King Gogugwon (?–371, r. 331–371) was the 16th king of

Goguryeo Goguryeo (37 BC – 668 AD) (; ; Old Korean: Guryeo) also later known as Goryeo (; ; Middle Korean: 고ᇢ롕〮, ''kwòwlyéy''), was a Korean kingdom which was located on the northern and central parts of the Korea, Korean Peninsula an ...

, the northernmost of the

Three Kingdoms of Korea The Three Kingdoms of Korea or Samhan (Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla) competed for hegemony over the Korea, Korean Peninsula during the ancient period of History of Korea, Korean history. During the Three Kingdoms period (), many states and statele ...

. He was the son of King Micheon and Lady Ju. Goguryeo faced devastation by the Murong

Xianbei The Xianbei (; ) were an ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Northeastern China. The Xianbei were likely not of a single ethnicity, but rather a multiling ...

people who attacked Goguryeo.

Hwando Hwando () is a mountain fortress of the ancient Korean kingdom of Goguryeo, built to protect Goguryeo's second capital, Gungnae. It is located in present-day Ji'an city of the province of Jilin, China. The fortress is located 2.5 km west of ...

was destroyed again by them in 341. Buyeo was also destroyed by the Xianbei in 346. The reign of Gogukwon suffered severely from continuous foreign invasions, not only those of Chinese forces including Xianbei but also of

Baekje Baekje or Paekche (; ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BCE to 660 CE. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. While the three kingdoms were in separate existence, Baekje had the h ...

, southwestern part of Korean peninsula. Particularly, the Xianbei state of

Former Yan Yan, known in historiography as the Former Yan (; 337–370), was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Murong clan of the Xianbei during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. From Liaoning, the Former Yan later conquered and ruled over Hebei, Shaanxi, ...

invaded the capital in 342, capturing Queen Ju, the mother of Gogukwon and his concubines and also digging up the corpse of his father, Micheon. Since the capital was thoroughly destroyed, Gogukwon firstly constructed Guknae seong as an alternative fortress in northern sphere and temporarily moved the capital to

Pyongyang Pyongyang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is sometimes labeled as the "Capital of the Revolution" (). Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Accordi ...

, present-day capital of North Korea. While he could get back the corpse of his father, it took about 13 years for his mother to return to Goguryeo. In 369, Gogukwon personally led expedition of more than 20,000 troops. Without success, Geunchogo's son Geungusu overtook, counterattacked and killed Gogugwon in battle, at Pyongyang Castle, the only ruler of Goguryeo to die on a battlefield. He was buried in Gogugwon.

Family

*Father: King Micheon () **Grandfather: Prince Dolgo () *Mother: ''Queen'', of the Ju clan () *Wife: unknown queen **Son: Prince Gubu () **Son: Prince Iryeon ()

Depiction in arts and media

* Portrayed by

Lee Jong-won Lee Jong-won (born September 25, 1969) is a South Korean actor. Filmography Television series * ''Love Is Blue'' (1994) * '' The Last Match'' (1994) * ''Partner'' (1994) * ''Our Sunny Days of Youth'' (1995) * ''The Scent of Apple Blossoms ...

in the 2010–2011

KBS1 KBS 1TV is a South Korean free-to-air television channel that launched on 31 December 1961 and is owned by Korean Broadcasting System. The channel offers more serious programming than its sister channel KBS2, and airs with no commercials. Hi ...

TV series ''

The King of Legend ''The King of Legend'' (; literally ''King Geunchogo'') is a 2010 South Korean historical drama based on King Geunchogo of Baekje. Besides historical information from Samguk Sagi and Samguk Yusa, it was also inspired by a novel written by Le ...

''. *Portrayed in 2017

KBS The Korean Broadcasting System (KBS; ) is the national broadcaster of South Korea. Founded in 1927, it is one of the leading South Korean television and radio broadcasters under the government of South Korea. The KBS operates seven radio net ...

TV series ''

Chronicles of Korea Chronicles may refer to: * Books of Chronicles in the Bible * Chronicle, chronological histories * ''The Chronicles of Narnia'', a novel series by C. S. Lewis * ''The Chronicles of Prydain'', a novel series by Lloyd Alexander. * ''Holinshed's Chro ...

.''

References

{{s-end Goguryeo monarchs 371 deaths 4th-century monarchs in Asia Year of birth unknown 4th-century Korean people

Family

Depiction in arts and media

See also

References