Gung Ye
| Gung Ye | |
| Hangul | 궁예 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | 弓裔 |
| Revised Romanization | Gung Ye |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kung Ye |
Gung Ye (c. 869 - 24 July 918, ruled 901–918) was the king of the short-lived Hugoguryeo (901–918) (see Later Three Kingdoms) on the Korean peninsula. Although he was a member of the Silla royal family, he became a victim of the power struggle among the royal family members during the late 9th century. He became a rebel leader against the unpopular Silla government, which almost abandoned the affairs of their subjects for the struggle for power among royal family members.
The exact date of Gung Ye's birth is unknown, but records assume that he was a son of King Gyeongmun; his mother is said to be a beloved lady of the court.
According to legend, Gung Ye was born on the traditional holiday of Dano. The royal seer prophesied that a baby born on Dano would bring disaster to the nation, and the court officials and royal family members urged to the king to get rid of the infant. So the king ordered his servants to kill him. However, when the troops rushed to the residence of Gung Ye's mother, she threw her baby from the second floor, with her maid hiding in nearby bushes to catch the baby. Although her plot tricked the soldiers, the maid had accidentally poked the left eye of the baby, causing Gung Ye to lose one eye. She hid Gung Ye and raised him secretly; when she died, Gung Ye became a Buddhist monk at Sedalsa (세달사), a Buddhist temple.
At the time, the monarch of Silla was Queen Jinseong (Gung Ye's half sister), who was the third and the last female head of state in Korean history (the other two being: Queen Seondeok of Silla and Jindeok of Silla). Queen Jinseong was a powerless ruler and the government was largely corrupted by interventions of royal family members and rampant bribery among members of the royal court. The corrupt government continuously exploited the peasants and farmers, and after a year of famine, massively raised taxes in 889 which led to many revolts and rebellions. Local aristocrats, called hojok (hangul:호족, hanja:豪族) emerged as de facto rulers of many provinces, with the attention of government concentrated on suppression of rebellion and their own power struggles. Among the rebel leaders and local aristocrats, Gi Hwon and Yang Gil gained the most power.
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