Division from Sarim After the death of Queen Dowager
Munjeong and her brother
Yun Wŏnhyŏng in the late
Myeongjong period, the
Sarim faction, which had endured four
literati purges throughout the sixteenth century, came to power as the dominant political faction. At the time, the Sarim were united as a single faction. But this unity deteriorated during the reign of
King Seonjo (1552–1567–1608). In 1574, the official
Kim Hyowŏn was nominated for the position of section chief of the Ministry of Personnel () which had the privilege of promoting scholar-officials, including the next section chief. However,
Sim Ŭigyŏm, the brother of
Queen Insun, opposed Kim's promotion on the grounds that Kim had often given bribes to the corrupt official Yun Wŏnhyŏng. However, Kim was promoted. The incident resulted in a large political debate on whether Kim Hyowŏn's actions were just, titled the
Eulhae Dangron ('factional strifes of 1575'). Supporters of Kim included
Kim Uong,
Yu Sŏngnyong,
Hŏ Yŏp,
Yi Sanhae,
Yi Pal,
Chŏng Chiyŏn,
Y Sŏngjŏn, and
Chŏng Yugil, while major supporters of Sim were Chŏng Ch'ŏl,
Yun Tusu,
Pak Sun,
Kim Kyehwi,
Ku Samaeng,
Hong Sŏngmin, and
Sin Hŭngsi. The people who took the side of Kim became known as 'Easterners', because Kim's house was in Geoncheondong (now
Inhyeon-dong) to the east of Seoul, while the supporters of Sim, who lived in Jeongreungbang (now
Jeongreung-dong) to the west of Seoul, became known as 'Westerners'. The controversy forever split the united Sarim into two opposing parties. Most Easterners at the time of the Eulhae Dangron were younger officials, many having been officials only since the 1560s or 1570s. Moreover, they were generally students of
Cho Sik or
Yi Hwang. Therefore, the Easterners had a more liberal ideology. However, the Easterners, who were by far the majority in court, were not pleased that Yi I was apparently neutral in the conflict, when they believed that Sim Ŭigyŏm had clearly wronged. However, Yi I believed that both Kim and Sim had done both good and bad things. Sim had prevented a fifth purge of the Sarim (by chasing
Yi Ryang and his followers from court in 1563), while Kim had helped form a Sarim government by introducing many new scholars into the government. However, Sim had interfered in politics despite his status as a relative of the queen, while Kim had been close to Yun Wŏnhyŏng despite his being a
Seonbi. Yi I therefore believed that both sides were equal in their deeds and misdeeds. However, Yi I believed that the fury of the Easterners had to be calmed. To do so, he wrote an advice for the king to fire Sim Ŭigyŏm and gave it to the Easterner
Chŏng Inhong, asking him to not change anything in the advice. However, Chŏng added the single sentence "gathers other officials to create a faction" in the list of Sim's misdeeds in the advice. When
Seonjo asked Chŏng who "the other officials" were, Chŏng replied that it was
Chŏng Ch'ŏl and the brothers Yun Tusu and Yun Kŭnsu, who were at the time the sole Westerners in court. Yi I was angered that Chŏng had changed the words of his advice, forcing Chŏng to revoke his former words by saying that though Chŏng Ch'ŏl had done much wrong, he did not create a faction. He then retired to his hometown, causing the Easterners to be furious at Yi I. Yi I returned in the early 1580s (Chŏng Ch'ŏl also returned), and in 1582 declared himself a Westerner, revoking his earlier position as a neutral observer. However, the Westerners were no match for the Easterners, thus creating a solidly Easterner government in the 1580s until
Chŏng Yŏrip's purge. creating a solidly Easterner government for five years until 1589. Yi I and Sŏng Hon were ferociously attacked by Easterners, often on the charges that they had attempted to create a faction. This was often refuted by the pupils of Yi and Sŏng, however they could not effectively oppose the Easterners. The major seats in government, especially that of
Yŏngŭijŏng (by
