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Royal Edict of King Seonjo Written in Hangeul

선조국문유서 ( 宣祖國文諭書 )

Heritage Search Detail
Classification Treasure
Name of Cultural Properties Royal Edict of King Seonjo Written in Hangeul
Quantity 1
Designated Date 1988.06.16
Age The 26th year of the reign of King Seonjo of Joseon (1593)
Address Busan Museum 63, UN pyeonghwa-ro, Nam-gu, Busan

This royal edict to the public was written in 1593 (26th year of the reign of King Seonjo of the Joseon Dynasty) when the king evacuated to Uiju during the Japanese Invasion of 1592. This document was written in Hangeul, or Korean letters, to make an announcement to his people who were captured by the Japanese invaders and feed information to them. King Seonjo wrote a message in Hangeul so that the public could easily understand it. This royal edict was written a month before King Seonjo returned to Hanyang. At that time, General Gwon Tak (1544-1593), who protected Gimhaeseong Fortress, slipped into the enemy’s base with this message and killed a great number of Japanese enemies to save nearly a hundred Joseon people. It was once stolen while in the custody of Gwon’s descendant but was found again. The royal edict said that people inevitably captured by the Japanese would not be indicted, and the one who captured the enemy, collected their information, or rescued the captured Korean people would be conferred the title of government official regardless of their class. This document is regarded as an important material for the research on Korean literature since it is written in Hangeul, providing information on life in the late 16th century.