One name or statue that new comers to Korea will undoubtedly encounter is of Korea’s most famous historical figures, Admiral Yi-Sun-shin. Most Koreans will just tell you that he was a famous admiral that defeated the Japanese navy many centuries ago with his “turtle boats” thus saving the country from Japanese domination. This achievement has given Admiral Yi a mythical status in today’s Korean society that is comparable to the mythical status given to George Washington in the United States. Like George Washington everyone knows the legendary achievements of Admiral Yi, but very few know the man himself.

I hope through this series of posts on Admiral Yi, I will be able to shed some light on the achievements of Admiral Yi, his rise, fall, and rise again, which is much more interesting and heroic than the casual observer would think. Plus the history of Yi Sun-shin also displays interesting insights into even today’s Korean society.

Yi Sun-shin much like his future Japanese rival Toyotomi Hideyoshi, was born into a humble family on April 28, 1545 to a family of minor scholars in Seoul. His family would move to Ansan, Gyeongi Province south of Seoul. In Ansan he would marry at the age of 19 and began to study the military arts a year later. Yi applied for the military academy in 1572 but failed because he broke his leg during a horsemanship examination. Yi tried again in 1577 and passed the exam this time and enters the military for the first time at the age of 32.

Yi began his military career with an assignment in the remote North Korean frontier with China. In 1579 he moved to a position in Chungcheong province and then received his first naval position in Cholla province in 1580. In all of his positions Yi was considered a talented leader, administrator, and had a strong sense of honor. However, during the Korean Chosun era, honor was not something that got you advancement in the corrupt, class driven political system. Jealous officers eventually forced Yi out of his naval post in Cholla-do and he was once again sent to the remote mountainous frontier with China to guard against barbarian invasions.

In 1583, the North Korean Hamgyong province that Yi and his men guarded was invaded by barbarians from Manchuria led by the bandit Mu Pai-nai. Mu was a notorious “Oranckay” (barbarian) who had led many successful raids from Manchuria into Chosun Korea. Yi was able to get Mu to come out into an open battlefield to fight Yi and his men. Yi’s forces crushed the barbarian invaders and Yi received his first level of fame, but he never attempted to capitalize on it. In fact he ended up resigning his post and returned home to Ansan after his father died. However, the fame he earned defeating Mu caused many of his contemporaries to be jealous of his success.

Yi was a student of the Chinese strategist Sun Tzu who advocated cunning and discipline in war. Pictures of Yi always feature him with a stern and disciplined face because of this.

Yi remained out of the military for three years observing the mandatory three year mourning period of the time. He returned to the military in 1586 to a post once again in North Korea’s Hamgyong province where he once again earned prestige for defeating barbarian invaders. However, the jealous commander of Hamgyong province Yi Il arrested Yi Sun-shin after his victories over the barbarians. Yi Il accuses Yi Sun-shin of desertion during battle and tortures him to try and get him to admit to to false crimes. Yi Sun-shin even though under torture never admits to the offenses. The King later releases Yi from prison and dismisses him from his officer posting; Yi is instead made a common soldier and forced to work his way back up the ranks. In 1588 Yi Sun-shin returns home to Ansan and is out of the military.

However, a year later a childhood friend of Yi Sun-shin, Yu Song-nyong became prime minister of Korea and he brought Yi back into the military and Yi worked for him in Seoul. In 1591 Yu had Yi appointed fleet admiral of Eastern Cholla province in southeastern Korea. Yi is based in the city of Yoesu and it is this time frame that he begins the construction of the first “turtle boats” that would win him so much fame in Korea. Yi originally had the “turtle boats” constructed in order to combat frequent pirate attacks from Japan. However, the “turtle boats” a year later in 1592 would have more than just pirates to worry about as the Hideyoshi invasion of the peninsula was about to begin.

Next Posting: Prelude to War