Introduction: Rereading Joseon History Through the Lives of the Queen

Part 1: Queens of the Hunchuk Era

Queen of the first King Taejo
Queen Sindeok of the Kang clan, the first queen of Joseon to carry out a revolution

Queen of the second king, Jeongjong
Queen Jeongan of the Kim clan, the queen on a bed of thorns

Queen of the third king, Taejong
Queen Won-gyeong of the Min clan made her husband king and became queen herself.

Queen of the 4th King Sejong
Queen Soheon of the Sim clan, the tearful queen who protected her family

Queen of the 5th King Munjong
Queen Hyeon-deok, Lady Kwon, if only she could protect her son even if she had to become a ghost.

Queen of the 6th King Danjong
Queen Jeongsun, Lady Song, became an unwanted queen and lived as a victim of her time.

Queen of the 7th King Sejo
Queen Jeonghui of the Yun clan, a heroine who became regent for two kings

Queen of the 8th King Yeongjong
Queen Jangsun of the Han clan (first queen) becomes a political tool
Queen Ansun Han (second queen) lived a safe life thanks to her insignificant presence.

Queen of the 9th King Seongjong
Queen Gonghye of the Han clan (first queen), an unfortunate queen who died young due to health problems
Deposed Queen Yun (second queen) dies in resentment after suffering a mob attack.
Queen Jeonghyeon of the Yun clan (the third queen), a lucky woman who became queen thanks to her family

Queen of the 10th King Yeonsangun
Deposed Queen Shin, the queen who lost everything because of her husband

Queen of the 11th King Jungjong
Queen Dangyeong, Lady Shin (first queen), spent her entire life looking only at one man.
Queen Janggyeong of the Yun clan (second queen) died alone due to her unfaithful husband.
Queen Munjeong of the Yun clan (the third queen), the embodiment of power who monopolized power as regent

Queen of the 12th Race
Queen Inseong Park lived as a palace ghost for 50 years.

Queen of the 13th King Myeongjong
Queen Insun Sim, oppressed by her fearful mother-in-law

Part 2: Queens of the Factional Era

Queen of the 14th King Seonjo
Queen Inui, Lady Park (first queen), quietly supporting the royal family behind the concubines.
Queen Inmok Kim (second queen) becomes the embodiment of revenge

Queen of the 15th King Gwanghaegun
Deposed Queen Ryu, I hope you will not become a daughter-in-law of the royal family in the future.

Queen of the 16th King Injo
Queen Inyeol Han (first queen) lived a life of fear and sorrow.
Queen Jangnyeol of the Jo clan (second queen) silently protected the royal family amidst the controversy over the rites.

Queen of the 17th King Hyojong
Queen Inseon Jang, a woman who lived as a hostage in an enemy country and returned to become queen

Queen of the 18th King Hyeonjong
Queen Myeongseong, Kim, who went through all kinds of troubles for her family and faction.

Queen of the 19th King Sukjong
Queen Inkyung of the Kim clan (first queen), a queen from the direct lineage of the Seoin Sandang faction
Queen Inhyeon of the Min clan (second queen), the only queen to be dethroned and then reinstated
Queen Inwon Kim (third queen) enjoyed a stable life thanks to her neutral conduct.

Queen of the 20th King Gyeongjong
Queen Danui Sim (first queen) died young after serving as crown princess for only 22 years.
Queen Seonui (second queen) falls ill from exhaustion from caring for the sick

Queen of the 21st King Yeongjo
Queen Jeongseong (first queen) raised children born to her husband's women.
Queen Jeongsun (second queen) became a bastion of the Byeokpa faction with her exceptional political acumen.

Queen consort of the 22nd King Jeongjo
Queen Hyowi Kim, a queen who spent her entire life looking only at her husband's back.

Part 3: Queens of the Era of the Royal Family

Queen consort of the 23rd King Sunjo
Queen Sunwon Kim and the Andong Kim clan's maternal relatives' dictatorship was the cornerstone of their rule.

