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Politics3rd lunar month, 1871(Lunar)

Closing of the Seowon Academies

The Daewongun closed all but 47 of the country’s private Confucian academies, having already abolished the Mandongmyo shrine of the Noron faction in 1865.

Mandongmyo, the Noron shrine abolished by the Daewongun in 1865, Hwayang-dong, Goesan
Mandongmyo, the Noron shrine abolished by the Daewongun in 1865, Hwayang-dong, Goesan

Ultrajh · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source

The academies enjoyed exemption from tax and labour, served as bases for factions and exploited the people. Declaring that he would not forgive anyone who harmed the people "even if Confucius himself came back to life", the Daewongun cut some 600 academies to 47. The fury of the Confucian scholars contributed to his fall.

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States and rulers at the time
Joseon — Gojong
Places
Mandongmyo Shrine

People

  • Heungseon Daewongun1820 – 1898

    leader · Gojong's father and regent, who rebuilt Gyeongbokgung and rejected Western trade

Themes that include this event

  • Educational Institutions Through the AgesAD 372 – 1943

    From the Taehak and Gukhak to the Gukjagam and Seonggyungwan, modern schools and the colonial education ordinances — state schools that trained officials and the private schools that filled the gaps