Joseon Tongsinsa

See also: Joseon missions to Japan

The Joseon Tongsinsa were goodwill missions sent intermittently, starting with the request of the resident Japanese authority, from Joseon dynasty Korea to Japan. The Korean noun identifies a specific type of diplomatic delegation and its chief envoys. From the Joseon diplomatic perspective, the formal description of a mission as a tongsinsa signified that relations were largely "normalized," as opposed to missions that were not called tongsinsa.^[1]

A Joseon diplomatic procession through the streets of Edo in 1748 is entitled Chōsen-jin Uki-e by Hanegawa Tōei, c. 1748

Joseon Tongsinsa
Japanese name
Kanji	朝鮮通信使
Transcriptions Romanization Chōsen tsūshinshi
Korean name
Hangul	조선통신사
Hanja	朝鮮通信使
Transcriptions Revised Romanization Joseon tongsinsa McCune–Reischauer Chosŏn t'ongsinsa

Diplomatic envoys were sent to respond to the Muromachi shogunate and to Toyotomi Hideyoshi as response envoys called hoeryesa (회례사 回澧使) between 1392 and 1590. Similar missions were dispatched to the Tokugawa shogunate in Japan between 1607 and 1811.^[2] After the 1811 mission, another mission was prepared, but it was delayed four times and ultimately cancelled due to domestic turmoil in Japan that resulted in the establishment of the Meiji Restoration in Japan, after which Japanese relations with Korea took a markedly different tone.

Reciprocal envoys were sent from both shogunates and individually from daimyos of Japan to Korea as well, but unlike the Joseon Tongsinsa going all the way Eastward to the capital in Edo, they were no longer allowed to trek to the capital of Seoul, and restricted to the Japanese Enclave in Busan.

History

Starting in 1392, many diplomatic missions were sent from the Joseon court to the shogunate in Japan, while the shogunate sent their own missions with tribute and addressing the Joseon monarch as "emperor (陛下)".^[3] Not less than 70 envoys were dispatched to Kyoto and Osaka before the beginning of Japan's Edo period.^[4] The formal arrival of serial missions from Korea to Japan were considered important affairs; and these events were widely noted and recorded.

Only the largest formal diplomatic missions sent by the Joseon court to Japan were called tongsinsa in Korean. The term tongsinsa may be misused to refer to the practice of unilateral relations, not the international relations of mutual Joseon-Japanese contacts and communication.^[5] Up through the end of the 16th century, four embassies to Japan were called "communication envoys" or tongsinsa – in 1428, 1439, 1443 and 1590. After 1607, nine tonsingsa missions were sent to Japan up through 1811.^[6]

The unique pattern of these diplomatic exchanges evolved from models established by the Chinese and its neighbors, but without denoting any predetermined relationship to China or to the Chinese world order.^[7]

Needs of both Parties

 

Impression of Joseon Tongsinsa mission in Japan – attributed to a Kanō school artist, circa 1655

After the Japanese invasion of the Korean peninsula (1592–1598), a new phase of diplomatic relations began. The formal embassies were preceded by preliminary negotiations which began in 1600, shortly after news of the Toyotomi defeat at the Battle of Sekigahara was received by the Joseon Court. The Tokugawa clan approached the Joseon dynasty, citing they were, as the eastern Japanese daimyos, were the least cooperative with Toyotomi's warmongering, and sought recognition as the legitimate government of Japan, thinking international recognition from Joseon and eventually China as the only Sei-i Taishogun ("Grand General of the Conquest of Barbarians", where Barbarians refer to native Japanese tribes) can further solidify his support within Japan, as his Japanese rivals had not yet been eradicated until the end of the Siege of Osaka in 1615.

On the Joseon side, while fighting Japan, Joseon and Ming China could not check the Manchurians' growth as they normally had, and with the Manchurians growing powerful in the north, Joseon needed to avoid a possible war on two fronts. From Joseon's perspective, the northern region of the peninsula was always its priority frontline, heavily defended to repulse Mongols, Jurchens, and Khitans; while the south towards Japan was its rear. The devastation during Toyotomi's war, was largely in part, for having only taxed the peasantry to have what amounts to but a third of the forces of Toyotomi's 150,000-man strong invasion force, and leaving Joseon's rear open due to the Japanese largely being preoccupied as fighting amongst themselves for the duration of the Sengoku Period (although many Japanese pirates and slavers both from bandit origins and daimyo domains were raiding coastlines of Japan and eventually spilling outward to Korea and China to amass funds for their domains during Sengoku wars, they were not a full scale invasion. In fact, envoys sent during the Sengoku Period largely were to urge the shogunate as the sole legitimate government of Japan while being ineffectual and dimished than before, to control his people firmly and quell the pirates).

Preliminary Negotiations

As an initial gesture in a process of re-establishing diplomatic relations and as an earnest of future progress, some Joseon prisoners were released at Tsushima Island. In response, a small group of messengers under the leadership of Yu Jeong were sent to Kyoto to investigate further. With the assistance of Sō Yoshitomo, an audience with Tokugawa Ieyasu was arranged at Fushimi Castle in Kyoto.^[8] In 1604, Yu Jeong confirmed the Joseon interest in further developing relations; the Tokugawa shōgun reciprocated by releasing 1,390 prisoners-of-war, although this was a very small portion of the total number of those sold as slaves overseas to pay for the war expenses, or technicians and artisans captured and hidden in Japan, who would go on to take charge of arts in Japan.^[9]

Edo Period

In the Edo period of Japanese history, these diplomatic missions were construed as benefiting the Japanese as legitimizing internal propaganda for the bakufu (Tokugawa shogunate) and as a key element in an emerging manifestation of Japan's ideal vision of the structure of an international order with Edo as its center. Since 1609's conquest of the Ryukyu Kingdom (Okinawa), the Ryukyu were to stop their tributes to Joseon, and only gain return gifts from their tributes in China and relay them back to Japan. The Ryukyu were deliberately kept as "outsiders" to legitimize the shogunate and elevate its status as a ruling family whose shoguns' successions garner international focus and respect as foreigners offering tribute. If the Ryukyu would be (forced to) do this, then it was propagandized, that the Joseon were also here as lowly tributaries. A few Japanese saw through this ruse, however.^[10]

Lies of vassalage went beyond Japan however. When Hendrik Hamel and other members of the Dutch East India Company washed ashore on Joseon, fearing Dutch trade with Joseon would strengthen it, Japan claimed the Dutch were their vassal state, and thus they must be given custody of the Dutch and all their possessions. When Dutch traders in Japan inquired about the origin of the ferociously welcomed Joseon envoys, it is with similar anxiety, that Japan lied that Joseon was their vassal state and must never be contacted with. Seeing the massive fanfare of festivities, however, the Dutch were skeptical, and contact was attempted in secret at least once.

15th–16th century diplomatic ventures

In the 15th and 16th centuries, the Joseon court labeled four large-scale diplomatic missions to Japan as "communication envoys" or tongsinsa – in 1428, 1439, 1443 and 1590.^[6]

In Japan's Muromachi period (1336–1573) and Azuchi–Momoyama period (1568–1603), these Joseon-Japanese diplomatic contacts were considered important events.

Year	Korean monarch	Joseon chief envoy	Japanese shōgun	Official purpose
1428	Sejong	Bak Seo-saeng^[11]	Ashikaga Yoshinori	Condolences on the death of Yoshimochi, Congratulations on the succession of Yoshinori^[11]
1439	Sejong	Go Deuk-jong^[11]	Ashikaga Yoshinori	Neighborly relations, suppression of the waegu (wakō) pirates^[11]
1443	Sejong	Byeon Hyo-mun^[12]	Ashikaga Yoshimasa	Condolences on the death of Yoshinori, congratulations on the succession of Yoshikatsu^[11]
1460	Sejo	Korean envoys^[13]	Ashikaga Yoshimasa	Koreans enoys arrived at the court
1590	Seonjo	Hwang Yun-gil^[14]	Toyotomi Hideyoshi	Congratulations on the unification of Hideyoshi^[11]

Hideyoshi's invasions

Main article: Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598)

Diplomacy was set aside in 1592 when Japanese armies invaded Joseon territory. The ruptured relations were not restored immediately after the death of Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1598; but the invading forces gradually withdrew from occupied land on the Korean peninsula.^[15]

In the attempted peace talks in between Toyotomi's failed invasions, Toyotomi received recognition in the Sinosphere by receiving the title, "King of Japan" from Ming China.