No Susin), were taken by major Easterners. The more aggressive Westerners, such as
Cho Hŏn, were exiled. mainstream historians generally believe that
Yi I advised the king to prepare 100,000 soldiers against possible foreign invasions. However, this was refused by
Yu Sŏngnyong, a major leader of the Easterners, because Yu believed that raising a large army would be harsh on the populace. However, Yi's worries were exemplified in 1592, when 200,000 Japanese soldiers
invaded Busan. However, there is a theory that the advice was in fact a forgery invented by Yi's pupil
Kim Jang-Saeng to make Yi I look wiser and to make
Yu Sŏngnyong look foolish. The king already disliked Chŏng, and Chŏng was forced to retire to
Jeonju. Chŏng was also an ideologue, who believed that "the world is public property, with many owners", and that "
Yao and
Shun became great because they gave power to the talented and not to their sons." However, the validity of the claim has been disputed, especially the reason that a major Easterner like Chŏng would rebel against the Easterner government. It was also found that Chŏng had claimed the existence of a more influential entity in the rebellion, named 'Kil Sambong'. Sambong was the courtesy name of
Chŏng Tojŏn, who at the time considered to be a treasonous subject. The identity or even the very existence of 'Kil Sambong' remained unknown. Though various testimonies about 'Kil Sambong' were told by Chŏng Yŏrip's acquaintances, the testimonies did not match at all on crucial topics such as age, height, or appearance. The purge furthered the distance between Easterners and Westerners as eternal enemies, especially as up to a thousand Easterners were killed, exiled, or fired in the purge. The deaths of Chŏng Yŏrip, Yi Pal, and Ch'oe Yŏnggyŏng, who were all from the
Honam region, caused a distaste for people from Honam within the court; , who brought down Chŏng Ch'ŏl's Westerner regime in 1590 However, Yi Sanhae knew that Seonjo was much closer to
Royal Noble Consort Inbin Kim and her eldest son,
Prince Sinseong, over either Imhae or Gwanghae. Yi also knew that both Chŏng Ch'ŏl and Yu Sŏngnyong wanted Gwanghae as crown prince. Finally, Yi was also aware that Yu had a cautious nature, while Chŏng did not. However, Yi Sanhae did not appear at the promised date (he claimed he was ill). Yu Sŏngnyong was too cautious to bring the subject up, and Chŏng Ch'ŏl was the first to advise Seonjo to make Gwanghae Crown Prince. When Chŏng Ch'ŏl brought the matter up, Seonjo was infuriated, believing that the story told by Consort In was true. Seonjo exiled Chŏng Ch'ŏl and fired Westerners such as the Yun Tusu brothers, recreating a solidly Easterner government. This was refused. Nevertheless, Toyotomi continuously asked the Joseon Kingdom to open such a route. Seonjo, worried about a possible war with a unified Japan, sent the Easterner
Kim Sŏngil and the Westerner
Hwang Yung-il to Japan as envoys. The Seonjo Sillok, compiled by Easterners during the reign of King Gwanghae, says that Hwang accepted so many gifts from Japan that his "pockets were full of money", while Kim refused to accept any form of gift. When the envoys returned to Joseon, Hwang said that Toyotomi was "strong and fierce", and that it was almost certain that Japan would invade. Kim, however, said that Toyotomi was like a "cowardly rat" and that he would not invade. The location caused those who wanted Chŏng's death to be called the 'Northerners', while those who opposed his death became called 'Southerners'. The students of
Cho Sik had suffered terrible damages by Chŏng Yŏrip's purge, while the followers of
Yi Hwang had not lost anyone. By 1598, the split of the Easterners had become apparent, with Southerners such as
Yu Sŏngnyong being attacked by Northerners such as
Yi Ich'ŏm. However, the Northerners were still closer to the Southerners than to the Westerners, and after the Westerners
gained power in 1623, most of the surviving Northerners were absorbed by the Southerners. == Ideology ==