ConflictMarch 1728(Lunar)

Yi In-jwa’s Rebellion

Hard-line Soron and some Southerners, claiming Yeongjo had a hand in Gyeongjong’s death, rose to deny his legitimacy; they seized Cheongju but were soon crushed (the Musin revolt).

Stele honoring O Myeong-hang for crushing the Yi In-jwa rebellion, erected in Anseong in 1728
Korearoadtour · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

When Gyeongjong died after four years and the Noron-backed Yeongjo succeeded, hard-line Soron and some Southerners spread rumours that Yeongjo had poisoned his brother and plotted to enthrone Prince Milpung. Yi In-jwa took Cheongju and killed the provincial army commander; there were risings in Gyeongsang and Jeolla too, but government troops defeated the rebels at Anseong and Juksan.

Seeing factional strife turn into armed revolt, Yeongjo pressed his policy of impartiality (tangpyeong) harder: he fostered a non-partisan group, closed many private academies that served as factional bases, took away the personnel officials’ right to name their successors, and set up the Tangpyeong stele before the Seonggyungwan (1742).

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States and rulers at the time: Joseon — Yeongjo
Places: Cheongju Fortress

People

Yi In-jwa1728
leader · Leader of the 1728 rebellion of hard-line Soron and Southerners who denied Yeongjo’s legitimacy; he took Cheongju before being defeated
Yeongjo1694 – 1776
monarch · Twenty-first king of Joseon, known for his impartiality policy and tax reform, and for the death of his son
Gyeongjong1688 – 1724
related figure · Twentieth king of Joseon, son of Sukjong and Royal Consort Jang, backed by the Soron; he died after four years and was succeeded by his half-brother Yeongjo

Before and after

Earlier: 1721 Sinim Purges
Later: 1734 Jeong Seon’s Complete View of the Diamond Mountains

Themes that include this event

Factional Politics in Joseon1498 – 1863
From the literati purges to in-law government — how Sarim factions moved from coexistence and checks to purges and one-faction rule, then through Tangpyeong to the dominance of a few clans
Cheongjuc. 700,000 years ago – 1728
From the Heungsu child of Durubong Cave to the Jikji — Silla’s secondary capital Seowon, where the oldest surviving metal-type book was printed