|
The Parhae Kingdom
Subsequent to the fall of Koguryo, Tae Cho-yong, a former Koguryo general,
formed an army of Koguryo and Malgal (a Tungusic tribe) people, and led a
migration to Chinese-controlled territory. They settled eventually near
Jilin in Manchuria, and there founded a state which was at first called Chin,
but in 713 was renamed Parhae (Bohai in Chinese). Parhae soon gained control of
most of the former Koguryo territory. The ruling class of Parhae consisted
mostly of Koguryo (i.e. Korean) people. Parhae declared itself the
successor to Koguryo, and sometimes called itself Koryoguk (state of
Koryo).
Parhae prosperity reached its height in the first half of the ninth century
during the reign of King Son. At that time, Parhae territory extended from
the Sungari and Amur rivers in northern Manchuria all the way down to the
northern provinces of modern Korea. Its capital was Tonggyong, in the
Jilin area, where the state had originally been founded.
Parhae was to become a victim of the political confusion and violence which
accompanied the fall of the Tang Dynasty. In 926 the Khitan, who later
came to dominate much of Manchuria and northern China, conquered Parhae.
Many oft he ruling class, who were mostly Koreans, moved south and joined the
newly founded Koryo Dynasty, which replaced Shilla at that time.
While the Manchurian portion of the Parhae territory was lost, the area south
of the Amnok (Yalu)- Turman (Tumen) boundary was restored and the people
migrated to Korea.
Back to Top
Information
provided by the Korean Embassy
|
