Myeonje baegap (면제배갑, 綿製背甲) was a soft bulletproof vest invented during the

Joseon 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 ...

in 1867. It was invented following the 1866 military French expedition to Korea and used in battle during the United States expedition to Korea in 1871. It was made of between 13 and 30 folds of cotton fabric and covered the upper torso.

Background

During the French Campaign against Korea, the Joseon military, at the time using

matchlock A matchlock or firelock is a historical type of firearm wherein the gunpowder is ignited by a burning piece of flammable cord or twine that is in contact with the gunpowder through a mechanism that the musketeer activates by pulling a lever or Tri ...

s, experienced the superiority of Western rifles. As a result, regent

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 ...

ordered the development of bulletproof armor. The vests were distributed to soldiers after its creation, and were used in battles fought on

Ganghwa Island Ganghwa Island (), also Ganghwado, is an island in Ganghwa County, Incheon, South Korea. It is in the Yellow Sea and in an estuary of the Han River. The island is separated from Gimpo (on the South Korean mainland) by a narrow channel spanned ...

against

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

and Marine forces during the 1871 United States expedition to Korea. The US army captured one of the vests and took it to the US. The vest was stored in the Smithsonian until 2007. The vest has since been sent back to Korea and is currently on display to the public in the National Palace Museum of Korea.

Notes

External links

수자기 특별전
* ttp://www.gogung.go.kr/community/notice_view.jsp?sGbi_gbg_id=ID005&iGbi_gbg_seq=1&iGbi_seq=454 특별전『수자기(帥字旗) - 136년 만의 귀환』, 고궁박물관br>면 30겹 옷으로 대포에 맞선 강화도 조선군 <동아일보>
{{DEFAULTSORT:Myeonje Baegab East Asian armour Military equipment of Korea Law enforcement equipment Law enforcement uniforms