Yi Un (; 20 October 1897 – 1 May 1970) was the 28th Head of the Korean Imperial House, an

Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...

general and the last Imperial Crown Prince of the

Korean Empire The Korean Empire, officially the Empire of Korea or Imperial Korea, was a Korean monarchical state proclaimed in October 1897 by King Gojong of the Joseon dynasty. The empire lasted until the Japanese annexation of Korea in August 1910. Dur ...

. Before becoming the

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

Sunjong of Korea Sunjong (; 25 March 1874 – 24 April 1926), personal name Yi Cheok (), also known as the Yunghui Emperor (), was the last Korean monarch. He ruled from 1907 to 1910 as the second and last emperor of the Korean Empire. Sunjong was elevated to ...

, who became the emperor in 1907, Yi Un was known as the title Prince Imperial Yeong (). In 1910, the

was annexed by Japan and Emperor Sunjong was forced to abdicate, and Yi Un married Princess Masako of Nashimoto, the eldest daughter of

Prince Nashimoto Morimasa was a member of the Japanese Imperial Family and a ''field marshal'' in the Imperial Japanese Army. An uncle-in-law of Hirohito (Emperor Shōwa), an uncle of his consort, Empress Kōjun, and the father-in-law of Crown Prince Euimin of Korea ...

, on 28 April 1920 at

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

. On 10 June 1926, upon the death of Emperor Sunjong, Yi Un received the late emperor's title, and became the King Yi of Changdeokgung (), which referred to the palace

Changdeokgung Changdeokgung () is a former royal palace in Seoul, South Korea. A UNESCO World Heritage Site and a Historic Sites (South Korea), Historic Site of South Korea, it is among the best preserved of all Korean palaces. It and its neighboring palace Cha ...

. He achieved the rank of Lieutenant General in the Imperial Japanese Army, commanded Japanese forces in China and served as a member of the

Supreme War Council The Supreme War Council was a central command based in Versailles that coordinated the military strategy of the principal Allies of World War I: Britain, France, Italy, the United States, and Japan. It was founded in 1917 after the Russian Revolu ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

he was refused entry to Korea, and his Japanese titles were removed by article 14 of the new

Constitution of Japan The Constitution of Japan is the supreme law of Japan. Written primarily by American civilian officials during the occupation of Japan after World War II, it was adopted on 3 November 1946 and came into effect on 3 May 1947, succeeding the Meij ...

in 1947. After his death in 1970, Yi Un is alternatively known as Crown Prince Uimin (), a

posthumous name A posthumous name is an honorary Personal name, name given mainly to revered dead people in East Asian cultural sphere, East Asian culture. It is predominantly used in Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia and Thailand. ...

given by the

Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association The Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association () is a family association based in South Korea founded by the Jeonju Yi clan, Jeonju Yi (Lee) clan, the household of Joseon and the Korean Empire, which previously ruled Korea. The association originated f ...

Early life

upleft, Yi and Itō Hirobumi The prince was born on 20 October 1897 at Deoksugung in

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

as the seventh son of Gojong, the Gwangmu Emperor. His mother was the Honorable Princess Consort Eom Seon-yeong, a palace attendant, who was posthumously awarded the title of Princess Sunheon. He was also the younger half-brother of Emperor Sunjong and Prince Imperial Ui. He was titled ''Prince Imperial Yeong'' in 1900, and became the crown prince in 1907, despite being younger than Prince Ui. Prince Ui's support base at court was not strong because his own mother, Lady Jang, had already died. In December 1907, he was taken to Japan on the initiative of

Itō Hirobumi Kazoku, Prince , born , was a Japanese statesman who served as the first prime minister of Japan from 1885 to 1888, and later from 1892 to 1896, in 1898, and from 1900 to 1901. He was a leading member of the ''genrō'', a group of senior state ...

to be enrolled at

Gakushūin The , or , historically known as the Peers' School, is a Japanese educational institution in Tokyo, originally established as Gakushūjo to educate the children of Japan's nobility. The original school expanded from its original mandate of educ ...

