Mark Peterson_Characteristics of Korean History: Peaceful

 

• Introduction
  
   This writing is a summary of Professor Mark Peterson's YouTube lecture. He presents a new perspective as foreigners, not Koreans. He provides a broad and relative historical perspective by comparing it with other countries.

 

#1. The Longest Dynasties
 
 Korea has a longer dynasty than other countries. In the ancient kingdoms, the dynasties of Baekje, Goguryeo, and Silla were over 600 years old, and the length of Gaya was about 520 years. The Goryeo dynasty was about 500 years old, and the Joseon dynasty was over 500 years old. Gojoseon, Korea's first nation, lasted for about 1,000 years, although it contained myths. It is a special fact of Korean history. It is a result of the combination of  Dangun's Hongik-Ingan thoughts (providing benefits to all people), Buddhism, and Confucianism.

 

#2. Peaceful Transition from Dynasty to Dynasty
 
 The Transition of the dynasty in Korea was peaceful. Especially, the case of Gaya -> Silla -> Goryeo -> Joseon absorbed the ruling aristocracy of the previous dynasty. So the ruling aristocracy continued for 1500~2000 years. Other countries usually sacrificed decades of time and countless lives to replace the dynasty. Compared to this, Korea has a peaceful and rare history.

 

#3. Few Invasions

 Korea was very peaceful for about 1,000 years from 668 (the fall of Goguryeo) to 1894 (the Donghak Peasant Movement). The only major wars during this period were the Mongol invasion and the Imjin war(Japanese invasions). Some Koreans claim that there were more invasions. Yet, invasion is not about enemies stealing pigs and leaving, but destroying all the land like Mongols and Imjin war.

 

 

#4. Never Invaded another Country

 Historically, they have never invaded other neighboring countries. However, some people insist it is wrong because Goguryeo attacked China. But this can be a non-aggression example if you apply the criteria for aggression from #3. There are other examples, helping the Mongols in attacking Japan and helping the United States in attacking Vietnam. But, they were both just participating in the war, not to invade and conquer them. About this, some people think that they are so weak that they have not invaded other countries. Rather, this is evidence of a peaceful and stable history.

 

#5. Border with China unchanged for 1000 years

 The thousand-year border may be an exaggeration, but basically, it is a fact. In the Silla dynasty, it was Pyongyang, in the Goryeo dynasty, the lower reaches of the Yalu River, and the Joseon dynasty, the entire Yalu and Tuman rivers. Europe's current borders, on the other hand, were established recently due to wars. (You can see the change of borders in Europe on this site. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/2400-years-of-european-history). In conclusion, Korea has one of the oldest borders with less war, which supports the fact that Korea was at peace.

 

#6. Graves of Kings not Robbed.

 Korean royal tombs are among the least stolen in the world. An archaeologist said that the well-preserved tombs for 2000 years are evidence of a peaceful Korean history. In other words, thieves could not rob the royal tombs because there was no major confusion in Korean history. Archaeologists working in Egypt or the Middle East are surprised to find a not-robbed tomb, while it is common in Korea. Thus, the preservation of royal tombs is a unique feature of Korean history and evidence of peace.

 

#7. Seonbi Culture (not Samurai) 

 Seonbi were an important upper class in Korea. If samurai are based on soldiers, then seonbi are based on scholars. Korea provided social property and land to those who passed the state examination. Also, many chiefs of the righteous army and generals were one of them. In conclusion, the culture of seonbi, a scholar, was important. It is the driving force behind today's high literacy rates, high school graduation rates, and many publishing rights in Korea.

 

#8. Civilian Control of the Court

 In Chinese history, eunuchs often replaced the emperor's power and their military made the Qin and Su dynasties confused. The Korean old government included eunuchs and military but they recognized this risk. So, they controlled the power of eunuchs and military, and placed civilians in important positions of the country(civilians are usually made up of seonbi). They restrained the power of the king, which protected the peaceful government from tyranny.

 

#9. Slavery, “the longest unbroken chain in world history”

 Comparing Korea's slave system with the world's one, Korea had continued it longer than others. But to discuss this, we need to know about slaves. Most of them are prisoners of war. Then, there was a no clear reason why slaves should be free because of peaceful throne replacement and less war in Korea. Thus long slavery is closely related to Korea's peaceful history.

 

#10. Unique Significance of Few Surnames

the sum of three(44.6) vs others(55.4)

 It is very rare in the world for Kim, Lee, and Park to account for more than half of Korean society. There are two guesses about why Koreans have fewer surnames. First, it is because of its peaceful history. Kim, Lee, and Park were the upper class of Korean history. Usually, the upper class is removed when a dynasty replaced. But, they could avoid being removed thanks to a peaceful replacement of the dynasty. On the other hand, there is an opinion that the reason for the few surnames is the incorporation of slaves. This is partly true, but now only 20% to 40% of Kim is estimated to be slaves. This is evidence that the dynasty did not exterminate the previous upper class when it replaced.

 

#11. No Religious Wars

 Religion used to create war and violence around the world. There was no war between the two religions in Korea despite the many differences between Buddhism and Confucianism. The pressures on Catholicism and the Donghak Peasant Movement in the 19th century have some ambiguity about religious warfare. Compared to other countries there is no religious war in the big picture and this is surprising. This is also evidence of Korea's peaceful history.

 

#12. Strong Recovery from Wars

 Korea is very resilient to war, and there are three examples. First, 1231 the Mongol invasion. Mongol invasions destroyed  Many countries, but the king of Goryeo was able to maintain his position. Second, the 1952 Imjin war(Japanese invasion). The Imjin war is one of the biggest wars in the world. In the Imjin war, Joseon(Korea), Japan, and Ming (China) participated in the war. As a result, Japan and Ming governments were replaced but only Joseon maintained. Third, the 1950 Korea war. After this, we can see that Korea recovered well. As evidence, there is a technology company, K-wave(including K-pop), advanced covid-19 prevention, and so on. This is why Korea can have a stable and peaceful history.

The 1950s Seoul vs The 2010s Seoul