Crown Princess Minhoe

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Crown Princess Minhoe
민회빈
Crown Princess consort of Joseon
Tenure4 December 1627 – 26 April 1645
PredecessorCrown Princess Park
SuccessorCrown Princess Jang
Born(1611-04-18)April 18, 1611
Hanseong, Joseon
DiedApril 30, 1646(1646-04-30) (aged 35)
Hanseong, Joseon
Burial
Yeonghoewon, San 141–20, Noonsa-dong, Gwangmyeong-si, Gyeonggi Province
SpouseCrown Prince Sohyeon
Issue3 sons and 5 daughters
HouseGeumcheon Kang
FatherKang Seok-gi
MotherShin Ye-ok, Lady Shin of the Goryeong Shin clan

Crown Princess Minhoe of the Geumcheon Kang clan (Korean: 민회빈 강씨; Hanja: 愍懷嬪 姜氏; 18 April 1611 – 30 April 1646[1][2]), also known as Crown Princess Consort Sohyeon (Korean: 소현세자빈; Hanja: 昭顯世子嬪; RR: Sohyeon Sejabin; MR: Sohyŏn Sech'apin), was the wife of Crown Prince Sohyeon, the son of King Injo of Joseon and Queen Inyeol of the Cheongju Han clan.

Biography[edit]

Early life and marriage[edit]

Lady Kang was born into the Geumcheon Kang clan to high-ranking state official, Kang Seok-gi, and his wife, Lady Shin of the Goryeong Shin clan (고령 신씨; 高靈 申氏) as their second daughter and sixth child on 18 April 1611.

Through her maternal grandmother, Lady Kang was the great-great-great-granddaughter of Princess Myeongsuk, who was the only daughter of Queen Sohye and King Deokjong, and was also a 6th great-granddaughter of Grand Prince Imyeong, who was the son of Queen Soheon and King Sejong.

Through her maternal grandfather, she was a 5th great-granddaughter of Shin Suk-ju.

In 1627, Lady Kang, aged 16, was chosen by the court as a consort to the Crown Prince Sohyeon, the son of King Injo and Queen Inryeol.

Palace conflict and death[edit]

On 16 January 1636, the crown princess's mother-in-law died in Changgyeong Palace as she suffered from postpartum illness.

In December 1636, when the Qing invasions happened, the crown princess spent 8 years as a hostage in the Qing Dynasty with Crown Prince Sohyeon. During her time there, she birthed 3 daughters and 2 sons.

After she returned to Korea in 1644, she and her husband suffered from Injo's cold treatment. Her step mother-in-law, Queen Jangryeol, had also been receiving the same treatment due to Royal Consort Gwi-in Jo who succeeded in having her father-in-law hating the young Queen, and thus moved palaces.

The crown prince and princess were being treated as such because King Injo and his close administrators condemned Sohyeon's conduct as pro-Qing, and even though Prince Sohyeon returned to Korea in 1645, his father King Injo persecuted him for attempting to modernize Korea by bringing in Catholicism and Western science.

Prince Sohyeon died suddenly not long after his return to Korea in 1645; he was found dead in the King's room, mysteriously bleeding severely from the head. Legends say that Injo killed his own son with an ink slab that the Crown Prince brought from China; however, some historians suggest he was poisoned by the fact that he had black spots all over his body after his death and that his body decomposed rapidly. Many, including Crown Princess Kang, tried to uncover what happened to the Crown Prince, but Injo ordered immediate burial and reduced the grandeur of the practice of Crown Prince's funeral. Prince Sohyeon's tomb is located in Goyang, Gyeonggi province, but King Injo never visited his son's tomb.

Afterwards, King Injo appointed Grand Prince Bongrim as the new Crown Prince (who later became King Hyojong) rather than Prince Sohyeon's oldest son, Prince Gyeongseon.

Gwi-in Jo, who was antagonistic toward the former crown princess, started to spread rumors that she was planning to poison the king. Without checking the authenticity of the rumor, the king ordered her death by poisoning as treason.

Aftermath[edit]

Her misfortune, however, did not end there; her elderly mother and four brothers were executed by beating while her three young sons were banished to Jeju Island with two of them dying. Royal Consort Gwi-in of the Okcheon Jo clan was also the cause of Crown Princess Kang's husband's death. She was later given another name, Crown Princess Minhoe, whose Chinese characters mean “grudge and remorse.”

Her youngest son, Prince Gyeongan, returned to the mainland alive and lived to the age of 21. Out of her five daughters, Princess Gyeongsun, her youngest daughter, lived to the age of 54.

Titles[edit]

  • 8 April 1611 – 1627: Lady Kang, daughter of Kang Seok-gi of the Geumcheon Kang clan (강씨; 姜氏)
  • 1627–1645: Her Highness, Crown Princess Consort Kang of Joseon (빈궁 강씨; 嬪宮 姜氏)
  • Posthumous Title: Crown Princess Minhoe of Joseon (민회빈; 愍懷嬪)

Family[edit]

  • Father
    • Kang Seok-gi (강석기; 姜碩期; 23 March 1580 – 28 July 1643)
  • Mother
    • Shin Ye-ok (신예옥; 申禮玉), Lady Shin of the Goryeong Shin clan (고령 신씨; 高靈 申氏; 1581–1647)
  • Siblings
    • Older brother - Kang Mun-seong (강문성; 姜文星; 1602–1646)
    • Older brother - Kang Mun-myeong (강문명; 姜文明; 1604–1646)
    • Older brother - Kang Mun-du (강문두; 姜文斗; 1606–1646)
    • Older brother - Kang Mun-byeok (강문벽; 姜文璧; 1608–1646)
    • Older sister - Lady Kang of the Geumcheon Kang clan (금천 강씨; 1609–?)
    • Younger brother - Kang Mun-jeong (강문정; 姜文井; 1613–1646)
    • Younger sister - Lady Kang of the Geumcheon Kang clan (금천 강씨; 1615–?)
  • Husband
  • Children
    • Unnamed princess (군주; 郡主; 1629–1631); died young
    • Unnamed princess (군주; 郡主; 1631–1640); died young
    • Son - Yi Baek (이백), Prince Gyeongseon (경선군; 慶善君), or Prince Royal Yi Seok-cheol (원손 이석철; 元孫 李石鐵; 1636–1648)
    • Daughter - Princess Gyeongsuk (경숙군주; 慶淑郡主; 1637–1655)
    • Son - Yi Seok-rin, Prince Gyeongwan (경완군 석린; 慶完君 石磷; 1640–1648)
    • Daughter - Princess Gyeongnyeong (경녕군주; 慶寧郡主; 1642–1682)
    • Daughter - Yi Jeong-on, Princess Gyeongsun (경순군주 정온; 慶順郡主 正溫; 1643–1697)
    • Son - Yi Seok-gyeon or Yi Hoe (이회; 李檜), Prince Gyeongan (경안군 석견; 慶安君 石堅; 5 October 1644 – 22 October 1665)
    • Unnamed son (왕손; 王孫; 1645–1645)

In popular culture[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Sometimes can be Crown Princess Kang (Korean: 강빈; Hanja: 姜嬪; RR: Gang-bin; MR: Kang-pin).
  2. ^ In lunar calendar, the crown princess was born on 6 March 1611 and died on 15 March 1646

Sources[edit]

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