17th–19th century diplomatic ventures

In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, the Joseon leaders sent twelve large-scale delegations to Japan, but not all were construed as "tongsinsa" envoys. The embassies consisted of 400 to 500 delegates; and these missions arguably contributed to the political and cultural development of Japan in addition to the range of ways in which bi-lateral relations were affected.^[2]

The 1607, 1617 and 1624 delegations were explicitly identified by the Joseon court as "Reply and Prisoner Repatriation Envoys," which were construed as less formal than a tongsinsa or "communication envoy." The use of the term "tongsinsa" signified that relations had been "normalized;"^[16]

Diplomatic Changes

Because Japan was diplomatically at a disadvantaged position in voluntarily asking Korea for missions that served to normalize relations between Korea and Japan after the war ended in 1598, several differences were made from the diplomatic missions during the early Joseon era. Japan no longer dispatched generals to greet the later Joseon missions. Also Japanese missions to Korea were strictly limited: after Hideyoshi's failed invasions of Korea, Japanese envoys were forbidden from traveling to Seoul, and Japanese missions to Korea were halted at and remained in the newly built Yeonhyangdaecheong (연향대청 宴享大廳) in the carefully watched Japanese Enclave in Busan, allotted by the Joseon monarchy. This is because the Japanese armies had taken the routes learned through centuries of Japanese tributary missions to Seoul from Busan; whereas previously Japanese missions coming to Seoul resided in the Dongpyeonggwan (동평관 東平館). Because they could no longer see the monarch in person, they bowed to a carving of "殿" representing the Joseon king.

In the attempted peace talks during Hideyoshi's failed invasions, Hideyoshi received recognition in the Sinosphere by receiving the title, "King of Japan" from Ming China, but since his death and his clan's fall from power and the new shogunate came to power, the Joseon missions would call the Tokugawa shogun no longer as just "shogun" ("General"), but an elevated status as "Daegun (Taikun 大君)," yet a rank lower than Joseon's "King" (the title of "Gun 君" was used for princes in Joseon), starting from 1636. This was because if anyone was to take the title of King, this may conflict with the status of the Japanese Emperor, even if he is a figurehead; because, like the preceding Korean dynasty of Goryeo, and many countries around China at the time, the monarchy of Japan was only called "emperor" among their subjects, but called "king" in international diplomacies.

Cost

The cost of dispatching missions from Joseon to Japan were shouldered in their entirety by the shogunate in Japan, which by some estimates equaled the annual budget of the shogunate in cost.^[17] For this reason, during the mission of 1711, Arai Hakusei, entrusted by the 6th Tokugawa shōgun Ienobu of the Tokugawa bakufu, unhappy with how much money Japan spent on reception of Joseon envoys, demanded that henceforth the envoys accept less lavish accommodations than before; and also being unhappy with the position Japan takes in these diplomacies, demanded the Joseon envoy to start addressing the shōgun not with the princely title of Taikun 大君, but Kokuō 国王. These changes were undone however, as Ienobu died the next year, and Arai himself lost power.

Regions in Japan which the Joseon mission passed through paid a fortune to receive these guests, and it was rumored that if the Joseon missions came as often as once a decade, that region will go bankrupt. For instance, the daimyo Matsudaira Akinori, tasked by the 9th shōgun of Tokugawa to receive the Korean envoys, tried to pay his part for the upcoming 1748 event by increasing taxes for the Himeji domain, ensuing in a massive ikki peasant uprising. He died during the turmoil, aged only 36.