Queen of the 24th King Heonjong
Queen Hyohyeon of the Kim clan (first queen), youngest queen chosen, youngest to die
Queen Hyojeong of the Hong clan (second queen), a woman who sacrificed 60 years for her family

Queen of the 25th King Cheoljong
Queen Cheorin, Kim, a tool for maintaining the family's power

Empress of the 26th Emperor Gojong
Empress Myeongseong of the Min clan, shouldering the fate of Joseon.

Empress of the 27th Emperor Sunjong
Empress Sunmyeonghyo of the Min clan (first empress) became a symbol of the politics of the Yeoheung Min clan's maternal relatives.
Empress Sunjeonghyo Yun (second empress), the last queen of Joseon who died as a commoner

Another protagonist of the 500 years of the Joseon Dynasty
From Queen Won-gyeong to Empress Myeongseong
Their story of carrying history through the storms of time

In Joseon history, it is difficult to find a person with as much political acumen as King Taejong Yi Bang-won.
But there are two women who had a profound influence on shaping his political sensibilities.
One is Queen Sindeok of the Kang clan, the first queen of Joseon, and the other is Queen Wongyeong of the Min clan, the first wife of Yi Bang-won.


In particular, if Queen Won-gyeong had not existed, it would have been difficult for Yi Bang-won to ascend to the throne.
Unlike other women, Mrs. Min was well-versed in the ways of the world and had good political skills.
Lee Bang-won relied on Lady Min in many ways.
Even in the crisis that her husband faced after the revolution, Mrs. Min possessed the cool-headed judgment to wait for an opportunity and prepare.
Moreover, she was both beautiful and intelligent, making her the best assistant and wife.
If there had been no Queen Won-gyeong, the history of the early Joseon Dynasty that we know today might have been written differently.


The queen is also at the center of another incident that changed the fate of Joseon.
This is Empress Myeongseong of the Min clan.
She shouldered the fate of Joseon by attempting to form an alliance with Russia to resist Japanese invasion during a period of diplomatic turmoil, including the Gabo Reforms.
As an important figure, she ended up becoming a target of Japan.
He was brutally murdered by the Japanese army during the Eulmi Incident and was eventually swept away by the tidal wave of the times.
After that, we faced the misfortune of the Japanese colonial period.


Queen Shindeok Kang, who achieved love and power
Deposed Queen Yun, who lost everything

Even in the midst of the whirlwind of historical fate where every second counts, love blossomed.
King Yi Seong-gye fell in love with Queen Sindeok of the Kang clan when she was sixteen years old.
Kang also actively chose Lee Seong-gye, a married man 21 years her senior.
Lady Kang, who became queen in this way, was active at the time of the founding of Joseon and seized key positions of power.
She was a clever woman who caught both rabbits: love and power.

On the other hand, deposed queen Yun is a person who has lost both love and the position of queen.
She became the queen with the favor of King Seongjong, but was deposed due to jealousy and conflict.
Behind it all was Queen Insu, the mother-in-law.
However, the Yun clan's dethronement incident did not end simply as a struggle between women.
It brought about the bloody storm of Gapjasahwa and became the seed of misfortune that made Yeonsangun into an unprecedented tyrant.

The Queen's life is a mirror of the times.

In this way, the lives of Joseon queens follow the twists and turns of history.
They are born with a destiny that requires them to endure the storms of the times with their whole body.
Park Young-gyu, author of “The Story of the Joseon Queens,” said, “Whether she wanted it or not, the queen’s life inevitably reflected the times.
In that sense, he emphasizes that the queen's life is "a mirror of the times."


This book divides Joseon history into the eras of royal relatives, factions, and the royal family, helping us examine how the status and lives of queens changed according to the political trends of each era.
At the same time, it provides new fun by reconstructing historical events from the queen's perspective.


It also vividly conveys not only the story of royal power but also a human drama intertwined with love, jealousy, and conflict.
This has been explained in modern language so that even general readers can easily understand it.
Above all, it will allow us to break away from the male-centered historical narrative and gain a fresh insight into Joseon's politics, society, and culture from the perspective of its queens.