K-12

Wonder what that is? No, it is not a submarine or a children's education module. Rather, it is the set of Korean historical dramas that I am recently hooked onto. I have started watching Korean shows off and on since Winter Sonata came out. The shows are touching, sappy and romantic, and made me cry after watching.

 

But it was only after I watched Jewel In The Palace that I started to really like Korean historical dramas. Since then, I prefer watching Korean historical dramas instead of the modern dramas, because I get to learn so much history and culture from the shows!

 

Since Jewel In The Palace came out, I started researching on Korean history, partly due to the influence of the show, and partly because history is one of my passions too. I found out that Korean history is similar to Chinese history, as in the culture is similar in that there is the Confucian way of thought that men rule and women are subjugated, which is still happening in Korea now. Korean history also go by dynasty rules and the king ruled together with some trusted ministers, with a regent when the king was still young.

 

Amazing what one can find out if only one bothers! I found out that Korea also had a period of Three Kingdoms, and the Three Kingdoms were in peace until later on when some ambitious ruler wanted to conquer all, so there was a period of war, until one of the kingdoms managed to conquer the other two and made it a unifed state. The Three Kingdoms were Gogoryeo, founded by Go Jumong (whose descendants still bear the surname Go), Baekje (founded by Jumong's son or step-son), and Silla. Later on Silla conquered both Gogoryeo and Baekje and called itself Unified Silla.

 

Then there was another period where another kingdom conquered the unified state, only to be conquered by the longest serving dynasty in Korean history. That kingdom was Goryeo (the old name from which South Korea is derived), who conquered Unified Silla, and later on to be conquered by the Joseon or Chosun Dynasty (from which the Chinese name of North Korea is derived), whose kings and royal family bear the surname Lee or Yi. The Joseon Dynasty would last almost six hundred years until the early twentieth century when the Japanese conqured Korea and abolished the monarchy.

 

The parallels of Korea and Chinese history are that during the era of the Three Kingdoms in Korea, it was during the Han Dynasty of China. Hence the Korean Three Kingdoms era happened even before the Three Kingdoms era of China. When Unifed Silla was founded, it was already in the Tang Dynasty, and when Goryeo was founded, it was already the Song and Yuan Dynasty.

 

The reason the Joseon Dynasty was founded was because some of the people were against the alliance with the Mongol rulers of China. In any case, when the Joseon Dynasty was founded, it was already the Ming Dynasty, and they would last throughout the Qing Dynasty and fell around the same time China became a Republic.

 

Hence, the customs, culture, dressing and even politics and management of the Joseon era were very similar to the Ming Dynasty of China. And that is why the historical dramas of Korea were so captivating because it really talked about the power struggle between the people in the royal family, the king who wanted to rule absolutely but was always overruled by his ministers, and the jealousy and infighting amongst the queen and concubines.

 

Hence I started collecting Korean historical dramas and arranged them in chronological order to watch. The first was Jumong, the founder of Gogoryeo, the biggest of the Three Kingdoms. The second was The Legend, incidentally starring my favourite Korean guy Bae Yong Joon. This took place around the middle part of the Gogoryeo dynasty.

 

The third was Queen Seondeok, the first female ruler of the Silla Kingdom. Silla came to an end two rulers after her, and was absorbed into Unified Silla. The fourth is Ballad Of The Prince, chronologically around the same time as Queen Seondeok, as it was on Queen Seondeok's (when she was still a princess) youngest sister who later married the king of Baekje, and he was the second last king of Baekje before it was absorbed into Unified Silla.

 

After this, the chronology went on to the Joseon Dynasty. The first show I have is The Great King Sejong, the fourth and probably the greatest king of the Joseon Dynasty. This was followed by the Princess Man, on King Sejong's granddaughter. Her father was the second son of King Sejong. The throne was of course passed to his elder brother King Munjong, who passed away after ruling for two years. The throne was then passed to his young son King Danjong, but King Munjong's younger brother seized the throne from his nephew and instilled himself as King Sejo.

 

Princess Man is on the daughter of King Sejo who was caught in the power struggle between her father, her cousin, and the son of the minister who remained faithful to King Munjong. Around the same chronological time, there is the show Queen Insoo. This is a relatively new show, the first production from a new television station.

Queen Insoo was the eldest daughter-in-law of King Sejo. When King Sejo seized the throne, his eldest son became Crown Prince, but he died early, leaving behind his widow and two young sons. His younger brother then became Crown Prince and later on ruled as King Yejong. But King Yejong died early, and his nephew (the son of the previous Crown Prince) then became King Seongjong, so his mother became Queen Insoo upon his ascension to the throne.

 

Another one along the same chronological time is the show The King and I, about King Seongjong and his concubine turned Queen, who was later deposed and forced to drink poison. Her son the Crown Prince became king Yeonsangun upon his father's death, but became one of the worst kings in Korean history, culminating in a coup to overthrow him and his younger brother became King Jungjong.

 

After The King and I, the next drama in the chronology is Jewel of the Palace, where the beginning showed the poisoning of the deposed queen, when her son Yeonsangun became king he went on a rampage and killed everyone involved in his mother's death, and then he was overthrown and his brother King Jungjong took the throne. The drama is mostly centred on King Jungjong's time, and later on briefly his eldest son King Injong, who also died early, and the throne then went on to his younger brother King Myeongjong.

 

The next drama in the chronology is The Moon Embracing The Son, on the son of King Seonjo, the successor to King Myeongjong. After that comes Jewel In The Crown, more commonly known as Dong Yi. The choronology now goes on a few more kings until the era of King Sungjong, Dong Yi's husband. Dong Yi later had a son who would later rule as King Yeongjo.

 

Finally, the last show in the chronology is Wind of the Palace, better known as Yi San, on King Yeongjo's grandson, who became King Jeongjo. It was around this time that Catholicism was being widespread, and outlawed by King Yeongjo as being against tradition and as an evil practise, so those Koreans who have converted to Catholicism had to practise secretly. Many Catholic priests were persecuted. Yet Catholicism managed to flourish and is now one of the biggest Christian groups in South Korea.

 

This is my chronology of Korean historical series so far. I believe there should be more coming, and if the storyline is interesting enough, I may add them to my collection too. Which is why I enjoy watching these because I really get to learn a lot, and the plot and actors are not bad too!