Huibin Jang (Korean: 희빈 장씨; Hanja: 禧嬪 張氏; 3 November 1659 – 9 November 1701), or Concubine Hui,[c] of the Indong Jang clan, personal name Jang Ok-jeong, was a consort of Sukjong of Joseon and the mother of King Gyeongjong. She was queen of Joseon from 1689 until her deposition in 1694, and is remembered today as one of the greatest femme fatales in Korean history.
| Huibin Jang | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Consort of the First Senior Rank | |||||||||
 Lady Jang's tomb | |||||||||
| Queen of Joseon | |||||||||
| Reign | 1690–1694 | ||||||||
| Predecessor | Queen Inhyeon | ||||||||
| Successor | Queen Inhyeon | ||||||||
| Born | 3 November 1659 Sangpyeong-bang, Hanseong, Joseon | ||||||||
| Died | 9 November 1701 (aged 42) Chwiseondang Hall, Changgyeonggung, Hanseong, Joseon | ||||||||
| Burial | Daebinmyo, Seooreung Cluster, Goyang, South Korea | ||||||||
| Consort of | Sukjong of Joseon[a] | ||||||||
| Issue Detail | 2 sons, including Gyeongjong of Joseon | ||||||||
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| Clan |
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| Dynasty | Yi | ||||||||
| Father | Jang Hyeong | ||||||||
| Mother | Lady, of the Papyeong Yun clan | ||||||||
| Korean name | |||||||||
| Hangul | 희빈 장씨 | ||||||||
| Hanja | 禧嬪 張氏 | ||||||||
| RR | Huibin Jangssi | ||||||||
| MR | Hŭibin Changssi | ||||||||
Biography
editEarly life
editLady Jang was the daughter of Jang Hyeong and his second wife, a lady from the Papyeong Yun clan. Part of the Namin faction, she came from a long line of interpreters and belonged to the jungin class.
Lady Jang is widely thought to have been one of the most beautiful women in Joseon, and her charm was mentioned in the Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty.
She became a lady-in-waiting to King Sukjong's step-great-grandmother, Grand Queen Dowager Jaui, at the recommendation of Prince Dongpyeong, who was the king's first cousin-once-removed and Jaui's step-grandson.
Life as royal consort
editWhile visiting Queen Jaui, the king became infatuated with Lady Jang's beauty and gave her the rank of seungeun sanggung (or favored court lady; 승은 상궁), but his mother, Queen Dowager Hyeonyeol, who belonged to the Seoin faction, feared that Jang Ok-jeong would influence him to favor the Namin, so she expelled her from the palace.
In 1683, Hyeonyeol died and Queen Min, Sukjong's wife at that time (posthumously known as Queen Inhyeon), allowed Lady Jang to return to court.
In 1686, Ok-jeong became a royal consort of the junior fourth rank (숙원; 淑媛; sugwon). In 1688, she was elevated to senior second rank (소의; 昭儀; soui), after giving birth to the King's first son, Yi Yun.
In the court, the Seoin faction split into Noron (Old Learning), led by Song Si-yeol, and Soron (New Learning), led by Yun Jeung. The Noron was supported by Queen Inhyeon.
The Namin faction pushed for the King to acknowledge Yi Yun as heir apparent, but the Seoin faction insisted that the Queen was still young and could bear a son, who should be the heir. Sukjong pushed for a compromise in which the Queen would adopt Yi Yun as her son. However, she refused to do so. Sukjong became angry at the opposition, and many were killed, including Song Si-yeol. The Namin faction seized power, and they exiled the Queen's father and the leaders of the Seoin faction.
In May 1689, Queen Inhyeon was also deposed and exiled. This incident is called Gisa Hwanguk (기사환국).[1][2]
That same year, Lady Jang was promoted to the senior first rank (빈; 嬪; bin), second only to the queen, with the honorific title hui (희; 禧), meaning "auspicious". Later, she was appointed as queen.
