Competing Discourses on Three Ming Emperors and the Significance of Their Canonization in Late Chosŏn Korea

Abstract:In 1749, King Yŏngjo and his courtiers began to venerate the Ming emperors Hongwu and Chongzhen at Taebodan in the courtyard of Ch’angdŏk Palace. This was in addition to Wanli, who had been honored since 1704. During the late Chosŏn period, the court regularly held rituals to worship these emperors. This study examines court discussions to assess the impact of this veneration on the image of the emperors. These show that prior to 1749, Chosŏn monarchs and ministers often viewed the emperors negatively, while at the same time lauding their virtues. The study also explores the process through which the court constructed orthodox narratives on the emperors, a process which bestowed the emperors with certain merits and virtues. These images became the only legitimate means through which to view them and were reinforced by regular state rituals. After 1749, the emperors became objects of supreme veneration rather than objective evaluation. Ming loyalism discouraged voices critical of the Ming or disrespectful to the emperors, an approach that supplanted a more critical Confucian interpretation.