Ryongwang Pavilion is a scenic overlook located in the

central district Central District may refer to: Places * Central District (Botswana) * Central district, Plovdiv, Bulgaria * Central District, Xiamen, China, now Siming District, Fujian * Central, Hong Kong, also called Central District * List of Central District ...

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 ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

. Located on the bank of the

Taedong River The Taedong River () is a large river in North Korea. The river rises in the Rangrim Mountains of the country's north where it then flows southwest into Korea Bay at Namp'o.Suh, Dae-Sook (1987) "North Korea in 1986: Strengthening the Soviet ...

, the pavilion was first constructed during the

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 ...

dynasty as "Sansu Pavilion", and was part of the defenses of the walled city of Pyongyang (along with the nearby Taedong Gate and

Pyongyang Bell The Pyongyang Bell () is one of the National Treasures of North Korea. The current bell was cast between June and September 1726 during the Ri dynasty to replace an earlier one that was destroyed by fire in 1714. The bell was rung to announce i ...

). It is labeled as National Treasure #16 in North Korea.

History

The pavilion first gained fame after Pyongyang was captured during

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...

invasions of Korea An invasion is a military offensive of combatants of one geopolitical entity, usually in large numbers, entering territory controlled by another similar entity, often involving acts of aggression. Generally, invasions have objectives of c ...

in the 16th century; under the orders of General Kim Eung-seo, a

kisaeng ''Kisaeng'' (), also called ''ginyeo'' (), were enslaved women from outcast or enslaved families who were trained to be courtesans, providing artistic entertainment and conversation to men of upper class. First emerging in Goryeo dynasty. were ...

named Gye Wolhyang seduced and drugged the Japanese commander of Pyongyang, Konishi Hidanokami, in the pavilion. She then led General Kim to the sleeping commander, where he beheaded him; though Kim escaped, Kye was later executed for her role in the plot. Kim Ung So later returned to liberate Pyongyang in 1593 with the help of the Ming Chinese Army, and built a shrine to Wolhyang next to the pavilion (the district in

Moranbong-guyok Moranbong-guyŏk (), or the Moranbong District, is one of the 18 guyŏk which constitute the capital city of Pyongyang, North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It con ...

where she lived was also named after her). The pavilion was converted into a scenic overlook under the Koryo dynasty, and became a popular subject with poets and artists alike; A famous story relates how the Koryo-dynasty poet Kim Hwang Won broke his brush and wept after being unable find words to express the beauty of the view. The pavilion was later reconstructed under 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 ...

dynasty and rechristened as "Ryongwang" pavilion because of its commanding views over the Taedong. In 1835, the small wooden shrine to Kye Wolhyang was replaced with a granite marker praising her patriotism. Though severely damaged during the U.S. bombings of Pyongyang during the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, the pavilion was restored shortly after. Restoration work carried out in the 2010s was done in cooperation with the

Prince Claus Fund The Prince Claus Fund was established in 1996 and named after Prince Claus of the Netherlands. It is annually subsidized by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since 1997, the Fund has annually presented the international Prince Claus Award ...

, Paektu Cultural Exchange operator

Michael Spavor Michael Peter Todd Spavor (born 1976) is a Canadian consultant who has worked extensively in North Korea. He is the director and founding member of Paektu Cultural Exchange, an NGO that facilitates sports, cultural, tourism and business exchang ...

, and the North's National Administration for the Protection of Cultural Heritage.

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20110609220624/http://www.kcna.co.jp/item/1998/9808/news08/05.htm * http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/dprk/2008/dprk-081010-kcna03.htm * https://web.archive.org/web/20090709125228/http://www.kcckp.net/en/periodic/todaykorea/index.php?contents+1862+2006-02+81+21 {{coord, 39, 01, 24, N, 125, 45, 26, E, region:KP_type:city_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title Buildings and structures in Pyongyang National Treasures of North Korea Hanok

History

See also

References

External links