19세기 후반 高宗의 국정 운영과 別入侍

Abstract

This paper is a study of the ‘Byeoripsi(別入侍)’ during Gojong's reign in the late 19th century. The Byeoripsi, an official who was granted the privilege of seeing the king from time to time, existed until shortly before Gojong's forced abdication, after he had been installed by Gojong as a practical favourite. Although there had always been officials who served the king in his entourage, the creation of a special position and the granting of such rights was unprecedented. In this sense, the Byeoripsi is important for understanding the political system and political history of Gojong. However, the Byeoripsi have only been partially examined and not fully studied. The Byeoripsi was established by Gojong to shore up his weak political base. At the time of its establishment, the Byeoripsi was largely composed of Noron(老論)-line, Soron(少論)-line, and Royal Family(宗親)-line. Among the Noron were many who had been marginalised during the reign of Heungseon Daewongun(興宣大院君), while the Soron were selected from representative prestigious families. Yuheung Min Family formed the core of the Byeoripsi. This was likely the result of the influence of Queen Myeongseong. In the 1880s, a new group of individuals were recruited to the Byeoripsi. They differed from the previous Byeoripsi in several ways. Unlike the previous Byeoripsi, who came from prestigious families, they were not of high status and had few previous disciples. They were also different in that they had travelled to other countries and had language skills. They were appointed because the role of people with practical skills became important in the process of promoting the reform policy in earnest. The appointment of capable people regardless of their status was positive, but it was also an abnormal phenomenon due to the lack of a new way of recruiting personnel. Gojong used these new Byeoripsi not only to further his reforms, but also for secret diplomacy. When Japanese influence in Korea increased in 1894, Gojong tried to use Byeoripsi to get out of the crisis. To ensure his own safety, Gojong used unattended men as Byeoripsi. Meanwhile, a different type of Byeoripsi emerged around the time of the Joseon Dynasty, which included a mix of wealthy people and those who were involved in shamanism. This was extremely unusual, even considering that the Korean Empire's finances were in dire straits and Gojong's psychological anxiety was high. When we look at Byeoripsi since 1894, the negative aspects are more evident than the positive.