In 1693, Sukjong's new favorite, a palace maid from the Haeju Choe clan, was officially elevated to a royal consort of the fourth junior rank. Sugwon Choe (later Sukbin Choe), was an open supporter of Queen Min and encouraged the King to reinstate her to her original position. In the meantime, Kim Chun-taek, who was member of the Noron faction, and Han Jung-hyuk from the Soron faction, staged a campaign to reinstate the Deposed Queen.
In 1694, Jang Ok-jeong lost the favor of the King.[3] Sukjong grew disgusted by the greed of the Namin faction and the ever-powerful Jang family. He also felt remorse for his temperamental actions during Gisa Hwanguk. In the government, the Namin faction's attempt to purge the Seoin on the charge of plotting to reinstate the deposed Queen backfired.
Later years and death
editThe King banished Jang Hui-jae, Queen Jang's older brother, and the leaders of the Namin party. He officially demoted Jang Ok-jeong to her former position, Huibin, and reinstated the Deposed Queen Min. This incident is called Gapsul Hwanguk (갑술환국). The Namin faction would never politically recover from this purge.
The Soron faction supported Crown Prince Yi Yun, who was Lady Jang's son, while the Noron faction supported Yi Geum, Prince Yeoning, who was Sukbin Choe's son.
In 1701, Queen Inhyeon died of an unknown disease. Allegedly, Sukjong discovered Lady Jang conspiring with a shaman priestess to curse the Queen with black magic and gloating over her death.[4] The Soron faction pleaded with the King to show mercy and pointed out that she was the mother of the Crown Prince.
Unmoved, the King sentenced Lady Jang, her mother, her brother, the leader of Soron and all of her companions to death. 1700 people died as a result of the incident.[citation needed] He also exiled the courtiers who had asked him to spare Lady Jang's life.[5]
On 7 October 1701, Sukjong passed a decree prohibiting any concubine from ever becoming Queen, and on 10 October 1701, Lady Jang was executed by poisoning at Chwiseondang Hall, her residence inside Changgyeonggung. She was 42 years old.
Burial
editHer tomb is called Daebinmyo and was originally located in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, but in June 1969 it was moved to the Seooneung Cluster, in Deogyang District, Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, near Myeongneung, which contains the tombs of King Sukjong and two of his wives, Queen Inhyeon and Queen Inwon.[6][7] The relocation took place because the tomb was blocking the government's planned expansion of the city.
Behind the tomb is a large rock, and a pine tree has broken through the rock to grow. There is speculation that this reveals that Lady Jang's ki (energy) was, and still is, very strong. Some Korean websites report that because Lady Jang was such a strong woman there is a belief that if young, single women who want a boyfriend visit the tomb and pay a tribute, they will soon find love.[8][9]
Her memorial tablet was enshrined in Chilgung (칠궁; 七宮), the place which houses the spirit tablets of seven royal consorts who gave birth to kings.[10]
Ancestry
edit| Ancestors of Huibin Jang | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Family
edit- Father: Jang Hyeong (장형; 張炯; 25 February 1623 – 12 January 1669)
- Mother
- Biological: Lady Yun of the Papyeong Yun clan (파평 윤씨; 1626–1698); second wife
- Step: Lady Go of the Jeju Go clan (증 정경부인 제주 고씨; 濟州 髙氏; ? – 1645)
Sibling(s)
- Elder half-brother: Jang Hui-sik (장희식; 1640 – ?)
- Elder sister: Lady Jang (장씨)
- Elder brother: Jang Hui-jae (장희재; 1651 – 29 October 1701)
Husband
- Yi Sun, King Sukjong of Joseon (이순 조선 숙종; 7 October 1661 – 12 July 1720)
Issue
- Son: Yi Yun, King Gyeongjong of Joseon (이윤 조선 경종; 20 November 1688 – 30 September 1724)
- Son: Yi Seong-su (이성수; 19 July 1690 – 16 September 1690)
In popular culture
edit- Portrayed by Kim Ji-mee in the 1961 film Jang Hui-bin.[11]
- Portrayed by Nam Jeong-im in the 1968 film Femme Fatale, Jang Hee-bin.[12]
- Portrayed by Youn Yuh-jung in the 1971 MBC TV series Jang Hui-bin.[13]
- Portrayed by Lee Mi-sook in the 1981 MBC TV series Women of History: Jang Hui-bin.[13]
- Portrayed by Jun In-hwa in the 1988 MBC TV series 500 Years of Joseon Dynasty: Queen Inhyeon.[13]
- Portrayed by Jung Sun-kyung in 1995 SBS TV series Jang Hee Bin.[13]
- Portrayed by Kim Hye-soo in the 2002–2003 KBS2 TV series Royal Story: Jang Hui-bin.[13][14]
- Portrayed by Yoon Se-ah in the 2007 film Shadows in the Palace.
