Naksan () is a mountain in

Jongno District upright=1, Bosingak bell pavilion Jongno District () is one of the 25 districts of Seoul, South Korea. It is the historic center of Seoul that contains Gyeongbokgung, the main royal palace of the Joseon dynasty, and the Blue House, the for ...

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. It is tall. It and Namsan are well known for their panoramic views of downtown Seoul. The mountain and its surrounding area is Naksan Park, which is a

public park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

maintained by the city government since 2002. The park was used as the filming location for some dramas.

History

Naksan derives its name from Naktasan () because the geography resembles a camel's back. As this place used to be a royal ranch that supplied milk for the palace, it was also known as Taraksan (). Starting from the 1960s, public apartments and dense housing began encircling the area. In order to preserve the mountain's natural environment, the government of Seoul began a restoration plan and finally opened Naksan Park in July 2002.

Places

Naksan Exhibition Hall

Located at the entrance of Naksan Park, this exhibition hall shows the origin and history of Naksan, as well as providing information to visitors, all free of charge.

Hongdeok Field

After the

Qing invasion of Joseon The Qing invasion of Joseon () occurred in the winter of 1636 when the newly established Qing dynasty invaded the Joseon, Joseon dynasty, establishing the former's status as the hegemon in the Tributary system of China, Imperial Chinese Tributa ...

, King Injo surrendered and sent two of his sons as hostage. Hongdeok (), a court lady, accompanied them to

Shenyang Shenyang,; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly known as Fengtian formerly known by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a sub-provincial city in China and the list of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Liaonin ...

. There, she made

kimchi Kimchi (; ) is a traditional Korean side dish (''banchan'') consisting of salted and fermented vegetables, most often napa cabbage or Korean radish. A wide selection of seasonings are used, including '' gochugaru'' (Korean chili powder), ...

for Crown Prince Bongrim, and he would fall in love with the taste. He eventually ascended the throne as King Hyojong. On one occasion he tasted a plate of kimchi, and he immediately recognized the taste. Immediately, he summoned Hongdeok and offered her a generous reward, but she declined. The king later gave orders to grant her a few '' gyeong'' of land at the foot of Naksan as compensation. She turned the land into a cabbage farm, and continued to make kimchi; until today, it is being tended.

Fortress Wall of Seoul

A section of the 18.2 km-long fortress wall passes through Naksan. Starting from Hyehwamun and ending at

Heunginjimun Heunginjimun (), Dongdaemun (), is one of The Eight Gates of Seoul in the Seoul City Wall, a prominent landmark in central Seoul, South Korea. The Korean name "Dongdaemun" means "Great East Gate," and it was so named because it was the major ...

, the whole length is 2.1 km. A path was built alongside the wall, offering visitors a leisurely stroll while admiring the cityscape. The path would connect with other paths and lead to various viewpoints across the park, including Naksanjeong Pavilion (), built in traditional Korean architecture.

Biudang

This humble thatched-roof house is the former residence of Yu Gwan (유관; 柳寬, 1346–1433), a prime minister in the early

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 ...

period, who was known for his honesty and integrity. Despite holding a high and influential position, Yu lived a destitute life; whenever it rained, he would sit in a room where rainwater is leaking, and hold an umbrella. There, he would think of the people who cannot afford an umbrella during this time. Later, the house was passed down to Yi Sugwang, a famous scholar, who upon hearing the story of Yu, named it Biudang (), meaning "a house to take shelter from the rain". This was where he would write the encyclopedia ''Jibongyuseol'', contributing greatly to the

Silhak ''Silhak'' () was a Korean Confucian social reform movement in the late Joseon Dynasty. ''Sil'' means "actual" or "practical", and ''hak'' means "studies" or "learning". It developed in response to the increasingly metaphysical nature of Neo-C ...

movement.

Jajudong Spring

After King Sejo usurped the throne, King Danjong was exiled to Yeongwol in Gangwon Province while his wife,

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 ...

, was stripped of her title and booted from the palace. To make ends meet, she resorted to helping the palace maid in the dyeing business. This spring is where she would dye white cloths into purple, the color of royalty and nobility, thus it received the name Jajidongcheon (), which would evolve into Jajudong.

External links

Naksan Park Tourist Leaflet (in Korean and English)

Naksan Park - Seoul City Government (in Korean)

Naksan Park - VisitKorea.net (in English)

Gallery

References

Mountains of Seoul Downtown Seoul Jongno District Tourist attractions in Seoul Parks in Seoul {{Asia-mountain-stub