place

Sinmumun

15th-century establishments in KoreaBuildings and structures completed in 1433Gyeongbokgung
Gyeongbokgung, Sinmunmun gate
Gyeongbokgung, Sinmunmun gate

Sinmumun (Korean: 신무문; Hanja: 神武門; lit. Black Turtle-Snake Gate) is the north gate of the palace Gyeongbokgung in Seoul, South Korea. It was used generally by military personnel. The gate has generally seen little use, especially in comparison to the other gates. It was often closed. It was built in 1433. Sejong the Great decided to construct the gate because of a traditional belief that palaces should have four large gates; there were only three at the time. Sinmumun was named in 1475; it is named for a mythical Chinese guardian of the north, the Black Turtle-Snake. That guardian is also painted on the ceiling of the gate. After being destroyed in 1592 during the Imjin War, the gate was rebuilt in 1865. This version of the gate has persisted to the present. The Gojong-era reconstruction saw the gate becoming the entrance to Gyeongmudae, the northern gardens of the palace. Part of the gate's walls collapsed during the colonial period, although they were repaired. It was opened to the public in 1954, but was closed after the May 16 coup of 1961 for security reasons (it is close to the Blue House and to the former military facilities in the palace). It was reopened for public use in 2006 or 2007. It was the final area of the palace to reopen to the public.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Sinmumun (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Sinmumun
Seoul Cheongunhyoja-dong

Geographical coordinates (GPS) Address Nearby Places
placeShow on map

Wikipedia: SinmumunContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 37.5835 ° E 126.9755 °
placeShow on map

Address


03048 Seoul, Cheongunhyoja-dong
South Korea
mapOpen on Google Maps

Gyeongbokgung, Sinmunmun gate
Gyeongbokgung, Sinmunmun gate
Share experience

Nearby Places

Assassination of Empress Myeongseong
Assassination of Empress Myeongseong

Between 5:50 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. on 8 October 1895, Queen Min (later "Empress Myeongseong"), the consort of King Gojong of Joseon, was assassinated by a group of Japanese agents under Miura Gorō. The attack happened at Okhoru (옥호루; 玉壺樓) in Geoncheonggung, Gyeongbokgung, Seoul, Joseon. This incident is known in Korea as the Eulmi Incident (Korean: 을미사변; Hanja: 乙未事變).The queen had been assertive and wielded a great amount of political power in Korea. After Japan's victory in the First Sino-Japanese war, she turned to Russia, another foreign power that was interested in Korea, and aligned Korea with the Russian Empire, in an effort to counterbalance Japanese dominance on the peninsula. Amid the turmoil, Park Yung-hyo, a prominent pro-Japanese figure within Joseon's cabinet, was removed from office. Upon his ouster, he informed Japan that the Queen was responsible for his dismissal and that she had intentions to expel more pro-Japanese elements from the palace. This drew the ire of Japan.The agents were let into the palace by pro-Japanese Korean guards. Once inside, they beat and threatened other members of the Royal Family during their search for the Queen. The Crown Princess was dragged down stairs and beaten. When the Queen was eventually located, she was beaten and killed with a single slash from a sword. Some agents then proceeded to loot the palace and other houses in the city, while others stripped her body and examined her genitals. They then covered her corpse in oil and burned it.The attack has been characterized by modern historians of Japan as "brutal" and "barbaric"; these sentiments were shared by contemporary international and domestic observers. The assassination had been intended to strengthen Japan's position in Korea, but it offered little benefit; its brutality even temporarily harmed Japan's international image. The attack also resulted in Gojong seeking refuge in the Russian legation in Seoul the following year.