Change and meaning of diplomatic formalities regarding enthronement of kings of Goryeo
Authors:   HUFS Institute of History and Culture, Lee Seung-Min 
Published: June 2023

International relations of East Asian premodern society were established and kept limiting dominance of realistic power among nations to ritual order of Confucian political ideas. The most important medium of ritual order like this was enthronement and diplomacy regarding kings' enthronement which informed people of new kings' enthronement and led their investiture is the subject that can show relations among nations and political natures. Diplomatic formalities regarding enthronement of kings of Goryeo are divided into Chingsa(稱嗣), Cheongjeonwi(請傳位), and Cheongseungseup (請承襲). Most of Kings' enthronement in the early Goryeo Dynasty consisted of Sawi, which is a method of succession to the throne based on the recognition that Kings' political authority carries on legitimacy through bloodgiven succession. The kings who mounted the throne sent envoys who inform other countries of Sawi(稱嗣) to them and posted Pyomun. Then, the other countries sent condolence calls and Giboksa and Chaekbongsa who gave recognition to the new kings in time. This procedure was established as the ritual procedure among the Goryeo Dynasty and the countries that invested with stable succession to the throne called Sawi. Unlike Sawi, Seonyang was done depending on realistic political struggles for power and the powerful's will. Originally, Seonyang means to sell the pass to the high-calibre people. However, in reality, Seonyang means that kings were deposed under pressure of power and another kings mount to the throne being enthroned. In the Goryeo Dynasty, Hyeonjong of Goryeo's accession to the throne by the Political Upheaval of Gangjo, the case that Sukjong of Goryeo was abdicated from Heonjong of Goryeo, his nephew, and change of the throne by the military powerful are applicable to this. The Goryeo Dynasty informed the Liao Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty of the fact of Seonyang after the new kings' enthronement. Because the Liao Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty knew that they cannot get involved in change of the throne in the Goryeo Dynasty, they gave ritual recognition to it if the bilateral relationship is kept like before even though the throne is changed in the Goryeo Dynasty. In the relationship between the Goryeo Dynasty and Mongolia, the ritual surrounding the Kings' enthronement and positions and authority as the kings of the Goryeo Dynasty clearly change from before. The kings from Chungnyeol of Goryeo to Chunghye of Goryeo asked Mongolia's permission to make the kings abdicate the throne in favor of the crown princes [請傳位]. And as the emperors allowed this, the crown prices were invested and Kukin (國印) was given to the new kings. The new kings were generally invested from Mongolia. And after then, they returned to the Goryeo Dynasty and the enthronement ceremony to receive all the government officials' congratulatory ceremony was held. As the formalities that the emperors of Mongolia were involve in the Kings' enthronement like this were repeated, the meaning that Kings' enthronement is the formalities which are combined with investiture was strengthened. Enthronement's diplomatic formalities were again changed in the reign of U of Goryeo. U of Goryeo who mounted the throne after Gongmin of Goryeo suddenly died sent an envoy to ask its recognition [請承襲] to other countries. At this time, in the Goryeo Dynasty, diplomacy which was dependent on the Ming Dynasty was carried out while it was confronting against the Northern Yuan Dynasty. However, because the relationship with the Goryeo Dynasty was important to the Northern Yuan Dynasty to check the Ming Dynasty, the Northern Yuan Dynasty actively offered condolences for Gongmin of Goryeo and invested U of Goryeo as the king. However, as the Goryeo Dynasty did not recognize this and asked the Ming Dynasty to give recognition to Gongmin of Goryeo' posthumous name and U of Goryeo's succession to the throne eight times for ten years, it clarified its political course.