The History of Korea (Vol.1&2). Homer B. Hulbert
the city. This latter act was in accordance with the ancient custom of granting a monopolymonopoly of certain kinds of trade and using the merchants as a source of revenue when a sudden need for money arose. He divided the city into five wards and established seven military stations. He also established a secondary capital at Ch‘ŭl-wŭn, the present Ch‘un-ch‘ŭn, and called it Tong-ju. The pagodas and Buddhas in both the capitals were regilded and put in good order. The people looked with some suspicion upon these Buddhistic tendencies but he told them that the old customs must not be changed too rapidly, for the kingdom had need of the help of the spirits in order to become thoroughly established, and that when that was accomplished they could abandon the religion as soon as they pleased. Here was his grand mistake. He riveted upon the state a baneful influence which was destined to drag it into the mire and eventually bring it to ruin.
In 920 Sil-la first recognised Koryŭ as a kingdom and sent an envoy with presents to the court at Song-do.
THE SOUTH GATE OF NA-JU.
Wang-gön looked out for the interests of the people in the distant parts of the country as well as for those near the capital. In order to break the force of the attacks of the wild people beyond the Tu-man River he built a wall across the northern border of Ham-gyŭng Province. It is said to have been 900 li long. But there was a still stronger enemy on the south. Kyŭn-whŭn had by this time come to see that he had no hope of overcoming the young kingdom of Koryŭ and so he bent his energies to the securing of his position against the danger of interference, especially in his plans against Sil-la. For this reason he sent a messenger to Song-do with presents and tried to make friends with his old time enemy. His next move was to attack Sil-la. Wang-gön took up the cudgels in support of the king of Sil-la and by so doing secured the lasting enmity of the bandit who from this time determined upon war without quarter against his northern enemy. Wang-gön said to the Sil-la envoys, “Sil-la has three treasures; the nine storey pagoda, the Buddha six times the height of a man, and the jade belt. As long as these three remain intact Sil-la will stand. The first two are in Sil-la. Where is the jade belt?” The envoy answered that he did not know, whereupon Wang-gön blamed him sharply and sent him home. When Sil-la finally fell, the jade belt passed into the hands of Wang-gön.
In 921 the Mal-gal tribe, Heuk-su, made a treaty with Wang-gön. This bears evidence to the rapidly growing power of the young king. The Heuk-su Mal-gal were the most feared of all the semi-savage tribes of the north. The following year the Kŭ-ran, usually called Kitan in Chinese histories, followed the example of the Heuk-su people by sending an envoy with presents. It was not till 923 that Wang-gön thought fit to send an envoy to China to offer his compliments.
When the last king of Sil-la, but one, ascended the throne in 924 important events were following thick and fast upon each other. Sil-la was now so weak that the records say the king had nothing left but his genealogy. Kyŭn-whŭn sent a force to begin operations against Koryŭ, but without success, and in the following year Wang-gön retaliated with such good success that Kyŭn-whŭn was fain to send his son to Song-do as a hostage. He thus bound himself to keep the peace. Having done this he sent to China desiring to secure backing against Koryŭ. The Emperor so far complied as to confer upon him the title of King of Păk-je, thus following the time-honored policy of pitting one power against another.
The year 926 saw the first envoy come from the kingdom of T‘am-na on the island of Quelpart. He arrived at the capital of Koryŭ, where he was well received. The fame of Wang-gön was spreading far and wide among the northern tribes. The Kŭ-ran, or Kitan tribe, having overcome the Păl-ha tribe, made overtures to Wang-gön relative to annexation. These advances were cordially responded to but we are not informed that the union was actually effected.
Kyŭn-whŭn, who was at this time on the island Chŭl-yong-do, sent a present of horses to Wang-gön but a few days later he found a book of prophecy which said that in the year when he should send a gift of horses to Song-do his power would come to an end. He therefore sent a swift messenger begging Wang-gön to return the gift. The King laughed long and loud when he saw this message and good-naturedly sent back the horses.
