Jinju National Museum

The Jinju National Museum is pleased to present the special exhibition Byeongja Horan which had a major impact on the geopolitics of East Asia in the seventeenth century. Byeongja Horan refers to the invasion of Korea by Qing Dynasty forces that began on December 8, 1636 and ended on January 30 in the following year with King Injo’s surrender to the emperor of Qing China. The war lasted less than two months, but the damage done and the social and economic impacts of this war on the systems of Joseon Korea were comparable to those of the Imjin Waeran (Japanese Invasions of Korea, 1592–1598).

Only seven years after the end of the war, the Ming Dynasty, which was the center of the international order in East Aisa, collapsed and succeeded by the Qing Dynasty. Despite the major significance of this war, it has not received much attention compared to the Japanese invasions. In Joseon, the pro-Ming and anti-Qing sentiments grew after the Qing invasion, and the importance of the lost war was downplayed. This is why the detailed progression of the war, the intense agonies of the people who fought the war, and the efforts to overcome the scars of the defeat are not well known to this day. 

In response, the Jinju National Museum has prepared a special exhibition of Byeongja Horan. By examining the main events of the conflict, this exhibition will introduce the situation surrounding the war from the preceding international circumstances in East Asia to the legacy the war has left in Korea. Since the conflict occurred over a very brief period of time, there are few relics directly related to it. However, the exhibition will present new materials that illustrate the urgent international situation and the changes that took place at the time.

This exhibition will enhance visitors’ understanding of this history and shed new light on related objects that have been relatively overlooked. Furthermore, we hope it will provide an opportunity to think together about what we would have done to keep the peace while studying the tragedies suffered by the Koreans of the past as they experienced unwanted wars.