Janggi Anti-Western Stele

Anti-Western steles (cheokhwabi) were monuments that Heungseon Daewongun, who led Korea to victory in the French invasion of 1866 and the American invasion of 1871, ordered to be set up along major roads in Seoul and across the country, to reject Westerners and warn the people more forcefully against their aggression; this stele is one of them. It stands with its body set on a neat square base stone, its four corners and the two ends of its upper edge carefully finished. The front bears a carved inscription with a sternly worded warning: "When Western barbarians invade, not to fight is to make peace, and to advocate peace is to sell the nation." It was erected in 1871, the 8th year of King Gojong, along with the others set up that same year following the American invasion. After the Imo Incident of 1882, the 19th year of King Gojong, when Daewongun was taken captive to the Russian legation, most anti-Western steles were torn down, and only a handful, including this one, survive here and there to convey this part of Korea's history intact. It originally stood within Janggi Eupseong, the walled town of Janggi, but was moved in 1990 to the garden of the Janggi township office, where it is now preserved.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Pohang, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Cultural Heritage Material · 문화유산자료