In the middle of the 19th century, When Korea was at the end of its feudal society, domestic class contradictions intensified, peasant uprisings arose one after another, and faced with the threat of aggression by Western capitalist powers, the domestic class contradictions and national crises in Korea were intertwined, and the Korean feudal ruling class still adhered to the policy of closing the country to the outside world. The introduction of the Atlas of the Sea Kingdom injected a breath of fresh air into the ideological circles of North Korea. A group of advanced intellectuals and officials in the DPRK began to wake up, realize the grim situation facing the DPRK, and began to show concern for the West and the whole world, to contact the scientific knowledge and ideas of the West, to accept the ideological propositions of the Progressive Chinese people, to disseminate the new knowledge and ideas of the "Chart of the Sea Country," and to actively seek a way to save the country and the nation.
I. The Atlas of the Sea Kingdom spread to Korea
In March 1845, Quan Daken, the deputy envoy of Xie En's winter solstice, was the first to bring Wei Yuan's "Chart of the Sea Kingdom" back to Korea. After the establishment of Lee's Korea, he pursued the "Great Doctrine" and regularly sent envoys to China every year. Volume 16 of the late Joseon Dynasty official Xu Chuan's poetry collection,"Sex Jai Collection", records: "Fifty tuzhi of the sea kingdom, compiled by Wei Yuan, the secretary of the Qing cabinet. In Xianfengzhong, Yangyi was plagued by China and was puzzled for many years. The source works are counted into the countries in the ocean, taking their local size, mountains and rivers, roads far and near, wind and religion of good and evil, and exquisite instruments, but they are returned to this book, which can be said to be a long-term concern for the world, not a heroic person can care? Shi Ye Quan Shangshu (Da Ken) returned the book until Yanjing obtained it... When the Xian Temple heard about it, he ordered it to enter the temple and return it with a royal pen inscription. The intention of the saint is to rule, just as it is..." It can be seen that the Korean rulers attach more importance to Wei Yuan's "Chart of the Sea Kingdom.".
Around 1850, the Korean archaeologist Kim Jong-hee collected the Atlas of the Sea Country. In his youth, he visited Yanjing with his father Jin Lujing, and during his stay in Yanjing he extensively exchanged ideas with scholars of the Qing Dynasty. After returning to Korea, he commented on the "Chart of the Sea Country", saying: "Wei Moshen's study has opened a different door among sinology in recent days, does not abide by empty words and empty words, and focuses on seeking truth from facts," and has repeatedly said that it is a book worth reading for people of insight in the DPRK.
Li Guijing is one of the representative figures of the Korean School of Reality, and he introduced in detail the books imported from China to Korea in the "Five Continents Yanwen Long Notes", "There have been many surprising books in the Central Plains in recent days, and those who have come from our east have also been consecrated, such as dozens of volumes of Haiguo Tuzhi, 100 volumes of Nguyen's complete books, more than 10 volumes of Yinghuan Zhiluo, and 120 volumes of Shoushan Pavilion series... This is all Hainaiqi book also. ”
Oh Kyung Seok is one of the representatives of The Civilized Thought of Korea, and came to China many times as early as 1850. Wu Qingxi's son, Wu Shichang, recalled, "My father, Wu Qingxi, as a Chinese translator, accompanied the delegation to China many times. When he stayed in China, he saw and heard about the competition between countries in the world and felt something. Then he studied the history of the great powers and the history of the rise and fall of various countries, in order to understand the corruption of the politics of the country and the situation of lagging behind the general trend of the world, and to understand that there will always be a tragic situation in the country. Therefore, when he returned from China, he brought all kinds of new books with him. Wu Kyung-seok transferred books such as "Chart of the Sea Country" that he had brought back to North Korea to Liu Hongji to read.
Park Jue-shou was the founder of the idea of enlightenment in Korea, and as a senior Korean official, he sent many missions to China, witnessed the situation of the Qing Dynasty under the invasion of Western powers, saw and heard the new knowledge of the West, and taught the book "Chart of the Sea Country" that he had read to Kim Yu-kyun, Kim Yoon-sik and other disciples. Kim Yoon-sik later said: "The officials of Yu Yu Yu Tang (Yu Ji Jun's number) are rarely handsome, and when they are self-destructive, they speak well. Mr. Park Joo-jae (Park Joo-su's number) tasted his poems, knew that they were national instruments, and gave wei Moshen's "Chart of the Sea Country" that is: "When foreign affairs are unknowable, I think it is self-motivated."
