Hae clan
| Hae clan 解 |
|
|---|---|
| Parent house | unknown |
| Titles | Various |
| Founder | unknown |
| Founding year | unknown |
The Hae clan (解氏) was a powerful noble clan of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea.
The Hae clan was probably the royal house before the Buyeo clan replaced them, and both clans appear descended from the lineage of Buyeo and Goguryeo. The royal family of Buyeo had the surname "Hae". The founding monarch of Goguryeo, Jumong had the surname "Hae" but the surname was changed to Go (高). The character (解) means "to loosen; to unfasten; to untie or to explain". It also means "sun" in Korean as Buyeo, Goguryeo and Baekje were deeply involved in Sun Worship.
They were one of the "Great Eight Families" (Daeseongpaljok, 大姓八族) of Baekje: (Sa (沙氏), Yeon (燕氏), Hyeop (劦氏), Hae (解氏), Jin (眞氏), Guk (國氏), Mok (木氏), and Baek (苩氏)). For generations the Hae monopolized providing queens for the Royal Family along with their rival, the Jin clan. This helped them gain high court positions in the government and military.
After the Battle at Mt. Amak fortress (阿莫山城) against Silla during the beginning of the reign of King Mu of Baekje the Great Eight Families lost a great deal of power. Among the families the Hae clan (who had led the battle), Hyeop, Jin and Mok disappeared from the central political stage leaving only the Yeon, Guk and Baek clans. The Sa clan promoted their influence by military force and produced a queen in the late reign of Mu of Baekje.
They did not lose their status as central nobles during the reign of the last King, Uija of Baekje by colluding with royal authority. The Buyeo clan (the royal family, 扶餘氏) acquired influence with the collapse of the Great Eight Families. After King Uija acceded the throne, royal might was also divided and the lineal descendant of the royal clan with the king as its center was in control of political situation. Among the Great Eight Families, Yeon and Baek clans fell behind and only clans of Sa and Guk maintained their status as central nobles. In the late Baekje all the Great Eight Families except for Sa and Guk clans lost their status as the central nobles and were degraded to local influence at last.
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