백제
Whereas the history of the Kingdom of Goguryeo is one of heated debate between the more nationalistic of Chinese and Korean scholars in regards to its alleged ethnic makeup and relationship with the "Chinese," the history of the Kingdom of Baekje is debated between Koreans and Japanese. Some have claimed that the Kingdom of Wa, the ancient name for Japan (Yamato), was actually a colony of the Baekje kingdom, although this is a disputed notion.
Indeed, records from both the Korean mainland and Japan have indicated that Baekje and Wa had a remarkably close relationship. Scholars from Japan visited Baekje to learn imported Chinese culture while artisans from Baekje migrated to Japan, which influenced the development of Japanese arts and brought about a further dissemination of "kanbun," the Japanese usage of Chinese characters. Dignitaries from Baekje visited Wa on various occasions to maintain their influence there and also, as Baekje was falling to the combined might of the Tang Empire and the Shilla kingodm, the nobility and royalty of the kingdom fled to Japan. One of the kings of Baekje was also born in Japan and the mother of the Japanese Emperor Kammu was reportedly of Baekje stock.
The kingdom of Baekje encompassed what is now the Chuncheongbuk-do, Chuncheongnam-do, Jeollabuk-do, and Jeollanam-do regions of the Korean peninsula although it did once extend further north, also including the lands around the present-day Seoul, Incheon, Gyeongi-do, and Pyeongyang regions. In addition, some Korean and Chinese records indicate that Baekje had territorial holdings in present-day Hebei Province, China, suggesting that the Baekje kingdom was able to successfully project its power abroad. This is also a controversy among Chinese historians, but various Chinese histories compiled during the Jin and Song Dynasties indicate that this may have been the case and they also indicate that the Korean kingdoms of Goguryeo and Shilla had also made forays into what is now the Chinese mainland.
The name "Baekje" translates to "Hundred Vassals." According to the Samguk Sagi, the story of Baekje begins when Onjo and Biryu, the sons of Dongmyeongseong, king of Goguryeo at the end of the first century BCE, moved south with several vassals and followers where they established Wiryeseong and Michuhol, which are now both Seoul and Incheon respectively. Michuhol was inhospitable and failed, causing Biryu to commit suicide. Biryu's former followers joined with Onjo and thus the kingdom of Baekje emerged.
Bookmark/Search this post with:
