Kim Chung-seon

Kim Chung-seon (Korean: 김충선; 1571–1642), also known by his birth name Sayaka (沙也可)[lower-alpha 1] and art name Mohadang (모하당), was a Japanese general who defected to Korea during the Japanese invasion.[lower-alpha 2]

Kim Chung-seon
Nokdong Seowon
Korean name
Hangul	김충선
Hanja	金忠善
Revised Romanization	Gim Chung-seon
McCune–Reischauer	Kim Ch'ungsŏn
Art name
Hangul	모하당
Hanja	慕夏堂
Revised Romanization	Mohadang
McCune–Reischauer	Mohadang
Courtesy name
Hangul	선지
Hanja	善之
Revised Romanization	Seonji
McCune–Reischauer	Sŏnji

After his defection, Kim served in the Joseon army, contributing to Korean victories over Japanese forces in the battles of Dongnae and Ulsan. Thereafter he was granted his Korean name, on the recommendations of Gwon Yul and others, and was made part of the Gimhae Kim lineage.

Kim continued his military service after the end of the Japanese invasions in 1598, working for 10 years on securing the northern border. He fought the rebellion of Yi Gwal in 1624, personally capturing Yi's lieutenant Seo A-ji (서아지 / 徐牙之). In 1636, he participated in the defense against the Second Manchu invasion of Korea, credited with the death of some 500 Qing troops at the battle of Ssangnyeong.

After Joseon's surrender to the Manchus, Kim retired from military life, moving to Daegu where he married the daughter of the mok (목; 牧) administrative district commander Jang Chun-jeom (장춘점 / 張春點). They settled in present-day Urok-ri, Gachang-myeon, Dalseong-gun. Kim devoted himself to Confucian ethics, promulgating gahun (family principles) and hyangyak (village creed).

The Nokdong Seowon in Urok-ri was erected in his memory in 1789. This seowon was abolished in 1864 as part of the regent Daewon-gun's general campaign against seowon, but was reestablished in 1914 under the Japanese colonial regime. The seowon remains a popular destination for Japanese tourists in Daegu.[1]

During the Japanese colonial era in the 20th century, Japanese officials and scholars tried to deny Kim’s existence. Some scholars visited the village and personally investigated the records handed down in his family. However, they did not recognize him as Japanese. Rather, they considered him “half Korean and half Japanese” or just a fictional figure.

In 1930, Hidetaka Nakamura of the Japanese colonial government’s Korean History Compilation Committee conducted an investigation and confirmed that Kim Chung-seon was indeed a Japanese defector. Recently, a monument in memory of Kim was built in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan.[2]

Kim Chung-seon is the founder of one of the Korean clans, the Urok Kim clan.[3] Kim's 6th-generation descendants compiled his collected works, which exist in two editions.