Gwangjong of Goryeo child Gyeongjong
Later years and death
In his later years, Gwangjong's reliance on Buddhism increased. In 968, after a nightmare, he convened a reunion and banned the slaughter of his family. In December 971, an earthquake occurred in Goryeo, and the nobles and the people blamed the king. Gwangjong managed to handle the situation, but a second earthquake occurred in February 972: during this time, he had a nightmare and granted amnesty to prisoners in August.
He developed a serious disease in July 975 (fifth month of the Lunar calendar) and died just a few days later at the age of 50. He was given the posthumous name of "Hongdoseon-yeolpyeongse sukheon-ui hyoganghye daeseong dae-wang" (Korean: 홍도선열평세숙헌의효강혜대성대왕; Hanja: 弘道宣烈平世肅憲懿孝康惠大成大王), while his temple name Gwangjong means "shining emperor". His tomb, called Heolleung (Korean: 헌릉; Hanja: 憲陵), is located on the north side of Mount Songak, in Kaepung County, North Korea. The site inspection in 1916 found a severely damaged tomb, but the stairway and the foundation stone are preserved.He was succeeded by his only son Wang Ju, who became the fifth king of Goryeo, Gyeongjong. The reform policies to curb the power of the capital aristocracy were passed down to his successors, but they weren't able to pursue them; as a result, the bureaucracy turned from a meritorious aristocracy to a hereditary class. The law of emancipation of slaves was retracted during the sixth king's, Seongjong's reign.
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