Two Armies, Six Guards and the Provincial Forces

Goryeo’s central army consisted of the Two Armies and Six Guards, and its provincial forces of the juhyeongun in the five circuits and the jujingun in the two frontier regions.

The Six Guards are thought to have been set up under Seongjong (995), and the Two Armies (Eungyang and Yongho), the king’s bodyguard, were added later, around the reigns of Mokjong and Hyeonjong. Of the guards, the Jwau, Sinho and Heungwi formed the main force defending the capital and frontier, the Geumo served as police, the Cheonu as ceremonial guard and the Gammun guarded the palace and city gates. The core were professional soldiers on the military register (gunban families), who received soldiers’ land in return for hereditary service. Their generals met in the Jungbang, which became the highest organ of the military regime after the coup of 1170.

The provincial forces were drawn from commoner men. The juhyeongun of the five circuits farmed in peacetime and served as a reserve for policing and labour, while the jujingun of the frontier regions, organized as vanguard, left and right units, were standing border troops. The Gwanggun raised by Jeongjong (947) is thought to have formed their basis.