Peers' School. The move was meant to ensure that the Korean royal family would not take any further anti-Japanese actions following The Hague Secret Emissary Affair.Herbert P. Bix, Hirohito and the making of modern Japan (New York 2016), page 35. Japanese

Emperor Meiji , posthumously honored as , was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the List of emperors of Japan, traditional order of succession, reigning from 1867 until his death in 1912. His reign is associated with the Meiji Restoration of 1868, which ...

, who largely ignored his own grandchildren, devoted a lot of attention to Yi Un, acting as his guardian. Itō would bring Yi Un whenever he was visiting the princes

Hirohito , Posthumous name, posthumously honored as , was the 124th emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, from 25 December 1926 until Death and state funeral of Hirohito, his death in 1989. He remains Japan's longest-reigni ...

Chichibu is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 61,159 in 26,380 households and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Geography Chichibu is in the westernmost part of Saitama. Unlik ...

and

Takamatsu file:Takamatsu City Hall.jpg, 270px, Takamatsu City Hall file:Takamatsu city center area Aerial photograph.2007.jpg, 270px, Aerial view of Takamatsu city center file:Takamatsu200910cut.JPG, 270px, View from Yashima to Takashima port is a capital ...

. Meiji apparently stopped seeing Yi Un so frequently after Ito's assassination. Yi Un was allowed to visit Korea again only after the death of his mother in 1911.

Military career

In September 1911, the prince was enrolled in the second year of the Army Central Youth School, a military preparation school located in Tokyo. He was poor in gymnastics due to his small stature, but excelled in music and martial arts. He was then enrolled in the 29th class of the

Imperial Japanese Army Academy The was the principal officer's training school for the Imperial Japanese Army. The programme consisted of a junior course for graduates of local army cadet schools and for those who had completed four years of middle school, and a senior course f ...

, from which he graduated on 25 May 1917 with an excellent record. Yi and his wife Yi Bangja (Princess Masako), 1923 He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the infantry on 25 December, and steadily rose up the ranks, receiving promotions to lieutenant (April 1920), and captain (July 1923). He graduated from the 35th class of the Army Staff College in November 1923 and commanded a battalion of the Guards 2nd Infantry Regiment. He was assigned to the

Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office The , also called the Army General Staff, was one of the two principal agencies charged with overseeing the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). Role The was created in April 1872, along with the Navy Ministry, to replace the Ministry of Military Af ...

in December 1924, and to the staff of the

Chosen Army The was an army of the Imperial Japanese Army that formed a garrison force in Korea under Japanese rule. The Korean Army consisted of roughly 350,000 troops in 1914. History Japanese forces occupied large portions of the Empire of Korea dur ...

in July 1926. In 1926, he visited Korea in order to visit

with his wife. In May 1927, he was sent on an extensive European tour, visiting France, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Poland, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Italy, Monaco, and returning to Japan in April 1928. In August, he was promoted to major and in August 1929 became commander of the IJA 1st Infantry Regiment. In December 1930, he was assigned to the

Inspectorate General of Military Training The was a section of the Imperial Japanese Army charged with military education and training in the army, except military aviation training. It was headed by an inspector general who was responsible for overseeing technical and tactical training, ...

and was promoted to lieutenant colonel in August 1932. He became colonel in August 1935 and commanded the

Utsunomiya is the capital and largest city of Tochigi Prefecture in the northern Kantō region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 513,584, and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Utsunomiya is famous for its ''gyoza'' ...

-based IJA 59th Infantry Regiment. From April 1937, he served as an instructor at the Army Academy. In July 1938, the prince was promoted to major general and from December was assigned to the staff of the

North China Area Army The was an area army of the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War. History The Japanese North China Area Army was formed on August 21, 1937 under the control of the Imperial General Headquarters. It was transferred to th ...

