세종대 4군 개척의 담론 다시 생각하기

Abstract

This article examines the historical validity of historiographic discourse concerning King Sejong’s military achievement in the northern part of the Korean peninsular. King Sejong, considered as one of the greatest kings in Korean history, succeeded in military operations to annex the areas that connect both Yalu River and Tuman River. His military success has often been described as establishment of “4 Gun” and “6 Jin.” I argue, however, that this characterization is inaccurate, considering the historical process by which “4 Gun” came into existence. In fact, one of the so-called “4 Gun”(Yoeyeon) was established in King Taejong’s reign, and additional ve administrative units (Weiwon·Gaseung·Wuye·Muchang·Samsu) were established in King Sejong’s reign. Therefore, it is not entirely correct to call those newly established administrative units “4 Gun” (because there were more than four). In addition, they were not built in unoccupied areas, but rather were products of reorganizing administrative areas that neighbor them (such as Gapsan, Ganggyey, Yoeyeon). This article further explores why this historically inaccurate term, “4 Gun,” has been proposed and circulated, by tracing the use of the term in Korean historiography. I propose that historians have adopted this term in order to overcome the coloniast paradigm of Colonial Historical Studies. In order to better understand Chosun’s foreign policy, we need to rethink the validity of such terms as the establishment of 4 Gun, and to take a broad perspective by considering King Sejong’s military expansion in continuum with early Chosun’s aggressive expansionism.