Jo Gwang-jo

Jo Gwang-jo
Hangul	조광조
Hanja
Revised Romanization	Jo Gwangjo
McCune–Reischauer	Cho Kwangjo
Pen name
Hangul	정암
Hanja
Revised Romanization	Jeong(-)am
McCune–Reischauer	Chŏngam
Courtesy name
Hangul	효직
Hanja	孝直
Revised Romanization	Hyojik
McCune–Reischauer	Hyojik
Posthumous name
Hangul	문정
Hanja
Revised Romanization	Munjeong
McCune–Reischauer	Munjŏng
Clan Origin
Hangul	한양
Hanja
Revised Romanization	Hanyang
McCune–Reischauer	Hanyang

Jo Gwangjo (Hangul: 조광조; Hanja: , 23 August 1482 – 10 January 1520), also often called by his pen name Jeong-am (Hangul: 정암; Hanja: ), was Korean Neo-Confucian scholar who pursued radical reforms during the reign of Jungjong of Joseon in the early 16th century.

He was framed with charges of factionalism by the power elite that opposed his reform measures and was sentenced to drink poison in the Third Literati Purge of 1519. He has been widely venerated as a Confucian martyr and an embodiment of "seonbi spirit" by later generations in Korea. Some historians consider him one of the most influential figures in 16th century Korea. He's one of the 18 Sages of Korea (Hangul: ) and honored as Munmyo Baehyang (Hangul: 문묘배향; Hanja: 文廟配享).

Jo Gwang-jo was the son of Jo Wongang (조원강, 趙元綱) and was from the Hanyang Jo clan (한양조씨, 漢陽趙氏). Jo studied under neo-Confucian scholar Kim Gwoeng-pil, Kim Jong-jik's disciple who was in exile at the time following the First Literati Purge of 1498. When Kim Gwoeng-pil was later executed (by poison) following the Second Literati Purge of 1504, Jo was exiled for being Kim's disciple.

At this time, Joseon Dynasty politics was primarily marked by power struggle between two aristocratic yangban factions - the established "Hungu" power elites who were generally conservative and the upstart Sarim scholars called seonbis, who belonged to neo-Confucian school of Kim Jong-jik and other thinkers. Sarim faction had entered the court politics during the reign of King Seongjong but suffered two bloody purges under his successor Yeonsangun. When Yeonsangun was eventually deposed in 1506, Jungjong was placed on the throne as the eleventh king of Joseon by the Hungu leaders who led the coup. For first ten years of his reign, Jungjong could not truly rule the country with regal authority (he was forced to depose his faithful queen because her father was killed by the coup leaders, and they feared that the queen might take revenge.) However, three main coup leaders died of natural causes by then, and Jungjong began to welcome Sarim scholars to his court to check Hungu faction's power. The Sarim faction considered Hungu faction as a whole as greedy and corrupt men unworthy of respect and sought to establish ideal neo-Confucian society. (Indeed, many of coup leaders had enjoyed Yeonsangun's favor during most of his reign, and their chief Park Won-jong led the coup mainly for personal revenge for his sister was raped by Yeonsangun.)

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