Hyegong of Silla : Family Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hyegong of Silla

36th monarch of Silla (r. 765–780)

King Hyegong 혜공왕 惠恭王
King of Silla
Reign	765–780
Coronation	765
Predecessor	Gyeongdeok of Silla
Successor	King Seondeok of Silla

Born	758
Died	780 Silla
Father	Gyeongdeok of Silla
Mother	Queen Gyeongsu

Birth name
Hyegong of Silla
Hangul	혜공왕
Hanja	惠恭王
Revised Romanization	Hyegong Wang
McCune–Reischauer	Hyegong Wang
Hangul	김건운
Hanja	金乾運
Revised Romanization	Gim Geon-un
McCune–Reischauer	Kim Kŏnun

Silla
Monarchs of Korea
(Post-unification)
Munmu 661–681 Sinmun 681–691 Hyoso 692–702 Seongdeok 702–737 Hyoseong 737–742 Gyeongdeok 742–765 Hyegong 765–780 Seondeok 780–785 Wonseong 785–798 Soseong 798–800 Aejang 800–809 Heondeok 809–826 Heungdeok 826–836 Huigang 836–838 Minae 838–839 Sinmu 839 Munseong 839–857 Heonan 857–861 Gyeongmun 861–875 Heongang 875–886 Jeonggang 886–887 Jinseong 887–897 Hyogong 897–912 Sindeok 912–917 Gyeongmyeong 917–924 Gyeongae 924–927 Gyeongsun 927–935
v t e

Hyegong of Silla (758–780), personal name Kim Kŏn-un, was the 36th ruler of the Korean kingdom of Silla. Being the only child between King Gyeongdeok and Lady Manwol (Queen Gyeongsu), Hyegong was the last descendant of King Muyeol to sit on the throne. Because of this, Hyegong's reign is often regarded as the end of the middle period of the Silla state.

Hyegong became king at the age of 8, and did not adapt well to the role.^[1] According to Samguk Sagi, Hyegong's dissolute life as a young monarch kept the palace in disarray. They faced rebellions led by high officials (Kim Daegong and others) in 768, 770 and 775. Faced in 780 with another rebellion led by his ichan Kim Chi-jŏng, the monarch dispatched sangdaedeung Kim Yang-sang to put down the uprising, but the rebel forces managed to storm the palace and assassinated Hyegong and other royal family members.^[2] Kim Yang-sang, who was an eleventh-generation descendant of King Naemul, then took the throne as King Seondeok.^[3]

Records show that Hyegong's behaviour was effeminate and showed either homosexual or bisexual tendency.^[4] Records have traditionally described the monarch as "a man by appearance but a woman by nature". In Dongsa Gangmok, Ahn Jeong-bok described Hyegong's reign as "peculiar, for it was said that the king became a man as a woman, and for the king played with girl's toys as a child."^[5] Today's historians often speculate that Hyegong was a trans woman.^[6]

Family

Grandfather: Seongdeok of Silla (reigned 702–737)
Grandmother: Queen Sodeok (소덕왕후 김씨), of the Kim clan
Father: Gyeongdeok of Silla
Mother: Queen Gyeongsu, of the Kim clan
Wife:
- Queen Wi, of the Wi clan (신파부인 위씨)
- Queen Changchang, of the Kim clan ( 창창부인 김씨), daughter of Kim Chang (김장)

References

^ 김, 동완 (July 30, 2021). "[삼국유사 오디세이] 34. 황복사탑이 혜공왕을 점지한 천궁이었을까". 경북일보. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
^ 김, 동완 (July 30, 2021). "[삼국유사 오디세이] 34. 황복사탑이 혜공왕을 점지한 천궁이었을까". 경북일보. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
^ "혜공왕(惠恭王)". Encyclopedia of Korean Culture (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-05-13.
^ 김, 부식. 삼국사기·삼국유사(이병도 역) (in Korean).
^ "한국고전종합DB". db.itkc.or.kr. Retrieved 2021-08-26.
^ "누가 혜공왕을 시해했을까". h21.hani.co.kr (in Korean). Retrieved 2021-05-20.