Gyeonghuigung (, 'Palace of Serene Harmony') is a palace located 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 ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

. It was one of the "

Five Grand Palaces Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's sixth largest metropolitan ec ...

" built by the

Joseon Dynasty Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...

History

The land where Gyeonghuigung stood was originally the site of the house of

Prince Jeongwon Wonjong of Joseon or Prince Jeongwon (2 August 1580 – 2 February 1619) was a prince during the Joseon dynasty. He was a son by a concubine to the Joseon dynasty's 14th monarch, king Seonjo, and half brother of king Gwanghaegun and father of ...

, who was the father of King Injo. Construction began in the 1600s during the reign of King Gwanghaegun and was completed in 1617. The name of the palace was originally Gyeongdeokgung (경덕궁; 慶德宮), but it was later changed to avoid naming it similar to the

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. ...

of Prince Jeongwon. In the latter Joseon period, Gyeonghuigung served as the secondary palace (which was called ''igung'' (離宮) in those times) for the king, and as it was situated on the west side of Seoul, it was also called ''Seo-gwol'' (西闕, a palace of the west). The secondary palace was usually the palace where the King moves to in times of emergency. From

King Injo Injo (; 7 December 1595 – 17 June 1649), personal name Yi Jong (), was the 16th monarch of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. He was a grandson of King Seonjo and the eldest son of Prince Jeongwon. He ascended to the throne after leading a ''coup ...

to King Cheoljong, about ten kings of Joseon dynasty stayed here at Gyeonghuigung. For a time, it was of a considerable size that contained 100 buildings. For the king's royal audience, there were the Sungjeongjeon and Jajeongjeon buildings, and for sleeping, Yungbokjeon (융복전; 隆福殿) and Hoesangjeon (회상전; 會祥殿) buildings. The palace also used to have an arched bridge that connected it with

Deoksugung Deoksugung (), also called Deoksu Palace or Deoksugung Palace, is a former royal palace in Seoul, South Korea. It was the first main palace of the 1897–1910 Korean Empire and is now a major tourist attraction. It has a mix of traditional Korea ...

called Honggyo (홍교; 虹橋). Most of Gyeonghuigung was lost in the 19th century, first due to a fire that broke out during the reigns of King Sunjo, although the palace was rebuilt later,

Heungseon Daewongun Heungseon Daewongun (; 24 January 1821 – 22 February 1898) was the title of Yi Ha-eung, the regent of Joseon during the minority of Emperor Gojong in the 1860s. Until his death, he was a key political figure of late Joseon Korea. He was also ca ...

dismantled large part of the palace for construction materials to rebuild

Gyeongbokgung Gyeongbokgung () is a former royal palace in Seoul, South Korea. Established in 1395, it was the first royal palace of the Joseon dynasty, and is now one of the most significant tourist attractions in the country. The palace was among the first ...

. The Japanese dismantled what remained of the palace during their occupation of the Korean peninsula, and the Keijo Middle School was built on the site for Japanese citizens, which later became

Seoul High School Seoul High School (Hangul: 서울고등학교) is a public high school located in Seocho-dong, the greater Gangnam area Seocho-gu, Seoul, South Korea. Seoul High School is a member school of Gangnam School District Eight (강남8학군). History ...

. Two major structures of the former palace — the Sungjeongjeon throne hall and the Heunghwamun gate — were disassembled and moved to other parts of Seoul. Reconstruction started after Seoul High School moved out from the site in 1980, also as part of the South Korean government's initiative to rebuild the "

" that were heavily destroyed by the Japanese.

Architecture

Heunghwamun

Heunghwamun () is the main entrance door to the palace. The entrance was built in 1616, but it was briefly moved to be an entrance for the after the destruction of the palace, and later reused as a main entrance for the

Hotel Shilla Hotel Shilla Co., Ltd. () is a South Korean operator of luxury hotels and duty-free shops. It is a member of The Leading Hotels of the World. The company is an affiliate of Samsung. History Hotel Shilla started operations in March 1979 at the di ...

of Jangchung-dong until it was finally restored to its original purpose. Heunghwamun is designated as Municipal Treasure 19.

Geuncheongyo

Geuncheongyo () is a bridge at the route passed through the Heunghwamun. It was built in 1619, but was buried into soil during Japanese rule until it was restored in 2001.

Sungjeongjeon

Sungjeongjeon () is the main hall of the palace. It was built in 1616 but was moved to

Dongguk University Dongguk University () is a private university in Jung District, Seoul, South Korea. A top-tier university acknowledged locally in Korea. It is one of the few Buddhist-affiliated universities in the world, and is a member of the International Asso ...

in 1926 and repurposed as a Buddhist temple during the Japanese colonial period, and moved back to original location and renovated between 1988 and 1994. Its considered an example of mid-Joseon period architecture. Sungjeongjeon is designated as Municipal Treasure 20.

Jajeongjeon

Jajeongjeon () is a hall restored following depictions in '.

Taenyeongjeon

Taenyeongjeon () is a hall restored following depictions in ''Seogwoldoan''.

Present use

It is Historic Site No. 271. In the palace grounds today are the

Seoul Museum of History The Seoul Museum of History () is a history museum located at Sinmunno 1-ga, Jongno District, Seoul, South Korea. Description The museum depicts the evolution of Seoul from the prehistoric period to the current day. It also hosts special exhi ...

and the

Seoul Museum of Art The Seoul Museum of Art () is an art museum operated by Seoul City Council and located in central of Seoul, South Korea. History It was opened in the Gyeonghuigung Palace area, a royal palace of Joseon dynasty, with six exhibition rooms and an ...

. It also housed Prada's

Transformer In electrical engineering, a transformer is a passive component that transfers electrical energy from one electrical circuit to another circuit, or multiple Electrical network, circuits. A varying current in any coil of the transformer produces ...

in 2009.

References

External links

Korea Heritage Service siteSeoul Museum of Art

The Seoul Guide : Gyeonghuigung Palace
{{Authority control Jongno District Downtown Seoul Palaces in Seoul Royal residences in South Korea Historic buildings and structures in Seoul History of Seoul Tourist attractions in Seoul Palaces of Joseon