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PersonAD 927 – AD 989

Choe Seung-ro

Confucian scholar of Silla head-rank-six origin whose 28-article memorial shaped Seongjong’s Confucian state

He came to Goryeo as a child with King Gyeongsun of Silla and is said to have impressed Taejo by reciting the Analects. In his Twenty-eight Articles of 982 he called Buddhism the way of self-cultivation and Confucianism the foundation of governing the state, urging the court to cut back Buddhist festivals such as Yeondeunghoe and Palgwanhoe, send officials to the provinces and rule by Confucian principles. He also submitted an assessment of the reigns of the five kings from Taejo to Gyeongjong.

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2 related events

  1. AD 982 – AD 997Seongjong’s Confucian Governmentparticipant

    Adopting Choe Seung-ro’s memorial, King Seongjong built the two-chancellery, six-ministry system, set up twelve provincial governorships and founded the National University.

  2. 1
    AD 982Choe Seung-ro’s Twenty-eight Articlesauthor

    Choe Seung-ro presented King Seongjong with an assessment of the five previous reigns and twenty-eight articles on Confucian government.

People who appear alongside

  • King SeongjongAD 960 – AD 997

    Sixth king of Goryeo, who adopted Choe Seung-ro’s 28-article memorial and built a Confucian central and local administration

Themes this person appears in

  • Central Government Through the AgesAD 250 – 1899

    From the noble councils of the Three Kingdoms to the State Council, the Border Defense Council and the Gabo cabinet — how central government shifted between aristocratic consensus and royal power

  • Local Administration Through the AgesAD 250 – 1896

    From the five regions of the Three Kingdoms through nine provinces, the five circuits and two frontiers and the eight provinces to the thirteen — how directly the centre came to rule the regions

  • 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