Hong Guk-yeong (, 1748 – 28 April 1781), was a noted Korean scholar and politician of

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 ...

who first strongly supported

King Jeongjo Jeongjo (; 28 October 1752 – 18 August 1800), personal name Yi San (), sometimes called Jeongjo the Great (), was the 22nd monarch of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. He was the second son of Crown Prince Sado and Lady Hyegyŏng, and succeeded ...

's accession and toiled to improve the king's power, but ended up being expelled because of his desire for power. He served the king in the closest proximity of all government officials and often enjoyed great power that was derived from the king's favor. Hong Guk-yeong and

Han Myeong-hoe Han may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Han", a fifth season episode of ''The West Wing'' * Han (musician), born Han Ji-sung, a South Korean singer-songwriter, rapper, and record producer, member of Stray Kids * Han Lue, a characte ...

(during

Sejo Sejo (; 7 November 1417 – 23 September 1468), personal name Yi Yu (), sometimes known as Grand Prince Suyang (), was the seventh monarch of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. He was the second son of Sejong the Great and the uncle of King Danj ...

's reign) are some examples of chief royal secretaries who were the most powerful officials of their time.

Biography

Hong Guk-yeong was born in 1748 in

Hanseong The region now corresponding to Seoul, South Korea has been inhabited since the Paleolithic Age. It has been the capital of a number of kingdoms since it was established. Prehistoric It is believed that humans were living in the area that is n ...

into the Pungsan Hong clan. He was the only son of Hong Nak-chun and his wife, Lady Yi of the Ubong Yi clan. Through his father, he was an 11th degree great-nephew of Lady Hyegyŏng (mother of

), as well as the 5th great-grandson of Hong Joo-won and

Princess Jeongmyeong Princess Jeongmyeong (; 27 June 1603 – 8 September 1685) was a Joseon Royal Princess as the tenth daughter of King Seonjo from Queen Inmok. During her older half-brother's reign, she suffered hardships, and her title was revoked, but later it ...

. He served as one of the most trusted advisors and close confidantes to Jeongjo when he was the Crown Prince Yi San. He was also the main tutor of the Crown Prince Yi San. After Yi San ascended the throne as Jeongjo, Hong was promoted to Chief Inspector, Chief of the Royal Guard, and Chief Royal Secretary due to his skill at politics and investigation. His younger sister Lady Hong also became one of Jeongjo's concubines and Hong Guk-yeong hoped to enhance his influence by being related to the King's future heir. However, his sister would die out of grief after a failed cover-up of a phantom pregnancy (due to potential scandal). Enraged over the fact that she died unforgiven by Queen Hyoui and her remark that he would have no influence over the next heir, he made a bargain with

Queen Jeongsun Queen Jeongsun (; 2 December 1745 – 11 February 1805), of the Gyeongju Kim clan, was a posthumous name bestowed to the wife and second queen consort of Yi Geum, King Yeongjo, the 21st Joseon monarch. She was queen consort of Joseon from 1759 ...

to allow him to be the adoptive parent of a member of the royal family. In the end, he was exiled for trying to poison Queen Hyoui out of anger over his sister's death and to prevent his bargain from being exposed, for Queen Hyoui discovered it and threatened to tell King Jeongjo. He aborted the attempt after discovering that the King was taking her place at the food ceremony and tearfully confessed. He later died on 28 April 1781 at peace due to health issues after being forgiven by the king.

In popular culture

*Portrayed by Lim Dong-jin in the 1978 TBC TV series ''Sang-no''. *Portrayed by Kim Sang-kyung in the 2001 MBC TV series ''Hong Guk-yeong''. * Portrayed by Han Sang-jin in the 2007 MBC TV series '' Yi San, Wind of the Palace''. * Portrayed by Choi Jae-hwan in the 2011 SBS TV series ''

Warrior Baek Dong-soo ''Warrior Baek Dong-soo'' () is a 2011 South Korean fusion historical/action television series starring Ji Chang-wook in the title role, with Yoo Seung-ho, Yoon So-yi, Shin Hyun-been, Choi Min-soo and Jun Kwang-ryul. It aired on SBS from Jul ...

.'' * Portrayed by Kang Hoon in the 2021 MBC TV series ''

The Red Sleeve ''The Red Sleeve'' () is a South Korean television series starring Lee Jun-ho (entertainer), Lee Jun-ho, Lee Se-young, and Kang Hoon. It is a fictionalised account of the lives of Jeongjo of Joseon, King Jeongjo and his royal consort Royal No ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hong, Guk-yeong Joseon scholar-officials 18th-century Korean people 1748 births 1781 deaths Joseon politicians