by his son, King Aejang.