The Tomb of Jeong Mun-bu, General of the Righteous Army of the Imjin War
National Designation No.: Gyeonggi-do Province Monument No. 37
Date: The third year of the Reign of King Injo of Joseon (1624)
Location: 379-32 Yeonghygon-dong, Uijeongbu-si, Gyeonggi-do
Chungdeoksa, located in Mt. Song, Yonghyeon-dong, Uijeongbu city, houses the tomb and the mortuary tablet of Chunguigong (Faithful and Righteous Public Figure), Jeong Mun-bu, pennamed Nongpo. A civil official during the mid-Joseon Period, Jeong recovered vast lands through the six victories in Hamgyeong-do during the Imjin War.
Born in Seoul to the Jeong family originating from Haeju, Jeong Mun-bu passed the Gwageo, the government exam of Joseon, with the second honor in the 21st year of the reign of King Seonjo (1588). He worked as a minister in Saheonbu, Seungjeongwon. In the 24th year of the reign of Seonjo, he was appointed as the Bukpyeongsa of North Hamgyeong Province, patrolling the 6 jin’s in the north, promoting citizen’s education and fostering elite human resources. In the 25th year of the reign of Seonjo, when the North Hamgyeong Province was occupied by Japanese troops led by Katu Kiyomasa, a part of the citizens of Hamkyeong rose to betray their nation and helped the Japanese arrest the two princes of Joseon. I addition, the Chinese in the north invaded Hamkyeong Province. To counter these crises in Hamkyeong, Jeong gathered the Righteous Army with 100 people, which grew to six thousand. He eliminated the national betrayers, Kuk Sepil and Jeong Malsu, from the political arena, and gained a series of victories starting with Gyeongseong Datcheop (Big Fight) followed by those in Gilju, Jangpyeong, Ssangpo, Dancheon and Baektopgyo. In the six Big Fights, his troops killed more than 1,000 Japanese soldiers in successive victories, recovering the 1000-ri land in North Hamgyeong from the Japanese, defeating the Yeojin tribe in the north and fortifying the six jin’s for national security. The great deeds of Chunguigong, however, was obscured by Yun Takyeon, the governor of Hamgyeong, who made a false, reduced report of his victorious deeds that overcame the crises in the region. Avoiding political in-fighting among political parties in the central government, he chose to work in remote positions such as Moksa of Gilju, and visited the Chinese Myeong Dynasty as Busa of Saeun. Afterwards, he was appointed the champan of Heongjo and Yeojo (or Wonsu) but he declined the offers and chose to retreat to Mt. Song, Uijeongbu, and concentrated in writing. In later years, he was arrested and tortured for a false charge involving Park Heung-gu’s revolt. He was found innocent and discharged from the charge. But he then was implicated in a conspiracy because of a poem he wrote during his tenure as the Changmyeong Busa, and was put through harsh torment under the unfair charge by the then officials of merit who had devoted to the dethronement of the king. He died at the age of 60.
Forty one years after his death, or the 6th year of the reign of King Hyeongjong, his innocence was proved and he received a revised verdict of innocence, and his honorable deeds in the Japanese War was also acknowledged. He was awarded a first degree honorable subject of Seongmuwonjong, Jachanseong, Daejehak and Dochongpan. In the 40th year of the reign of King Sukjong, he was granted the honorable title of Chunguigong, and got the royal order as Bujojeon. Since the reign of King Hyeonjong, his honor was acknowledged in recognition of his patriotic deeds and a memorial ritual was held annually in Changnyeongsa, and Mouisa. After Korea’s liberation from Japanese colonial rule, President Park Chung-hee built Chunguisa (in Jinju) with his own writing on the signboard. Gyeonggi Province designated his tomb site as a Monument and built the Chungdeoksa in his memory. In the Yatsukuni Shinsa of Japan, there still stands the Bukgwandaecheopbi, a monument honoring the deeds of the Righteous Army in the Big Fights of Bukgwan region. It was built in the 33rd year of the reign of King Sukjeong by the citizens of Hamgyeong in Immyeong but was stolen by the Japanese army during the Russia-Japanese war. In the collection of Jeong Munbu’s writings, Nongpojip (5 volumes), there is a translation in the Korean language.
When his parents died, Jeongmunbu left government service and retreated to Mt. Song, Uijeongbu, living the life of a bereaved son for three years. Later, the mountain was called The Peak of a Good Son for his mourning of his parents. In honor of his high merit, the Office of Education in Uijeongbu, named after him the new schools of Chungui Middle School and Hyoja Middle School, and the new street in front of the tomb, Chung Uii-ro.