Nulji of Silla
Encyclopedia
Nulji was the nineteenth king (maripgan) of Silla
, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea
. He was the son of King Naemul
and Lady Boban, who was the daughter of King Michu
.
Nulji married the daughter of King Silseong of Silla
, who nonetheless exiled Nulji's younger brothers as hostages to Goguryeo
of northern Korea and Wa
of Japan
. Silseong also plotted to have Nulji killed, but with Goguryeo aid, Nulji was able to kill Silseong in 417, after which he ascended to the throne.
According to one story, in 418 Nulji sent a loyal retainer named Bak Je-Sang to rescue his brothers from Goguryeo and Wa. He was successful in retrieving the brother who was held in Goguryeo, but he was captured while trying to rescue the one held by Wa. Refusing to serve the Wa king, he died under torture. The story of Bak's loyalty has endured as a popular Korean morality tale.
After these difficult events, Nulji worked to free Silla from Goguryeo domination. He set up diplomatic relations with Goguryeo on an equal footing in 424, and established a military alliance with Baekje
in 433 to help counter the Goguryeo threat. (Hangul
: 나제동맹; Hanja
: 羅濟同盟)
Nulji's reign saw the continuation of a long process of centralization in Silla, marked his father's change of his title to "maripgan" (마립간, 麻立干), which is believed to represent a higher level of authority than the previous title "isageum" (이사금, 尼師今). Under Nulji's rule, patrilineal succession was officially established (Yang, 1999, p.16). After his death in 458, he was succeeded by his son Jabi
, rather than by his brother.
Silla
Silla was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, and one of the longest sustained dynasties in...
, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea
Three Kingdoms of Korea
The Three Kingdoms of Korea refer to the ancient Korean kingdoms of Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla, which dominated the Korean peninsula and parts of Manchuria for much of the 1st millennium...
. He was the son of King Naemul
Naemul of Silla
Naemul of Silla was the 17th ruler of the Korean kingdom of Silla. He was the nephew of King Michu. He married Michu's daughter, Lady Boban. He is given the title Isageum, the same one borne by earlier rulers, in the Samguk Sagi; he is given the title Maripgan, borne by later rulers, in the...
and Lady Boban, who was the daughter of King Michu
Michu of Silla
Michu of Silla was the thirteenth ruler of the Korean state of Silla . He was the first king of the Kim clan to sit on the Silla throne; this clan would hold the throne for most of Silla's later history...
.
Nulji married the daughter of King Silseong of Silla
Silseong of Silla
Silseong of Silla , whose name is also given as Silju or Silgeum, was the 18th ruler of the Korean kingdom of Silla. He was the son of the general Kim Daeseoji, who was the younger brother of King Michu...
, who nonetheless exiled Nulji's younger brothers as hostages to Goguryeo
Goguryeo
Goguryeo or Koguryŏ was an ancient Korean kingdom located in present day northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula, southern Manchuria, and southern Russian Maritime province....
of northern Korea and Wa
Wa (Japan)
Japanese is the oldest recorded name of Japan. Chinese, Korean, and Japanese scribes regularly wrote Wa or Yamato "Japan" with the Chinese character 倭 until the 8th century, when the Japanese found fault with it, replacing it with 和 "harmony, peace, balance".- Historical references :The earliest...
of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Silseong also plotted to have Nulji killed, but with Goguryeo aid, Nulji was able to kill Silseong in 417, after which he ascended to the throne.
According to one story, in 418 Nulji sent a loyal retainer named Bak Je-Sang to rescue his brothers from Goguryeo and Wa. He was successful in retrieving the brother who was held in Goguryeo, but he was captured while trying to rescue the one held by Wa. Refusing to serve the Wa king, he died under torture. The story of Bak's loyalty has endured as a popular Korean morality tale.
After these difficult events, Nulji worked to free Silla from Goguryeo domination. He set up diplomatic relations with Goguryeo on an equal footing in 424, and established a military alliance with Baekje
Baekje
Baekje or Paekche was a kingdom located in southwest Korea. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla....
in 433 to help counter the Goguryeo threat. (Hangul
Hangul
Hangul,Pronounced or ; Korean: 한글 Hangeul/Han'gŭl or 조선글 Chosŏn'gŭl/Joseongeul the Korean alphabet, is the native alphabet of the Korean language. It is a separate script from Hanja, the logographic Chinese characters which are also sometimes used to write Korean...
: 나제동맹; Hanja
Hanja
Hanja is the Korean name for the Chinese characters hanzi. More specifically, it refers to those Chinese characters borrowed from Chinese and incorporated into the Korean language with Korean pronunciation...
: 羅濟同盟)
Nulji's reign saw the continuation of a long process of centralization in Silla, marked his father's change of his title to "maripgan" (마립간, 麻立干), which is believed to represent a higher level of authority than the previous title "isageum" (이사금, 尼師今). Under Nulji's rule, patrilineal succession was officially established (Yang, 1999, p.16). After his death in 458, he was succeeded by his son Jabi
Jabi of Silla
Jabi of Silla , also known by his title Jabi Maripgan, was the 20th ruler of the Korean kingdom of Silla. He was the eldest son of King Nulji, and his mother was the daughter of King Silseong. He married the daughter of Kim Misaheun.In 474, Goguryeo launched a massive assault on Baekje, Silla's...
, rather than by his brother.