방촌 황희의 재상 리더십

Abstract

Hwang Hee(1363-1452) was a famous the prime minister who supported King Taejong and King Sejong. He supported Sejong and ran state affairs, and as a careful advisor to Sejong, he demonstrated the leadership of the prime minister, who worked together with the king. Hwang Hee's leadership as prime minister was based on two individual competencies. One was the prudence and great competence of character, and the other was the practical competence that led to reasonable and practical results in dealing with affairs. First, Hwang Hee was not interested in the rapidly changing direction of power, but remained cautious during every sudden political change during his life, and is widely known for his generous personality. However, in national affairs, he put priority on practical interests and emphasized principles, so he tried to treat the people coldly. Second, Hwang Hee has served as a major government post since King Taejong's reign, including the king's chief of staff and the chief executive of all Government departments, showing realistic determination and stable ability to manage state affairs due to his excellent view of state affairs. Hwang Hee's leadership was based on Confucian moral political ideas. From the perspective of Confucian moral political ideas, the most important task for the prime minister to serve the king is to speak frankly to the king and treat his subordinates well. Hwang Hee said many words that were strongly correct to the king. Hwang Hee served as an advisor critical of the national policy issues that Sejong promoted as a core policy of reform politics. Hwang Hee disagreed with Sejong on major national policies while serving as prime minister. Representative examples are the northern military policy promoted by Sejong, the reform of the tax system, and the issue of his son (Munjong) governing state affairs instead of Sejong. In response to these issues, Hwang Hee played a role in coordinating and reconciling differences between the king and his subjects in the center of state affairs. Jang Yu(張維) and Heo Mok(許穆) evaluated Hwang Hee as excellent as prime minister and performed his duties well, while Lee Yi(李珥) and Heo Gyun(許筠) evaluated Hwang Hee as a wise minister, but from a view of the spirit of neo-Confucianism it was not enough to create the period of great peace.