These days, the number of overseas fans who love Korean dramas has increased. Korean dramas are loved by various subjects and stories, and among them, one of them is a historical drama set in a country called Joseon.


The country of Joseon was founded in 1392 by Yi Seong-gye after the overthrow of Goryeo. Twenty-seven kings ruled for 519 years until 1910 when the country was taken away by the Japanese. Using Neo-Confucianism as the fundamental idea of governing the country, Confucian culture blossomed and left numerous cultural heritages.




In the late Goryeo Dynasty, Lee Seong-gye, who developed his power as a member of the Wihwado group, drove out the King of Gongyang along with the radical new masters and became King and established Joseon. He took Neo-Confucianism as the fundamental idea of the country, and moved the capital to Hanyang to build Gyeongbokgung Palace and pave the way for the new dynasty.

King Taejong, the third king, pushed for a strong policy to strengthen royal authority by reforming the government office system and dividing the country into eight degrees, while implementing the Hoppae Act. King Sejong, the fourth king, then made Hunminjeongeum to inform the people of the legitimacy of the founding of the Joseon Dynasty and to teach Confucianism widely. In addition, politics, economy, and culture were evenly developed to achieve their heyday.




Joseon was a strict status society. The status was divided into four classes, Yangban, Jungin, Sangmin, and Cheonmin, and Yangban formed the ruling class. Most of the farmers paid taxes to the country. Officials were elected throughout the past. However, it was impossible for ordinary people who worked all day long to prepare for the past, so it was actually a small number of ruling classes who obtained government posts. Women and slaves were not even eligible to take the exam at all.

Joseon suffered from the Japanese Invasion of Korea in 1592, and the Manchu Invasion of Korea in the late 16th and 17th centuries, but during King Yeongjo, the 21st king, people's lives were stabilized and culture developed. King Jeongjo, who later became king, used talent evenly and greatly developed practical studies.

However, by the 19th century, peasant uprisings broke out in various places against the corruption of sedentary politics and officials, and outside, they were pressured and interfered with by Japanese and Western powers. King Gojong, the 26th king, changed the name of the country to the Korean Empire in 1897 and implemented reforms, but eventually, Japan forced the annexation of Korea and Japan in 1910 and deprived the country of its sovereignty.

The drama "Kingdom," which was popular on Netflix, is also set in the Joseon Dynasty, and the drama "Daejanggeum," which was popular around the world a long time ago, is also set in the Joseon Dynasty.





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