임지왜란 시 영천성 탈환 전투와 군사적 의의

Abstract

During Imjin War (or Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598)), the Japanese army made a rapid landing on Korean peninsula and made a great success in land battle, thus occupying Hanseong (capital of Joseon) in 20 days. On the other hand, Joseon’s military system and the military power collapsed as the heads of local areas, which were considered to be the commanders at the time of Joseon run away. Even King Seonjo of Joseon escaped out of the castle and went to Uiju through Gaeseong and Pyeongyang. In addition, Joseon faced the collapse of the nation as King Seonjo tried to escape to Liadong, Ming Dynasty. In the areas occupied by Japanese army, the Korean people suffered a lot due to the violence made by the Japanese army such as plundering and killing. So, the scholars in each village tried to form the army (righteous army) to fight the Japanese army. Although the number of winning the fights by Korean righteous armies were no more than 10 times, the righteous army has big military or strategic implications. First, the Korean government army got the time to reorganize and strengthen its military system. Second, Korean people could get back their conviction that they could win the war. thus getting out of the sense of despairs coming from subsequent defeats. Third, by inhibiting the long logistic line of the Japanese army, they can collapse the Japanese army’s sustainability of the military operation. Fourth, as the righteous army was formed and led by the local area’s famous or respectful families or scholars, they could achieve the regional consolidation to defend their villages or areas. Fifth, they fought Japanese army to the end with the mind of self-defense and patriotism (loyalty). In the Yeongcheon Fortress battle, Korean righteous army made the first land battle victory with the brilliant fights by the Korean civilian soldiers and their military leaders such as Kwon Eung-su. The critical elements in the victory in that battle contain the followings. First, the Korean military commander’s excellent leadership, second, the perfect readiness for war and the effective combat actions, third, the accurate understanding of the situation and response to it, fourth, the proper mixture of the psychological warfare and the fake operation, fifth, the rescue of Korean people by using the joint operation, sixth, the acquisition of Yeongcheon, which was the strategically critical area. It is said that ‘the history is the endless conversation between the present and the past’. It is expected that the case of Yeongcheon Fortress battle becomes a good reference for developing the military which can fight and win in the future.