Descendant of General Kim Jun-ryong, Victor of the Byeongjahoran Gwanggyosan Battle, Donates Artifacts to Suwon City

The descendant of General Kim Jun-ryong (金俊龍, 1556?1642), who achieved a great victory by killing three enemy commanders in the Battle of Gwanggyosan during the Byeongjahoran War, has donated family heirlooms to Suwon City.

Kim Young-soo, the direct descendant of General Kim Jun-ryong, recently donated 13 items in 5 sets to Suwon City, including four iron-painted white porcelain (鐵畵白瓷) tombstones excavated from Kim Jun-ryong’s grave, the ‘Byeongjanyeongi (丙子年記)’ which records the course of the Byeongjahoran War, and the ‘Wonju Kim Clan Genealogy’ published during the Joseon Dynasty.

The inscriptions on the iron-painted white porcelain tombstones excavated during the relocation of Kim Jun-ryong’s grave were written by Kim Jun-ryong’s son, describing his father’s achievements. The Byeongjanyeongi appears to have been transcribed by a descendant who compiled related materials to honor Kim Jun-ryong’s merits.

A descendant of General Kim Jun-ryong, who won the Battle of Gwanggyosan during the Byeongjahoran, donated artifacts to Suwon City. Photo by Suwon City

General Kim Jun-ryong achieved victory in 1636 during the Byeongjahoran War by killing three Qing dynasty commanders in the Battle of Gwanggyosan. During the reign of King Jeongjo, his achievements were reappraised, and when conferring a posthumous title (諡號), Banam Chae Je-gong wrote the ‘Sijang (諡狀)’ documenting his merits. In 1792 (Jeongjo 16), he was awarded the posthumous title ‘Chungyang (忠襄)’.

Also, during the construction of Suwon Hwaseong Fortress, Banam Chae Je-gong, who was the chief minister overseeing the fortress construction, engraved ‘Chungyanggong Kim Jun-ryong Jeonseungji (忠襄公金俊龍戰勝地)’ on a large rock at Gwanggyosan to commemorate his achievements. This site was designated as a Gyeonggi Province Monument in 1977.

Mr. Kim Young-soo said, "During the Byeongjahoran War, Chungyanggong, the military commander of Jeolla Province, led the army to advance to Namhansanseong where the king was besieged, and in the Battle of Gwanggyosan, he killed enemy commanders and won the battle. I decided to donate these relics to Suwon City to widely publicize Chungyanggong’s achievements." He added, "I hope the value of these relics will be reexamined through academic research and that the research results will be shared with the citizens."

A representative of the Suwon Hwaseong Museum promised, "We will preserve, manage, and research the donated relics and utilize them as cultural heritage of Suwon City."