History of Korea

The Politics of the Choson Dynasty (1392-1901)

The Choson Dynasty, otherwise known as the Yi Dynasty, was Korea's last dynasty. Founded by Yi Songgye in 1392, the Choso Dynasty lasted for over five hundred years. In 1910, the dynasty officially ended with the annexation of Korea by Japan. The dynasty's official ideology was Neo-Confucianism, Chu Hsi style.

To learn more about the Politics of Choson, use the following links as a starting point.

• Early Choson Politics: from the founding of the dynasty to the end of the 15th century
• Middle Choson Politics: from the end of the 15th century to 1800
• Late Choson Politics: from 1800 to 1910
• Choson Kings
• Brief Description of Political Institutions
• Brief Description of Economic Institutions

As a word of caution, the subdivisions into three periods (early, middle, late) are arbitrary and have been adopted purely for managibility of this long-lived dynasty.

Return to Choson Dynasty