, which was engaged in combat operations in northern China following the start of the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...

. Throughout the first half of 1939, he made extensive inspection tours of front-line units throughout northern Japan, and reviewed

Kwantung Army The Kwantung Army (Japanese language, Japanese: 関東軍, ''Kantō-gun'') was a Armies of the Imperial Japanese Army, general army of the Imperial Japanese Army from 1919 to 1945. The Kwantung Army was formed in 1906 as a security force for th ...

garrison units in

Manchukuo Manchukuo, officially known as the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of Great Manchuria thereafter, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China that existed from 1932 until its dissolution in 1945. It was ostens ...

. In August, he was appointed commander of the Guards 2nd Brigade and in May 1940 was commander of the reserve Fourth Depot Division. He was promoted to lieutenant general in December. In July 1941, he was appointed commander of the IJA 51st Division also based in Utsunomiya. Under his command, the division relocated to Manchukuo to participate in the Special exercise of the Kwantung Army (actually a mobilization for the possible large-scale conflict with the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

). The preparations for the war with the

were officially cancelled in August 1941. In September, the division was transferred to

Guangdong ) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...

under command of IJA 23rd Army. He returned to a post on the staff of the

in November. From August 1942, the prince was transferred to the

Imperial Japanese Army Air Force The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) or Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF; ) was the Military aviation, aviation force of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). Its primary mission was to provide tactical close air support for ground ...

and became commander of the 1st Air Army from July 1943. In April 1945, he became a member of the

Later life

Following the

surrender of Japan The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was Hirohito surrender broadcast, announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally Japanese Instrument of Surrender, signed on 2 September 1945, End of World War II in Asia, ending ...

, Yi Un lost his royal status under the American

Occupation of Japan Japan was occupied and administered by the Allies of World War II from the surrender of the Empire of Japan on September 2, 1945, at the war's end until the Treaty of San Francisco took effect on April 28, 1952. The occupation, led by the ...

in 1947. He was also declared stateless, as Korea had become independent of the

Empire of Japan The Empire of Japan, also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was the Japanese nation state that existed from the Meiji Restoration on January 3, 1868, until the Constitution of Japan took effect on May 3, 1947. From Japan–Kor ...

, but Korean President

Syngman Rhee Syngman Rhee (; 26 March 1875 – 19 July 1965), also known by his art name Unam (), was a South Korean politician who served as the first president of South Korea from 1948 to 1960. Rhee was also the first and last president of the Provisiona ...

had refused his request to be allowed to return to Korea with his family. In May 1947, following the end of the American occupation, he acquired Japanese citizenship and travelled to the United States the same month. In March 1959, while still in the United States, he suffered from a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

. He returned to Japan in May. In 1960, President Rhee again denied him permission to return to Korea, but instead offered the prince the position of Korean Ambassador to the Court of St. James's. He refused on the grounds of illness, but made a trip to New York from June to August 1960, and to Hawaii from March to May 1961. His health deteriorating rapidly, he was hospitalized in Tokyo from August 1961. In November 1963, President

Park Chung Hee Park Chung Hee (; ; November14, 1917October26, 1979) was a South Korean politician and army officer who served as the third president of South Korea from 1962 after he seized power in the May 16 coup of 1961 until Assassination of Park Chung ...

granted permission for Prince Yi Eun and Crown Princess Bangja to return to Korea. By that time, Prince Yi Eun was unconscious from

cerebral thrombosis A thrombus ( thrombi) is a solid or semisolid aggregate from constituents of the blood (platelets, fibrin, red blood cells, white blood cells) within the circulatory system during life. A blood clot is the final product of the blood coagulatio ...