- Portrayed by Lee So-yeon in the 2010 MBC TV series Dong Yi.[15]
- Portrayed by Choi Woo-ri in the 2012 tvN TV series Queen Inhyun's Man.
- Parodied by members of the pop band Shinhwa in the 25 August 2012 episode of JTBC variety show Shinhwa Broadcasting.[16]
- Portrayed by Kim Tae-hee and Kang Min-ah in the 2013 SBS TV series Jang Ok-jung, Living by Love.[17]
- Portrayed by Oh Yeon-ah in the 2015 SBS TV series Jackpot.
- Inspired a fictional concubine portrayed by Lim Ji-yeon in the 2026 SBS TV series My Royal Nemesis.
Notes
edit- ↑ Legitimate wife between 1690 and 1694.
- ↑ Known as honorific name (존호; 尊號) in the Sinosphere, its closest equivalent in the English-speaking world is the regnal name.
- ↑ The literal translation of bin (빈; 嬪) is "concubine". Combined with the honorific title hui (희; 禧), the full meaning is "Auspicious Concubine".
References
edit- ↑ 네이버 학술정보. Academic.naver.com. Retrieved 26 October 2017.
- ↑ Hulbert, Homer B. (Homer Bezaleel) (26 October 2017). "The history of Korea". Seoul, Methodist Pub. House. Retrieved 26 October 2017 – via Internet Archive.
- ↑ Book "East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History", 3rd pag. 255.
- ↑ Memoirs of Lady Hyegyŏng Page 246.
- ↑ Lee, Bae-young (20 October 2008). Wome in Korean History. Ewha Womans University Press. pp. 109–111. ISBN 978-8973007721.
- ↑ "Daebinmyo Tomb at Seooreung Tombs - Exploring Korea". Exploringkorea.com. 4 August 2011. Retrieved 26 October 2017.
- ↑ "Academic : Information of Palaces and Royal Tombs (Royal Tombs)". Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
- ↑ Jeong, Eun-ji (2 June 2010). "그의 무덤가에서 춤추면 남자친구 생긴다?". joongang.co.kr. Retrieved 25 May 2026.
- ↑ "King Sukjong and Jang Hee Bin's Tombs". dramasrok.wordpress.com. 8 June 2010. Retrieved 26 October 2017.
- ↑ "Chilgung: Traces of the Seven Royal Concubines". The Argus (in Korean). 15 May 2019. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
- ↑ "Lady Jang (Janghuibin) (1961)". Korean Movie Database. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
- ↑ "Femme Fatale, Jang Hee-bin (Yohwa, Jang Hee-bin) (1968)". Korean Movie Database. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 '죽지 않는' 장희빈 벌써 9명, 김태희가 뒤 이을까. OhmyNews (in Korean). 22 September 2012. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
- ↑ "TV Dramas - Actresses Line up for Award Ceremony Takeover". The Chosun Ilbo. 29 December 2003. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
- ↑ Lee, Ga-on (7 May 2010). "Han Hyo-joo says she "hold fast" to her role in DongYi". 10Asia. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
- ↑ Hong, Grace Danbi (24 August 2012). "Shinhwa Transforms into Royal Concubines for Shinhwa Broadcast". EnewsWorld.mnet.com. CJ E&M. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ↑ Ho, Stewart (8 October 2012). "Kim Tae Hee Cast in Her First Historic Drama, Jang Ok Jung as Joseon Dynasty's Infamous Lady Jang Hee Bin". EnewsWorld.mnet.com. CJ E&M. Archived from the original on 27 December 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2013.