The last King of Sil-la, Kyŭng-sun, ascended the throne in 927. It happened on this wise; Kyŭn-whŭn was keeping up a double fight, one against Wang-gön and the other, an offensive one, against Sil-la. He was badly defeated in an engagement with Koryŭ forces but had good success in his other venture. He burned and pillaged right up to the gates of Sil-la’s capital, and, while a Sil-la envoy was posting to Song-do to ask for aid, entered the city with a picked band of men. Succor in the shape of 10,000 Koryŭ troops was on its way but came too late. At the hour when Kyŭn-whŭn entered the city the king, his son, the queen and many of the courtiers were feasting at Po-sŭk summer-house. When the unwelcome news arrived, there was no time for preparation. The king and queen fled south without attendants. The palace women were seized and the palace occupied. The king was soon run to earth and was compelled to commit suicide. Kyŭn-whŭn ravished the queen and delivered over the palace women to the soldiery. The palace was looted and the entire band, sated with excess and debauchery, and loaded down with the treasures of the palace, started back on the homeward road. But not until Kyŭn-whŭn had appointed a relative of the murdered king to succeed him.
When Wang-gön heard of these atrocities, he hastened forward his troops and overtook the army of Kyŭn-whŭn in O-dong forest where a sharp engagement ensued. For some reason, whether it be because the soldiers of Kyŭn-whŭn were more familiar with the locality or because the Koryŭ soldiers were exhausted by their long forced march, the assault was unsuccessful and the Koryŭ forces withdrew. This was doubly unfortunate for it not only did not punish the ruffians for their atrocities at the Sil-la capital but it inspired them with confidence in their own power. Shortly after this Kyŭn-whŭn sent a letter to Wang-gön saying “I became Sil-la’s enemy because she sought aid from you. You have no cause for warring against me. It is like a dog chasing a rabbit; both are tired out to no purpose. It is like a king-fisher trying to catch a clam; when he thrusts his bill into the shell the clam closes it and he finds himself caught”. To this epistle Wang-gön replied “Your actions at the Sil-la capital are so outrageous that I cannot endure the thought of any compromise. Your present course will lead you to speedy ruin”.
Elated over his successful repulse of Wang-gön’s army, Kyŭn-whŭn took the field the following year, with a strong force, and was prepared to assume the offensive. He assaulted and took two Koryŭ fortresses and even, at one time, surrounded Wang-gön in Ch’ŭng-ju and caused him no little anxiety. In the battle which followed Kyŭn-whŭn lost three hundred men and was pushed back, thus freeing the king from an embarrassing position; but before the campaign was over Kyŭn-whŭn scored another victory by capturing the district of Ok-ch’ŭn. In his next campaign he was still successful, and Eui Fortress fell into his hands and he killed the general in charge. Here his successes ended, for Wang-gön awoke to the necessity of using strong measures against him. The following year Koryŭ forces inflicted a crushing defeat upon the southern leader, at An-dong. The fight had lasted all day and neither side had gained any advantage, but that night a picked band of Koryŭ men ascended Hog’s Head Mountain and made a rush downdown upon the unsuspecting camp of the enemy, causing a panic and a stampede in which eight thousand men were killed. Kyŭn-whŭn himself sought safety in flight. This seemed conclusive and all the countryside sent in their allegiance to the victors. A hundred and ten districts in eastern Korea came over to Wang-gön in a body. Dagelet Island, or Ul-leung as the Koreans call it, sent presents to Koryŭ.
The next year after these stirring events, namely 931, Wang-gön made a visit to Sil-la taking with him an escort of only fifty soldiers. The king of Sil-la came out to meet him and they feasted there at the meeting-place together. The king of Sil-la lamented the smallness and weakness of his kingdom and deplored the ravages of Kyŭn-whŭnKyŭn-whŭn. The evils, he said, were beyond estimation; and he broke down and wept. The courtiers did the same and even Wang-gön could scarce restrain his tears. After this they had a friendly talk and the king of Koryŭ remained as a guest for some twenty days. As he left the capital of Sil-la the people vied with each other in doing him honor. Poor old Sil-la had gone out of fashion and the minds