On Wando Island the one thing a visitor can’t help but notice especially if you read Korean, is the influence the Korean historical figure Jang Bogo has over the island. The island is littered with Jang Bogo markets, hotels, shops, and movie sets from the 2004 Korean drama Emperor of the Sea that depicted a highly fictionalized accounting of Jang Bogo’s life. The island also has its own Jang Bogo festival and is currently working on restoring a Jang Bogo era historical site.

With such a focus on this historical figure few people outside of Korea have ever heard of, who exactly is Jang Bogo? Really no one really knows the full story about Jang Bogo but according to the few historical records that exist Jang Bogo was born into a peasant family on Wando Island sometime in the late 8th century during the Shilla time period of Korean history and died sometime around 841AD.

Jang Bogo

During his teenage years he went to China with his best friend Jeong-yeon where they joined the Tang Army. During their enlistment in the Tang military the two Korean friends excelled and were ultimately promoted to junior generals. The legend goes that Jang quit the Tang military and returned to Korea with his best friend Jeong-yeon when they became upset with the amount of Shilla slaves being sold in Tang China by pirates that raided Korean coastal cities. The pirates also had impact on trade between the nations of northeast Asia because they would hide on Korean coastal islands and raid merchant ships that traveled between China and Japan via Shilla Korea.

Jang by this time had formed his own private army and asked the Korean monarch King Heungdok for permission to set up a military garrison on his old home island of Wando to combat the pirates. Jang chose a small off shore islet from Wando as his military headquarters which he named Cheonghaejin:

Cheonghaejin military garrison near Wando Island

Jang proceeded to heavily fortify the islet that would prove extremely difficult for any pirates to attack due to its rocky shores, high walls, and guard towers:

Map of Cheonghaejin.

Supplies could be brought to Cheonghaejin by land only when the tide was out revealing a land bridge to the islet:

From this base Jang began operations against the pirates and his early successes encouraged him to ask the Korean King for additional soldiers to augment his private force. King Heungduk augmented Jang with 10,000 conscripts which he used to effectively suppress the pirates that plagued the southern Korean islands. With the pirates suppressed Jang was able to open a safe sea trading lane between China and Japan that ran through Shilla Korea. Jang was able to start a merchant marine trading business that made huge profits for himself and the Korean King.

Jang Bogo’s exploits however did not go over well with the Korean noble Yangban class who were jealous of a peasant winning such acclaim and favor from the Korean King. King Heungduk would die in 836 without an heir which led to a power struggle among the royal family over who would take power. Ultimately the nobleman Kim Jeryung won the power struggle and was crowned King Huigang in 836. King Huigang then proceeded to go after those that opposed his rise to power and one of his opponents Kim Ujing fled to Cheonghaejin to seek the protection of Jang Bogo. Jang would protect Ujing and would ultimately aid him in overthrowing the Korean monarchy and installing him as King of Shilla.

Ujing would be crowned as King Sinmu in 839. However, King Sinmu would die after only four months in power due to either illness or poisoning. Sinmu’s young son took power afterwards and was crowned as King Munseong. Jang trying to secure his own power attempted to have his daughter married to the King. Jang’s attempt to marry into the royal family was the final insult to the Yangban nobles who sent an assassin to kill Jang. The assassin named Yeomjang traveled to Cheonghaejin to meet Jang disguised as a Shilla emissary. Yeomjang hid a knife under his clothes and while holding a private meeting with Jang he took out his knife and killed him. With the death of Jang the Cheonghaejin garrison lost it importance and eventually was abandoned in 851.

Today with the legend of Jang Bogo given new life due to the Korean drama Emperor of the Sea, the Wando government is working hard to restore the old Cheonghaejin garrison:

Restoration of the Cheonghaejin military garrison continues today.

Jang Bogo is credited in Korean history with being the King of the Seas that was responsible for opening trade between all nations of northeast China. I’m sure he played some part in making this happen but having personally looked at the Cheonghaejin garrison I find it highly unlikely the islet housed 10,000 soldiers or was able to harbor a large fleet of ships. There is also no way large amounts of goods could be stored on the islets necessary for the large trading business Jang supposedly based from Cheonghaejin as well. I would have to assume that most of the forces had to be located on Wando Island which should leave more archaeological evidence that has yet to be found if it exists at all.

No matter what the real history of Jang Bogo may be, it is an interesting part of Korean history that surely has some truth to it that you can’t help but learn about while visiting beautiful Wando Island.

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