End

In Japan's Edo period (1603–1868), the Joseon-Japanese diplomatic contacts were considered significant events, with the exception of the final 1811 delegation when the Joseon monarch's ambassador and retinue traveled only as far as Tsushima. Due to the shogunate suffering from financial problems, request for a Joseon mission was made as late as 1794, 7 years after the succession; and also that, instead of a full trip, only to meet the representatives of shōgun Ienari on the island located in the middle of the Korea Strait between the Korean Peninsula and Kyushu.^[18] Citing previous decorum, Joseon refused for 17 years until finally acquiescing in 1811. After the 1811 mission, another mission was prepared, but it was delayed four times and ultimately cancelled due to domestic turmoil and civil war in Japan that resulted in the establishment of the Meiji Restoration in Japan.^[17]

The reciprocal Japanese missions to Joseon in the Edo period exceeded these in number.

Year	Korean monarch	Joseon chief envoy	Scale (people)	Japanese shōgun	Official purpose
1636	Injo	Im Gwang^[19]	475	Tokugawa Iemitsu	Celebrating prosperity.^[20]
1643	Injo	Yun Sunji^[21]	462	Tokugawa Iemitsu	Celebrating birthday of 3rd Tokugawa shōgun Iemitsu.^[22]
1655	Hyojong	Jo Hyeong^[23]	488	Tokugawa Ietsuna	Congratulations on the 1651 succession of 4th Tokugawa shōgun Ietsuna.^[24]
1682	Sukjong	Yun Jiwan^[25]	475	Tokugawa Tsunayoshi	Congratulations on the 1680 succession of 5th Tokugawa shōgun Tsunayoshi.^[26]
1711	Sukjong	Jo Tae-eok^[27]	500	Tokugawa Ienobu	Congratulations on the 1709 succession of 6th Tokugawa shōgun Ienobu.^[28]
1719	Sukjong	Hong Chi-jung^[29]	479	Tokugawa Yoshimune	Congratulations on the 1716 succession of 8th Tokugawa shōgun Yoshimune.^[30]
1748	Yeongjo	Hong Gye-hui^[31]	475	Tokugawa Ieshige	Congratulations on the 1745 succession of 9th Tokugawa shōgun Ieshige.^[32]
1764	Yeongjo	Jo Eom^[33]	472	Tokugawa Ieharu	Congratulations on the 1760 succession of 10th Tokugawa shōgun Ieharu.^[34]
1811^‡	Sunjo	Kim Igyo^[25]	336	Tokugawa Ienari	Congratulations on the 1787 succession of 11th Tokugawa shōgun Ienari.^[35]

^‡ The 1811 tongsinsa was incomplete; the delegation did not travel beyond Tsushima, where the Joseon envoys were met by representatives of the shogunate.

See also

• Joseon missions to Imperial China
• Joseon missions to the Ryukyu Kingdom
• Julius Klaproth
• Jean-Pierre Abel-Rémusat
• Tsūkō ichiran, mid-19th century text
• Joseon missions to Japan

