​Considerations New political decision model emerges

Author: ​Lee, Hyunwook

Page: 55-96

Abstract

 This paper traces the meaning of “handling matters of state(聽政)” discussions in Goryeo(高麗). From the reign of King Wu(禑王) onwards, the officials(官人) continuously petitioned the king for the implementation of 'handling matters of state'. Rather than being a generic term for the resolution of political affairs, the term came to refer to a specific form of political decision-making process: the king would receive a council of officials, report on their affairs, and make decisions regarding them. Where, then, did the officials' idea of a specific form of “handling matters of state” come from? How did the practice of this idea begin? Why did officials continue to petition for the implementation of handling matters of state? This paper attempts to answer these questions.

 First, where did the idea of “handling matters of state” come from and how was it implemented? I turned my attention to the Ming Emperor Taizu(太祖)'s letter sealed with an imperial seal(璽書), received in the 19th year of King Gongmin(恭愍王). In this letter, the emperor insisted that the King should have a fixed place to show dignity to his subjects. A few months later, the first “handling matters of state” was carried out at Bopyeongcheong(報平廳). The process of preparing for the “handling matters of state”, including the erection of the “no-frills” folding screen, is interpreted as a demonstration of the king's dignity. However, King Gongmin reduced the number of “handling matters of state” from the original plan, and even then, they seem to have been seldom executed. Subsequent kings also practiced “handling matters of state”, but only intermittently and sporadically. The reason why kings did not enforce “handling matters of state” is because, since the Yuan(元) Dynasty, they were able to handle most of their affairs through a small circle of entourage. King Chungryul(忠烈王)’s bītīkchī(必闍赤) and King Gongmin's inner cabinet(內宰樞) were symbolic institutions that represented aspects of such entourage politics.
 Under these circumstances, the officials were critical of the dominance of a small circle of officials and sought to change the political decision-making model of the time by expanding the contact between the king and the officials. They mobilized the “handling matters of state”, which they had done several times before, and petitioned for its implementation. The officials chose the “handling matters of state” model because it allowed them to report directly to the king and receive decisions from him, creating more contact between the king and officials.

handling matters of state(聽政), King Gongmin(恭愍王), Bopyeongcheong(報平廳), Emperor Hongwu(洪武帝, 明 太祖), letter sealed with an imperial seal(璽書)​