The Annals of King T\'aejo. Founder of Korea\'s Choson Dynasty - Byonghyon Choi

148 t h e a n n a l s o f k i n g t’a e j o

*

Chŏnju^128 was elevated in status to Wansan Prefecture (pu)^129 and Yu Ku^130

appointed its magistrate.

The king ordered that the magistrates, Confucian instructors, and post-sta-

tion clerks remain at their posts and be officially reappointed.

8th Day (Chŏngsa)

The king sent His Majesty of the present time [King T’aejong] to the North-

east Region to perform the ancestral rites for the previous four generations

of his royal ancestors, report to them on his [T’aejo’s] ascension to the throne,

and dedicate honorific titles at each of their tombs. He named the tomb of

his father Chŏngnŭng, that of his mother Hwarŭng, that of his grandfather

Ŭirŭng, that of his grandmother Sullŭng, that of his great-grandfather

Chirŭng, that of his great-grandmother Sungnŭng, that of his great-great-

grandfather Tŏngnŭng, and that of his great-great-grandmother Annŭng.

The king ordered that the shrine of the founder king of Koryŏ be moved to

Majŏn County and that the seasonal ancestral rites for him be performed.^131

The king dispatched Ham Purim, deputy magistrate of Kaesŏng, to

Kyŏngsang, Chŏlla, and Yanggwang Provinces to evaluate the performance

of local magistrates and observe the conditions of the people.

The king ordered Min Che,^132 grand academician of the Office of Royal

Decrees and State Records, to perform sacrificial rites at the National Shrine

of Confucius (Munmyo).

128. Chŏnju is the family seat of King T’aejo.


129. It is the second-largest unit in the local government.


130. Yu Ku (1335–1398): an official of late Koryŏ and early Chosŏn. Serving as second
     royal secretary, director of the Office of Royal Decrees, and governor of Yanggwang Province,
     he supported T’aejo and made contributions towards enthroning him, and finally rose to the
     position of assistant grand councilor of the Chancellery.


131. T’aejo ordered Wang U, the brother of King Kongyang, to build the ancestral shrine for
     the kings of the Koryŏ Wang clan, granting the lands of Majŏn County for that purpose. The
     construction of the shrine was finished in 1399, the first year of King Chŏngjong.


132. Min Che (1339–1408): an official of late Koryŏ and early Chosŏn. He was the father-
     in-law of King T’aejong. He also served as minister of rites.