Notes

1. Lewis, James Bryant. (2003). Frontier contact between chosŏn Korea and Tokugawa Japan, pp. 21–24.
2. Sin, Hyŏng-sik. (2004). A Brief history of Korea, p. 90.
3. "朝鮮王朝實錄/世祖實錄/九年 - 维基文库，自由的图书馆". zh.wikisource.org (in Chinese). Retrieved 19 August 2023.
4. Lewis, p. 269 n. 89, citing Hanguk Chungse tae-il kysōpsa yŏngu (1996) by Na Chongpu.
5. 한일관계사연구논집편찬위원회. (2005). 통신사・왜관과한일관계 (Han Il kwangyesa yŏngu nonjip), Vol. 6, p. 29.
6. Kang, Etsuko. (1997). Diplomacy and Ideology in Japanese-Korean Relations: from the Fifteenth to the Eighteenth Century, p. 35.
7. Toby, Ronald P. (1991). State and Diplomacy in Early Modern Japan: Asia in the Development of the Tokugawa Bakufu. ACLS Humanities E-Book. Stanford University Press. p. 87. ISBN 978-0-8047-1952-0.
8. Kang, Jae-eun et al. (2006). The Land of Scholars: Two Thousand Years of Korean Confucianism, pp. 312–313.
9. Kang, p. 274.
10. Walker, p. 48; Guilliaume, Xavier. (2003). "Misdirected Understanding: Narrative Matrices in the Japanese Politics of Alterity toward the West," pp. 85–116 in Jahrbuch des Deutschen Instituts für Japanstudien.
11. Kang, p. 275.
12. Kang, Jae-eun, and Suzanne Lee. (2006). The Land of Scholars: Two Thousand Years of Korean Confucianism, p. 241; Titsingh, p. 342.
13. Titsingh, p. 350.
14. Rutt, Richard et al. (2003). Korea: a Historical and Cultural Dictionary, p. 190.
15. Kang, p. 86.
16. Lewis, James Bryant. (2003). Frontier contact between Chosŏn Korea and Tokugawa Japan, pp. 21–24.
17. "Early Modern Period." Northeast Asian History Foundation, 2007 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine
18. Walraven, Boudewijn et al. (2007). Korea in the middle: Korean studies and area studies, pp. 359–361
19. Toby, pp. 205–207; Titsingh, p. 411; n.b., the name Nin kwô is a pre-Hepburn Japanese transliteration and Jin kuang is a pre-McCune–Reischauer, Korean romanization devised by Julius Klaproth and Jean-Pierre Abel-Rémusat in 1834.
20. Northeast Asia History Foundation: Korea-Japan relations 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine citing Byeongja ilbon ilgi (Diary of Travel to Japan in 1636) by Im Gwang; Haesarok by Kim Seryeom; and Dongsarok by Hwang Ho.
21. Toby, p. 105; Titsingh, p. 412; n.b., the name Inzioun si is a pre-Hepburn Japanese transliteration devised by Klaproth et al. in 1834.
22. Northeast Asia History Foundation: Korea-Japan relations 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine citing Dongsarok by Jo Gyeong; Haesarok by Sin Yu; and Gyemi dongsarok (Records of 1643 Mission to Japan) by an unidentified writer.
23. Walraven, Boudewijn et al. (2007). Korea in the middle: Korean studies and area studies, p. 361; Titsingh, p. 413; n.b., the name Tcho ying is a pre-Hepburn Japanese transliteration and Tchao hing is a pre-McCune–Reischauer Korean romanization devised by Klaproth et al. in 1834.
24. Northeast Asia History Foundation: Korea-Japan relations 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine citing Busang ilgi (Diary of Travel to Japan) by Jogyeong; and Busangnok by Nam Yong-ik.
25. Walraven, p. 361.
26. Northeast Asia History Foundation: Korea-Japan relations 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine citing Dongsa illok (Daily Records of Travel to Japan) by Kim Jinam; and Dongsarok by Hong U-jae.
27. Kim, Tae-Jun. (2006). Korean Travel Literature. p. 119; Walraven, p. 361; Titsingh, p. 416; n.b., the name Tota Yokf is a pre-Hepburn Japanese transliteration and Tchao ta ỹ is a pre-McCune–Reischauer Korean romanization devised by Klaproth et al. in 1834.
28. Northeast Asia History Foundation: Korea-Japan relations 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine citing Dongsarok by Jo Tae-eok; Dongsarok by Kim Hyeon-mun; and Dongsarok by Im Su-gan.
29. Walraven, p. 361; Titsingh, p. 417; n.b., the name Kô tsi tsiou is a pre-Hepburn Japanese transliteration and Hong tschi tchoung is a pre-McCune–Reischauer Korean romanization devised by Klaproth et al. in 1834.
30. Northeast Asia History Foundation: Korea-Japan relations 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine citing Haesa illok (Daily Records of Overseas Mission) by Hong Chi-jung; Haeyurok (Records of Sea Voyage) by Shin Yu-han; Busang gihaeng (Journal of Travel to Japan) by Jeong Hu-gyo; and Busangnok by Kim Heup.
31. Walraven, p. 361; Titsingh, p. 418; n.b., the name Tcho ying is a pre-Hepburn Japanese transliteration and Tchao hing is a pre-McCune–Reischauer Korean romanization devised by Klaproth et al. in 1834.
32. Northeast Asia History Foundation: Korea-Japan relations 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine citing Bongsa ilbon si mun gyeonnik (Observation of the Janpanese Culture) by Jo Myeong-chae; Susa illok (Daily Records of Observations) by Hong Gyeong-hae; and Ilbon ilgi (Diary in Japan) by an unidentified writer.
33. 염정섭 (Yeom Jeong-Seop). 조선 후기 고구마의 도입과 재배법의 정리 과정 ("The Introduction of Sweet Potatoes and the Development of Cultivation Methods during Late Joseon Korea"), 韩国史硏究 No. 134, January 2006. pp. 111–147.
34. Northeast Asia History Foundation: Korea-Japan relations 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine citing Haesa ilgi (Diary of Overseas Mission) by Jo Eom; Gyemi sahaeng ilgi (Diary of 1764 Mission to Japan) by Oh Dae-ryeong; and Ilbonnok (Record of Japan) by Seong Dae-jung.
35. Northeast Asia History Foundation: Korea-Japan relations 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine citing Dongsarok by Yusang-pil; and Doyurok (Record of Voyage to Japan) by Kim Cheong-san.