. He received treatment at St. Mary's Hospital in Seoul. In his final years, Prince Yi Eun lived at Nakseon Hall, Changdeok Palace, the former residence of the Korean Imperial Family in Seoul, with Bangja and his younger sister Princess Deokhye. Seven years after returning to his country, he died on 1 May 1970 at Nakseon Hall, Changdeok Palace, Seoul. He was buried at Hongreung in Namyangju, near Seoul.

Children

* Yi Jin (; born 18 August 1921 – 11 May 1922), the elder son of Prince Eun and his wife, Princess Bangja. Yi Jin died abruptly during his infancy while on a visit to Korea with his parents. This fueled conspiracy theories about the circumstances of his death. His funeral was held on 17 May 1922 and he is buried in Korea. *

Yi Gu Yi Ku (; December 29, 1931 July 16, 2005) was a Korean prince who was head of the House of Yi from 1970 until 2005. He was a grandson of Gojong of Korea, Emperor Gojong of the Joseon, Joseon dynasty. Through Prince Kuni Asahiko, Kuni Asahiko ...

(; born 29 December 1931 – 16 July 2005), the second son of Prince Eun and his wife, Princess Bangja. Prince Gu became the 29th Head of the Korean Imperial Household upon the death of his father. He married an American citizen Julia Mullock on 25 October 1959 at St George's Church in New York, they had no issue but adopted a daughter, Eugenia Unsuk Lee (Eun-sook) (b. 1959).

Honours

* : Grand Cordon of the Order of the Golden Ruler - 17 April 1900 *: Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese honors system, Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge feat ...

, with Paulownia Flowers – 17 October 1907 * : Grand Cross of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

– 10 November 1927 * : Commander Grand Cross of the

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry founded on 29 May 1772 by Gustav III, King Gustav III. It is awarded to Swedish citizens for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. His ...

, with Collar – 13 November 1927 * : Grand Cross of the

Order of the White Lion The Order of the White Lion () is the highest order of the Czech Republic. It continues a Czechoslovak order of the same name created in 1922 as an award for foreigners (Czechoslovakia having no civilian decoration for its citizens in the 192 ...

– 16 December 1927

Legacy

Yi Un is known posthumously as Yi Un, Crown Prince Euimin of Korea. Approved by the President

, Yi Un's

spirit tablet A spirit tablet, memorial tablet, or ancestral tablet is a placard that people used to designate the seat of a deity or past ancestor as well as to enclose it. The name of the deity or the past ancestor is usually inscribed onto the tablet. Wit ...

was put into Jongmyo shrine on 6 May 1973 according to the royal tradition. Yi Un's residence Kitashirakawa Palace in Tokyo was originally built in 1930. After

, it was converted to Akasaka Prince Hotel, which opened in 1955 (later Grand Prince Hotel Akasaka). After the hotel was demolished in 2013, the building became part of Tokyo Garden Terrace Kioicho, refurbished as a banquet facility, now known as Akasaka Prince Classic House.

In popular culture

* Portrayed by

Park Soo-young Park Soo-young is a South Korean actor. He is known for his roles in dramas such as '' My Beautiful Bride'' (2015), '' Listen to Love'' (2016), ''Hi Bye, Mama! ''Hi Bye, Mama!'' () is a 2020 Korean drama, South Korean television series starr ...

in the 2016 period drama film '' The Last Princess''.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yi, Un 1897 births 1970 deaths People from Seoul House of Yi Korean crown princes who never acceded South Korean Roman Catholics Japanese nobility Pretenders to the Korean throne Korean nobility Japanese generals Zainichi Korean politicians Imperial Korean princes Korean anti-communists Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun with Paulownia Flowers Recipients of the Order of the Golden Kite Grand Crosses of the Order of the Dannebrog Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Recipients of the Order of the Netherlands Lion Commanders Grand Cross of the Order of Vasa Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Grand Crosses of the Order of the White Lion Sons of emperors Recipients of the Order of the Plum Blossom Korean expatriates in Manchukuo Koreans in the Imperial Japanese Army