Jeongjo
Korean king (reigned 1776–1800) who in 1790 commissioned the military manual Muyedobotongji for training his personal guard, the Jangyongyeong.
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South KoreaBiography
Jeongjo was a Korean king who reigned from 22 April 1776 to 18 August 1800. He was born on 28 October 1752 in the Gyeongchunjeon hall of Changgyeonggung Palace and died on 18 August 1800 at the age of 47 in the Yeongchunheon pavilion of the same palace. His biological father was Crown Prince Sado. In the history of martial arts he is known as the commissioner of the military manual Muyedobotongji.
He commissioned the compilation of the Muyedobotongji in 1790. It was prepared by the scholars Yi Deokmu and Pak Jega of the royal library Kyujanggak together with Baek Dongsu, an officer of the Jangyongyeong guard. According to one source it was published in 1795 in four volumes and describes 18 combat systems, among them fighting with pole weapons, swordsmanship, unarmed combat (gwonbeop), fighting with blunt weapons and horsemanship; it followed the manual Muyesinbo of 1758 and added training in mounted combat. Another source gives its completion as 29 April 1790, 24 combat disciplines and, beside four volumes of Chinese text, one volume of Korean translation. It classifies weapons by manner of use (thrust, strike, cut), not by length. It served for training the infantry and cavalry of the Jangyongyeong guard.
He formally established this guard in 1785 as his personal bodyguard in place of the older Naekeunwe unit, which he had ceased to trust; from 1782 he selected its officers by competitive examinations. He also founded the Kyujanggak library and had the Hwaseong fortress built in Suwon to protect his father's tomb. He is buried in the Geolleung tomb in Hwaseong.