Through Korea's turbulent and sometimes violent history, many of its ancient relics were destroyed, which is perhaps the reason why national pride for their surviving landmarks is so great. Take, for instance, Hwaseong Fortress, which encloses the old part of the city of Suwon. It was built in 1794 and has been kept in excellent condition for the past couple centuries. In 1997, it was designated a UNESCO world heritage site.
The fortress's origins stem from a rather seedy history, a real-life K-drama. King Jeongjo built the fortress both with the intentions to move Korea's capital from Seoul to Suwon, and also to honor his father, Prince Sado. Prince Sado, despite the filial affection he inspired, was what would most likely be diagnosed nowadays as "pyschotic" and went on the occasional murderous rampage against his servants and royal staff. As a result, Prince Sado was eventually murdered by his father, King Yeongjo, by being locked inside a rice chest for 8 days until he eventually suffocated or, ironically, starved. This is only tangential to the building of the fortress, but nonetheless is far more interesting material than you find in most history books.
One of my expat friends lived in Suwon during her first year in Korea, her apartment and school being just a stone's throw from Hwaseong Fortress. One day, as she and her Korean co-teachers were passing it, they asked for her impressions.
"Oh, I think it's lovely," she answered honestly.
"Do you think it's better than the Great Wall of China?" they pressed. "We know the Great Wall is supposed to be special, but some people say that our wall is quite nicer; it's better preserved than the wall in China. What do you think?"
"Ummm, well, yes?" my friend answered, or something equally dubious and polite.
While it certainly can't boast the colossal size or venerable age of China's Great Wall, the lovely Hwaseong Fortress, even with the purple prose overtones of its origins, remains a point of pride among the Korean people.
"...nonetheless is far more interesting material than you find in most history books."
ReplyDeleteMore interesting than most brochures, too! Where did you learn that?! (And and and did you get to ring the bell??)
Ringing the bell and brochures are for rich people who pay the $1 entrance fee! ^^
ReplyDeleteSomeone once mentioned Prince Sado to me just as a random point of interest about Korean history. If you do a Google search on him, you'll find that everyone agrees he wantonly killed some people, his father (the king) ordered him to either stop or commit suicide, and when Sado didn't, his father locked him in a rice box until he died. It's debatable in regards to which mental illness Sado had, and a very small number of people believe he was framed.
And for people who are naturally fabulous!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=3751
How cool, never knew Korea had a wall like that!
ReplyDeleteThat is pretty neat... I had never heard of it. I plan to visit Korea when I am in SEA. Ill have to keep this in mind.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading Andi and Jaime! My e-mail never alerts me to new comments so I am unfortunately slow in noticing and replying to them.
ReplyDeleteIf you need any recommendations for good places to visit in Korea, feel free to send me a message or contact me through Facebook. I don't know many (or really any) hotel names, but I do know some of the most interesting cities/villages to see.