Sambyeolcho Rebellion

Sambyeolcho Rebellion
Hangul	삼별초의 난
Hanja	三別抄의 亂
RR	Sambyeolchoui nan
MR	Sambyŏlch'oŭi nan

From 1231, Goryeo was intermittently invaded by the Mongol Empire. During this time, Goryeo was controlled by a military regime led by the Ch'oe family. In 1232 the government under the nominal king fled to Ganghwa Island, which Mongol horse riders were unable to land on, and resisted the Mongol invasion. Because of its fragile foundation, Goryeo faced frequent rebellions. The 1258 rebellion resulted in the establishment of Ssangseong and Dongnyeong Prefectures by the Mongols.

Unlike these rebels, the Sambyeolcho (Three Extraordinary Watches) were an organ of the military government. They were organized by the Ch'oe family to maintain security. However, unlike the Ch'oe private guards unit (which personally protected the family), the Sambyeolcho assumed public functions performed by police and combat forces, effectively replacing the Six Divisions of the military.

In 1258, Ch'oe Ŭi, the fourth dictator of the Ch'oe family, was overthrown by Kim Chun (also known as Kim In-jun) using the Sambyeolcho. Kim Chun took a pro-Mongol policy and sent Crown Prince Wang Chŏng to the Mongol Empire. At the same time, King Gojong and the crown prince approached the Mongols to restore power from Kim Chun.

In 1268, however, Kim Chun was annihilated by the Sambyeolcho under the order of Im Yŏn. The next year, Im Yŏn's attempt to replace King Wonjong was reversed by the crown prince (Chungnyeol) with the help from the Mongol force. In 1270, Im Yŏn's successor Im Yu-mu was killed by the pro-Mongol faction using the Sambyeolcho. It marked the end of the military regime.

After the end of military rule in Koryö, Wönjong decided to heed the Mongol demands to move the capital back to Kaesöng. By doing so Wonjong, dealt the deathblow to the Koryö military's rule and the more than thirty year long war against the Mongols. Despite this, as a concession he had to relocate the Koryo capital back to the mainland, which was within striking distance for the Mongol Yuan armies. The military at the temporary capital on Kanghwa-do Island rejected Wonjong's concessions to the Mongols as they feared the loss of their influence and that Wonjong would hand over the register of the Sambyeolcho. Knowing they would have no role in Koryo under Mongol influence, they revolvted and sought to overthrow Wonjong by placing the Duke of On on the throne.^[1]

The Sambyeolcho, led by Pae Chung-son, revolted against the government. Systematically blocking passage between Gangwha and the mainland, they brought nearby islands and coastal regions under their domain. They gave up Ganghwa Island and fled to Jindo Island in the southwest.

Although the Sambyeolcho raided the coastlines of Jeolla Province, Jindo Island started to face food shortages by January 1271. In February, the court of Kublai Khan's Yuan dynasty called for the Sambyeolcho's surrender and by April the Yuan court decided to crush the rebels. While the Sambyeolcho excelled in naval guerilla warfare, their base at Chindo was vulnerable to the Mongol-Koryo force. Led by Mongol commander Hindu, Koryõ defector Hong Tagu and Kim Panggyong, Chindo was conquered after heavy fighting and the survivors fled. Kim Panggyong reckoned the government army had captured over 10,000 family members and several tens of warships.^[2]

After the fall of Chindo, the Sambyeolcho relocated to Tamna, where it was led by Kim Tongjöng. Due to T'amna's relative inaccessibility, it took two years before it fell. During this period, the Three Extraordinary Watches did everything it could to hamper the military build-up on the mainland by raiding harbors and destroying wharfs, fortifying the island against the inevitable invasion and trying to warn Japan about the imminent invasion of their land by a combined Mongol-Koryö-Song army, while also proposing an alliance with the Kamakura Shogunate.

However, this was ultimately ineffective as the Three Extraordinary Watches had become a large and formal army that needed a stationary base versus its previous heritage as an effective decentralized guerilla army. At the same time, the Yuan did what it could to support Koryõ in preparing for the invasions. Relief rice (20,000 bushels from the Eastern Capital) was sent to Koryõ after it reported famine and Kublai readily agreed to Wönjong's entreaty not to allow looting after T'amna had been conquered (which later became an advantage for the Yuan when they occupied the island and raised horses on it).^[3]

The Three Extraordinary Watches at T'amna had a vast intelligence network, demonstrated by their efforts to warn the Japanese government of the upcoming Mongol Invasions of Japan. Despite this, on April 11, 1273, a combined army of the Mongol Empire and Koryõ, aided by a sizeable contingent of North Chinese soldiers, boarded Koryõ naval vessels and crushed the rebellion. The island was swiftly taken and the Sambyeolcho rebels were killed in battle, executed or taken prisoner (and executed later). Kim Tongjõng fled to the slopes of Hallasan accompanied by seventy of his soldiers. He died there two months later, while his soldiers were captured and later executed. With the death of its last leader, the rebellion of the Three Extraordinary Watches had come to an end.^[4] Thereafter, the Yuan dynasty directly controlled Tamna until 1294.

Sambyeolcho Rebellion

Background

Anti-Mongol struggle

See also

References

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