Ganghwa Island is an island on the western coast of the Korean Peninsula, administratively part of Ganghwa-gun, Incheon Metropolitan City. Using the Ganghwa Bridge and Ganghwa Soshiba Bridge, which are connected to the land, it is only an hour's drive from Seoul to Ganghwa Island. Geographically, Ganghwa Island is the main road to Hanyang and Castle via the Han River. Since the Three Kingdoms period, it has become a fierce battle site, constantly invaded by foreign enemies, and foreign cultural relics have also flowed into the mainland through this place. Therefore, Ganghwa Island can be described as a fortress for the defense of the country, and the protrusion of the coast is concentrated into towns, forts, and piers. The Bingyin Yang Disturbance (1866), the Xin Weiyang Disturbance (1871), the Yunyang Incident (1875), and the Sambetsu Rebellion all took place here, and the Treaty of Ganghwa Island (also known as the Treaty of Korean-Japanese Reconciliation, 1876) was also signed here.
In order to avoid excessive interference in the internal affairs of the Mongols, Goryeo moved the capital from Kaijing (present-day Kaesong) to Ganghwa Island (1232~1270). However, when the Goryeo Dynasty decided to heed the Mongols' request and relocate the capital to Kaijing, the government officials raised the anti-flag and launched an uprising, known as the Sambetsu Protest (1270~1273).
In addition to the Goryeo Palace site, there are also relics and relics from different eras on Ganghwa Island. These include the ruins of the prehistoric period - the Hwachi Stone Tomb, the stone altar built by King Tanjun to worship the heavens - the Temple of Graben Star, Ganghwaseong, the site of the 80,000 Tripitaka of Goryeo - the ruins of Zenwonsa Temple, where Cheoljong lived before he ascended the throne, and the oldest Shengke Church in Korea. In 1964, the site of Ganghwa Goryeo Palace was designated as a historical site. In the 70s of the 20th century, the site of the Goryeo Palace was restored as a national defense site.
