Gyeongjueupseong Walled Town

An eupseong is a walled town built to protect the residents of a county or district while serving military and administrative functions at once. Gyeongju had been a centre of local administration since the Unified Silla period, and since eupseong were generally built in leading provincial towns, one was built at Gyeongju as well. The exact date of construction of Gyeongjueupseong is not known, but it is traditionally said to have been built during the Goryeo period. Records note that it was rebuilt under King U of Goryeo, and it carries a history of having been seized by Japanese forces during the Imjin War of 1592 and then retaken using a bigyeokjincheolloe, a type of time-delayed exploding shell devised by Yi Jang-son. Documentary sources also confirm that, from the reigns of King Sejong through King Seonjo, King Yeongjo and Emperor Gojong of Joseon, Gyeongjueupseong underwent repeated extension and rebuilding, along with changes to its internal and external layout. According to the Veritable Records of King Munjong, in the first year of King Munjong's reign (1451) the wall's dimensions and structure were recorded in considerable detail, giving a circumference of 4,075 cheok (about 1,904 m) and a height of 11 cheok 6 chon (about 5.4 m). The walled town had four gates, one at each of the cardinal points -- Hyangilmun in the east, Mangmimun in the west, Jingnyemun in the south and Gongjinmun in the north -- through which people passed in and out. It is said that the Bronze Bell of King Seongdeok the Great of Silla, now hung in the bell pavilion of the Gyeongju National Museum, once hung at the south gate, Jingnyemun. The walled town stood at the centre of present-day Gyeongju, but most of it was demolished during and after the Japanese colonial period, leaving only about 50 m of the east wall in anything like its original form. To recover the former appearance of Gyeongjueupseong, a master plan for its restoration was drawn up in 2009; by 2018 the east wall (324 m) and the east gate, Hyangilmun, had been restored, along with the surrounding walking paths. Plans are under way to purchase and clear ageing, substandard housing nearby and to restore the north wall and other remaining sections.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Historic Site · 사적