Second, the understanding of Korean scholars on the "Atlas of the Sea Country"
North Korean scholars admired Wei Yuan's profound learning. The Historical Record of the Joseon Dynasty, the Records of Longhu Xian, copied another of Wei Yuan's works, the Shengwu Ji ( Shengwu Ji ) volume VI " The Chronicle of the Conquest of Korea at the Beginning of the Kingdom " , and added : " The Shengwu reporter also said that the Qing Dynasty used troops at the beginning and end of the qing dynasty, since the founding of the country to the Daoguang Shi Fan Sixteen Volumes, Daoguang Twenty-two Years Ren Yin, cabinet secretary Shao Yang Wei Yuan wrote. Once, 3 or 40 years ago, I made the master Yan Yi know the past, and those who could write articles followed the past, and returned to Wei Yuan's papers, and his flooding was enough to be the giant of Yan, and he was already mentally aware. It can be seen from this that Wei Yuan's writings have been concerned by Korean scholars.
Since 1845, Wei Yuan's Chart of the Sea Kingdom has been transmitted to Korea by "envoys to Beijing", officials, and thinkers, and then the new knowledge and ideas introduced in the book have been passed on to the younger generation. In the closed Korean society, the Atlas of the Sea Kingdom has played a positive role in promoting the understanding of new knowledge by Korean scholars and the ideas of appearance and coastal defense.
First, North Korean officials' knowledge of world geography stemmed from Wei Yuan's Atlas of the Sea Kingdom.
According to the Diary of the Imperial Household, "Shang yue: What is the size of Annam Ryukyu? Chun Yi Yue: Detailed in the Sea Kingdom Chart Chronicle", "Shang Yue: Lucia Cloud, where is it? Ambassador: It is russia also. Shang: But what is Rusia? Ambassador: Rusia is also a russian name. ”
After 1860, Korea became the object of contention between the Western capitalist powers, and in November 1866, in the face of the arrival of the French fleet, Korea paid more attention to the study of the Atlas of the Sea State. According to Li Guijing's Dialectic of the New Strange Book of the Central Plains, "the 'Map of the Sea Kingdom' of the Five Great States of the State Affairs Sect, Zhao LingXiang Yinyong and Cui Shangshe Hanqi collected at home."
It can be seen that Cho Yin-yong, who was the head of the Korean parliamentary government at that time, and Choe Han-chi, a representative figure of the late Korean real school, collected the "Chart of the Sea Country". Cui Hanqi wrote the Earth Codex in May 1857 on the basis of reference to the Atlas of the Sea Kingdom. In the "Earth Classics" it is recorded: "The 'Atlas of the Sea Kingdom' is from the first publication, and the absurd divine books of fuji Xishi are recorded without loss. Those who have not obtained a program are prone to be dazzled. 'Yinghuan Zhiluo' is out of the way to close, the order is gradually in place, it is too simple." It can be seen that the "Atlas of the Sea Kingdom" spread to Korea, which played a relatively positive role in the understanding of world geography for some officials and scholars.
Second, some officials and scholars in the DPRK, influenced by the Atlas of the Sea Country, gradually realized that the isolation of the country could not solve the problem of the DPRK, and advocated that the DPRK needed to open its doors and trade with various countries, and its concept of appearance also began to change
For example, The founders of the Korean idea of enlightenment, Such as Wu Kyung-seok and Park Jue-so, have sent envoys to China many times, seen and come into contact with new knowledge in the West, expressed a strong desire for knowledge in the capitalist world, and resonated with Wei Yuan's "those who want to control foreign countries must first learn the beginning of their feelings." They put forward the proposition of "going back to the gains and losses of the previous generation, and looking at China's advantages and disadvantages" and "foreign affairs must be known," opposing the DPRK's closed-door policy, reforming the irrational maladministration, and bringing about changes in the DPRK.
