Chungnyeol (3 April 1236 – 30 July 1308), personal name Wang Kŏ, was the 25th king of Korea's Goryeo dynasty from 1274 to 1308. He was the son of Wonjong, his predecessor on the throne. Chungnyeol was king during the Mongol Invasions of Japan, reluctantly aiding in the offensives.
Biography
King Chungnyeol was the first Goryeo ruler to be remembered by the title wang (王), meaning "king". Previous rulers had received temple names with the suffix jo (祖) or jong (宗), meaning "revered ancestor" and a title typically reserved for emperors. After Goryeo became a vassal of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty, the Yuan emperor Kublai Khan perceived this practice as lowering his own power and ordered that the Goryeo rulers could not receive such names henceforth.
King Chungnyeol, who became the Crown Prince Sim(諶) in 1260, proposed to marry a daughter of Kublai Khan in 1271, which Kublai Khan agreed. King Chungnyeol visited the Yuan Dynasty again in 1278, to have the Mongols withdraw its darughachis and troops stationed in Goryeo on the pretext of Kublai's promise 20 years ago. Troops or officials from the Yuan Dynasty were no longer stationed in Goryeo in the aftermath. These rights and requests enabled were partially attributed to the fact that Korean kings were the Khans' son-in-law with Mongolian princesses as their queens. The Korean kings during times of Yuan influence also had the authority to attend the Kuriltai of the Mongol Empire as titled rulers of Korea and Shenyang (). Even revered darugachis from the Yuan Dynasty could not act carelessly in front of Goryeo kings having to bow in front of them and receive a drink to pay their respects.
King Chungnyeol during his reign made attempts to make reforms by reestablishing monitoring institutions such as the Censorate of Household and Land Inspection () that focused on confiscating illegal properties under corrupt nobles whilst at the same time promoting the development of Confucian studies inside the nation. He also made various efforts to attempt to maintain the independence of Goryeo from Mongol domination. Confucian temples, known as in Korean as munmyo (), that paid homage to Confucius were built in Korea under his reign. Confucian educational centers such as the Sunkyungam, the predecessor of Sungkyunkwan, were also founded with scholarship foundations proposed by the renowned Confucian scholar An Hyang. Horse farms set up to raise war horses for the expedition amounted in Jeju Island during these times. It was King Chungnyeol that selected the famed Kim Pang-gyŏng (), a descendant of both Goryeo and Silla royalty, that stood out in the campaign as one of the few competent generals of the Mongol-led expedition, minimizing Korean losses and inflicted significant damage on the Japanese defenders.
Kadaan's Invasion of Korea (1290–1291)
In 1290, Kadaan (), a former Mongolian general and rebel of the Yuan Dynasty stationed in Manchuria, invaded Goryeo after his defeat against the Yuan forces led by Naimandai (). Despite dire situations regarding Kadaan's rebels advancing further into Goryeo territory and the local troops' inability to fend the invaders due to Yuan's forceful disarmament, Chungryeol was said to spoil himself and his followers with extravagant royal banquets; maintaining an indifferent stance towards the invasion. King Chungnyeol, who neglected the situation and wasted national treasury consistently with an irresponsible demeanor, was even criticized by the Mongolian general Naimandai who came to assist the Korean forces fighting Kadaan's rebels. Korean defenses proved effective later on upon achieving decisive victories at Chi'ak Fortress (치악성; 雉岳城, Modern-day Wonju) and Yeongi (연기; 燕岐, Modern-day Sejong City), later strengthened by the assistance of the ten-thousand Yuan troops led by Naimandai. Nonetheless, many Korean locals were killed by the Kadaan-led rebels who were scavenging for food and supplies as a result.
Deprived of Power
After royal authority was strengthened by utilizing the powers of close aides, Chungnyeong continued to spoil himself by enjoying feasts and falconry. Then, with the returning of Crown Prince (King Chungseon) and Princess Gyeguk from Mongolia in 1297, he expressed his intention to cede the throne to his son Chang (King Chungseon) in 1298 and eventually stepped down.