In this blog post, we will look at the motivations for the uprising of the Korean Righteous Armies during the Imjin War and reconsider who they fought for.
There are not many research topics in Korean history that have as much accumulated research as the Imjin War. The Imjin War was more than just a war and had a profound impact on the society and culture of Joseon. The aftermath of the war dramatically changed the social structure, international relations, and economic situation of Joseon, and these changes were important factors in the development and decline of Joseon thereafter. However, the perspective on the subject was too biased. In other words, it was presented only as a representative example of the entire nation uniting to “overcome national crisis,” and the various realities behind it were not properly revealed. In particular, there has been a relative lack of specific research on how each community and class experienced and responded to the war and how it affected their lives. For example, it is necessary to study how the famine, epidemics, and economic collapse that occurred during the war made life extremely difficult for the people and how this affected the Righteous Army movement.
In particular, the cause of the uibyeong’s uprising needs to be re-examined. In the past, the reason why the uibyeong uprising occurred was mainly interpreted in terms of “loyalty to the king,” which originated from Confucian ideology. In fact, this interpretation is valid in part when looking at the contents of the uibyeong leader’s appeal to gather the uibyeong. Most of the leaders of the Righteous Armies were former bureaucrats or Confucian scholars who had deeply internalized Confucian ideology. However, this interpretation may be suitable for explaining the motives of the leaders of the Righteous Armies to raise the Righteous Armies, but it is not sufficient to explain the motives of ordinary people to join the Righteous Armies.
The outbreak of the Imjin War had a huge impact on Joseon society, and the sudden arrival of the war left the royal court confused. The Joseon Dynasty was not prepared for the Imjin War, which came out of nowhere, and the public opinion of the Joseon Dynasty was quite negative due to the irresponsible behavior of the royal court during the war. Under these circumstances, it is difficult to believe that the people joined the Righteous Army solely to be loyal to the king. It is also questionable how much the people could read and understand the contents of the Righteous Army’s manifesto, which is full of Chinese characters and is based on the logic of being loyal to the king. Considering the social reality of the late Joseon Dynasty, where the illiteracy rate was quite high, it would have been even more difficult for the common people to understand and put these sermons into practice. Therefore, the motivation for the participation of the common people who formed the backbone of the Righteous Army must be sought elsewhere.
The Righteous Armies were connected to each other by blood or geographical ties. Therefore, they had a common goal to protect, and they were highly united. The goal was not the king in the distance, but the family nearby, and not an abstract ideology, but the village where they lived. The sense of responsibility to protect the village and protect the family even during the war was an important factor in encouraging the people to join the Righteous Armies. The reason why the people avoided joining the government army and participated in the Righteous Army can be found in the fact that, unlike the government army, which had to move around according to the orders of the royal court, the Righteous Army was relatively committed to local defense. With the exception of some Righteous Armies, the scope of their activities did not extend beyond the level of a village, and joint operations between the Righteous Armies were rarely carried out.
The motivation of the Uibyeongjangs cannot be found in the mere justification of “loyalty to the king.” The Uibyeongjangs were generally people with a firm social and economic foundation in each region. They were leaders who led their communities through social influence and economic resources, and thus their interests were directly linked to the well-being of the entire community, beyond mere personal honor. However, the war put the foundation at risk of being lost. Under these circumstances, the practical interest of the Righteous Armies leaders to maintain their regional base combined with Confucian justification to motivate the Righteous Armies. Meanwhile, the government, which had to resort to the Righteous Armies due to the successive defeats of the government forces, also encouraged the Righteous Armies to actively revolt by granting them government positions. In the context of the time when it was basically necessary to become a bureaucrat to maintain one’s status as a yangban, the appointment to a government post became a great attraction for the yeobiseong. This is an example of how important the social and economic significance of government posts was in Joseon society at the time.