By the second half of the 19th century, the progressive youth of Kim Yu-jung, who were influenced by Theo-sook, Wu Kyung-seok, Liu Hongji, and other civilized thinkers, launched the "Founding movement", advocating that the DPRK open its doors in an appropriate way, demanding that the DPRK learn from the West, carry out internal political reforms, develop capitalism, and rapidly civilize The DPRK and become a modernized country.
North Korean civilized thinkers studied and absorbed the new knowledge and ideas of the "Chart of the Sea Country", and their appearance also changed, just as "the formation of Korean civilization thought played an external role in the foreign affairs books from China", north Korea's appearance was transformed into a civilized ideology of Korean national autonomy corresponding to the aggression of modern Western powers.
Third, Wei Yuan's idea of "mastering the art of mastering the art of mastering the art of mastering the art of the division" influenced some Officials and scholars in The DPRK, who began to care about the security of the DPRK's coastal defense
In particular, in 1866, French warships invaded Korea, further concerned about coastal defense issues, and sought coastal defense countermeasures. The coastal defense ideology of the "Chart of the Sea Country" has played a certain role in promoting the formation of the coastal defense ideology of the DPRK. According to the Complete Works of Mr. Nguyen Don, "The 'Atlas of the Sea Kingdom' is a necessary book, and I seem to count the treasures in his house." When the red ship may be involved in the territory, in the heavy door to analyze the meaning, how can we underestimate those who judge the situation of the country, and there are those who can imitate it. I can't look at it carefully, and I can't even be ashamed. Although it is impossible to fulfill its ship system, such as making a sail, it is enough to imitate it, and none of them have the heart to die."
After reading the "Atlas of the Sea Country", Yin Zongyi combined with the actual situation of coastal defense in Korea, and wrote the "New Edition of The Defense" in 1848. In volume 6 of the book, "Preparing for the Imperial Speculation", four articles of "Measuring the Height and Low of the Cannon with Quadrants", "The Size of the Attached Quadrant", "TheOry of the Guidelines for the Centerline of the Artillery Instructions", and "The Illustration of the Hue Algorithm" in volume 99 of the "Chart of the Sea Country" are copied, emphasizing the necessity of coastal defense.
Proceeding from the coastal situation in Korea, he put forward the coastal defense theory of modern Korea. After reading the "Atlas of the Sea Country," Kim Jong-hee was deeply at a loss for the sharp increase in the number of Western "strange ships" that haunted the Coast of Korea, and advocated adopting the coastal defense strategy of the "Atlas of the Sea Country" to strengthen the coastal defense of the DPRK. Kim Yoon-sik made suggestions on North Korea's coastal defense policy with reference to the Atlas of the Sea Country. Park Ki-su proposed the establishment of an artillery corps to prevent the intrusion of Western ships, which later became the core of the anti-Western ships. According to the instructions of the "Atlas of the Sea Kingdom", the Emperor of the Great Courtyard imitated the American merchant ship "Shemen" that sank in the Datong River to build a Western steamship. Based on the weapons map of the "Chart of the Sea Country", North Korea produced and used modern Western weapons such as mine cannons and steamships.
Although these imitations are still very naïve and crude, after all, under the influence of the "Chart of the Sea Country", the DPRK's proposal of a coastal defense strategy that suits the national conditions is an effort, and it is a precedent for Wei Yuan's "Sea State Atlas" to have a greater impact on the formation of the DPRK's coastal defense thought in the middle of the 19th century.
To sum up, in the middle of the 19th century, in the face of the aggression of the European and American powers and the historic turning point of the imminent collapse of the feudal system, the "Atlas of the Sea Country" was transmitted to Korea through various channels, which had a greater impact on the Korean society that still insisted on closing the country. Some officials and scholars of the DPRK have been awakened by the new knowledge and ideas of the "Atlas of the Sea Country", and after carefully studying the "Atlas of the Sea Country", their understanding of the geography of the world has changed, as well as the positive changes in the appearance and coastal defense ideas, especially the idea of "mastering the art of the master to control the yi" has a relatively far-reaching significance for a country like the DPRK as a practical plan for opening the door to the outside world.