References

• Daehwan, Noh. Korea Journal (Winter 2003).
• (in Korean) 한일관계사연구논집편찬위원회. (2005). 통신사・왜관과한일관계 (Han Il kwangyesa yŏngu nonjip, Vol. 6). 경인문화사. ISBN 978-89-499-0308-8.
• Kang, Etsuko Hae-jin. (1997). Diplomacy and Ideology in Japanese-Korean Relations: from the Fifteenth to the Eighteenth Century. Basingstoke, Hampshire; Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-312-17370-8; OCLC 243874305
• Kang, Jae-eun and Suzanne Lee. (2006). The Land of Scholars : Two Thousand Years of Korean Confucianism. Paramus, New Jersey: Homa & Sekey Books. ISBN 978-1-931907-37-8; OCLC 60931394
• Lewis, James Bryant. (2003). Frontier contact between chosŏn Korea and Tokugawa Japan. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-7007-1301-1
• Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan Encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 48943301
• Sin, Hyŏng-sik. (2004). A Brief history of Korea. Seoul,: Ewha Womans University Press. ISBN 978-89-7300-602-1; ISBN 978-89-7300-619-9; OCLC 62745457
• Titsingh, Isaac, ed. (1834). [Siyun-sai Rin-siyo/Hayashi Gahō, 1652], Nipon o daï itsi ran; ou, Annales des empereurs du Japon. Paris: Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. OCLC 84067437
• Toby, Ronald P. (1991). State and Diplomacy in Early Modern Japan: Asia in the Development of the Tokugawa Bakufu. Stanford: Stanford University Press. ISBN 978-0-8047-1951-3; OCLC 25473164
• Walker, Brett L. "Foreign Affairs and Frontiers in Early Modern Japan: A Historiographical Essay," Early Modern Japan. Fall, 2002, pp. 44–62, 124–128.
• Walraven, Boudewijn and Remco E. Breuker. (2007). Korea in the middle: Korean studies and area studies; Essays in Honour of Boudewijn Walraven. Leiden: CNWS Publications. ISBN 90-5789-153-0; OCLC 181625480
• Wiwŏnhoe, Yunesŭkʻo Hanʼguk. (2004). Korean History: Discovery of Its Characteristics and Developments. Elizabeth, New Jersey: Hollym. ISBN 978-1-56591-177-2; OCLC 56107531

External links

• Joseon Tongsinsa Cultural Exchange Association (in Korean); (in Japanese)
• 조선통신사연구 (Journal of Studies in Joseon Tongsinsa) (in Korean)^{[permanent dead link]}