Teaching East Asia: Korea Teaching East Asia: Korea | Page 60

Asia in World History: 1450–1770
shouted the order to attack. In an instant, our warships spread their
sails, turned round in a ‘Crane-Wing’ formation and darted forward,
pouring down cannon balls and fire arrows on the enemy vessels like
hail and thunder. Bursting into flame with blinding smoke, seventy-
three enemy vessels were soon burning in a red sea of blood. This is
called “The Great Victory of Hansando.” 20
In strategic terms, Hansando was the equivalent of the naval success
of the Greeks against the Persians at Salamis. At Hansando, as at
Salamis, the tide of an invasion was stemmed, in this case because it
destroyed the invaders’ lines of re-supply that were essential for Japan-
ese operations in both Korea and China. Their forces were being dec-
imated by fierce Korean resistance: over a third of the invasion force
died in battle within the first year of the war. Koreans, however, were
also suffering. The impact of the war was driven home to Admiral Yi
by conditions near his naval station. His response, a formal letter to
the central government, lends insight into his human sensibilities, as
well as suggesting that his skills extended beyond mere excellence in
military leadership. After supplying temporary winter quarters for 200
war refugees, he noted that even though they could return to their na-
tive homes when peace is restored, “no one can bear to see them die of
starvation in the meantime.” Accordingly, after taking a survey of
available land, he found a suitable site and instructed the refugees to
settle there “and to commence the spring plowing, which they did with
gladness.” He also asked for the Court to issue a decree to facilitate
such projects generally. 21
THE WAR AT HOME, 1594–1596
His naval victories led to Yi Sun-Shin’s promotion as Supreme Naval
Commander, but he had little time to enjoy his new command. After a
dutiful visit to his mother (who welcomed him and promptly urged
him to return to battle in defense of the Korean people), 22 he returned
to the war to find King Sŏnjo pragmatically negotiating for Chinese
support against the Japanese. Yi Sun-Shin knew of the importance of
China as an ally, 23 but opposed the constraints of Chinese-led peace
negotiations, believing the Japanese were not trustworthy in such mat-
ters. When told by a Chinese general to withdraw his forces from be-
fore a Japanese camp and “return to his home station,” he exploded in
anger, saying, “Which home station do you mean? . . . I am a subject
of Korea, and for justice’s sake I cannot live with these robbers under
the same heaven.” 24 He would later recant his obdurate, if patriotic,
tone, which may have been shaped by anger fueled by a bout of ty-
phoid fever and the need to confront a devastating outbreak of plague
among his naval forces. That tone, however, was dangerous. Yi Sun-
Shin was subsequently able to lead his fleet to a major victory against
the Japanese at Changmun-p’o in 1594, but this triumph did not pre-
vent Admiral Yi’s rival, Wŏn Kyon, from exploiting Yi Sun-Shin’s
outspokenness and rallying those like himself who resented Yi’s suc-
cesses.
Wŏn Kyun helped arrange a test of Yi Sun-Shin’s loyalty that was
impossible for him to pass. 25 This gambit led to the transfer of the ad-
miral’s authority to Wŏn Kyun. It also led to Yi Sun-Shin being
dragged off to Seoul in a cage carried by an ox cart, much to the dis-
may of the public, who lined the route of his journey to protest the hu-
miliation of their hero. After a time, Yi Sun-Shin was released to once
again serve as a regular soldier. He again executed these humble du-
ties with great dignity, despite enduring another personal blow: the
loss of his mother (his father had died in 1582). However, he was now
at the very end of his emotional reserves.
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Portrait of Wŏn Kyun (1540–1597), Yi Sun-Shin’s fellow naval commander and
ill-fated rival.
Image source: http://kalaniosullivan.com/OsanAB/OsanSongtanKorHist.html
After his mother’s funeral, Yi began to grieve over his own plight.
“O,” he lamented, “What shall I do? Is there anyone else under heaven
in such a pitiful plight as myself?—the sooner I die the better.” 26 Ac-
cording to his diary, he broke into tears when dismounting from his horse
on arrival at a friend’s house. Later he “sat up late at night all alone, as
sadness incessantly swept over me.” 27 He bent, but he did not break; his
will strengthened by his sense of duty and the solace he drew from local
officials who everywhere greeted him with hospitality and respect.
RETURN TO BATTLE, 1597–1598
Hideyoshi launched a second invasion of Korea in January 1597,
which was comprised of over 140,000 men supported by over 1,000
ships. This force easily crushed Wŏn Kyun’s fleet, a defeat made bit-
ter by Wŏn Kyun’s attempt to flee the scene of battle, after which he
was caught and beheaded. Wŏn Kyun’s disgrace enabled the court to
rehabilitate Yi Sun-Shin’s reputation and once again asked him to serve
as Supreme Naval Commander, though the King was now closely al-
lied with the Chinese and contemplated the abolition of what little re-
mained of Yi Sun-Shin’s former forces of which only twelve vessels
and only 120 sailors remained. Yi Sun-Shin, however, prevented this
outcome by famously declaring that, “After all, I still have twelve
ships! As long as I live, [our] enemies will never look down on us.” 28
He used these resources well enough to resume his victorious assaults
on the Japanese and helped saved Seoul from a naval attack, though he
lost his third son, Myon, in the process.
In late 1598, Yi Sun-Shin’s ships, together with Chinese naval
and land units acting in concert with Korean land forces (which now