Korea (Empires)

For the civilization in other games in the series, see Korea.

Civilization	Bonuses and Unique Units	Strategy
Korea Flag of the Korean Empire Civilization Traits Battle Junks Bondservants Kinship Planned Cities Epochs Medieval Age Gunpowder Age Imperial Age Advances to France Russia United States Korea is a civilization playable from the Medieval to the Imperial Age in Empires: Dawn of the Modern World. The Koreans are based on the Goryeo and Joseon dynasties, and the Korean Empire. Description Korea, frequently harassed by China and Japan, responded by forming the respected Choson Dynasty, which lasted for more than five centuries. Korea was among the first to utilize martial arts and gunpowder in battle. Admiral Yi Sun-sin, one of the greatest naval commanders of all time, left his mark on history with stunning victories over the Japanese at sea. Overview The Koreans have the following abilities inherit to their civilization: Battle Junks: Korean battleships, based on basic junk designs, have cargo space which allow them to transport troops and weapons. Warships in the Far East often carried troops for ship-to-ship assaults. When Admiral Yi's Turtle Boats were built, spikes were added to the armoured roof to thwart enthusiastic enemies looking to board. Bondservants: Increase your workforce by capturing enemy Citizens. For every enemy Citizen you kill, a new Commoner appears at your Town Centre, ready to work. The class system in Korea during the Koryo and Choson Dynasties was hereditary. The children of slaves and those bonded into service remained servants. Captured outsiders, especially those considered lowborn, were sometimes pressed into such service. Kinship: Extended Korean families provide additional workers at the start of the game. Korean families are clan-like, including members who may be only distantly related. The family bond is strong, as is the loyalty and deference to the family patriarch. Planned Cities: Workers construct buildings at a faster rate thanks to careful planning. The city of Seoul was founded in 1392 as the capital of the Choson Dynasty. It was well planned, with defensive walls and gates, a grid of streets, and magnificent government palaces. History The Korean peninsula sits between China to the north and Japan across the East Sea. Its location has made Korea a crossroads of cultures, ideas and conflicts. In 918 A.D., General Wang Kon established the Kingdom of Koryo (from which the name Korea derives). He persuaded the leaders of the declining Silla Dynasty to surrender peacefully, reuniting the peninsula under the Koryo Dynasty in 935. Later Koryo kings strengthened the country’s defenses and overhauled the central government, adopting a Confucian system similar to China’s. Then, trouble came from the north. The Mongols conquered China and then invaded Koryo in 1231, forcing it to become a tribute state. When the Mongols were driven out of China, the Koreans were able to assert their own independence. Then, in 1392, General Yi Song-gye orchestrated a coup and deposed the last Koryo king, establishing the Yi Dynasty that lasted until 1910. He named the country Choson, meaning “Land of the Morning Calm,” and established a new capital at Seoul. Arts and sciences flourished in Choson, with one of the highpoints being the development of the ingenious Korean phonetic alphabet called Hangul. Choson armies were organized locally, but the generals were kept in Seoul to lessen any temptation of using their troops in a bid to topple the government. Men in the central army, which defended the capital, were professional soldiers, but outlying armies were made up of local conscripts. As a result, when the Japanese invaded Korea in 1592, Japan’s greater firepower and exceptional numbers were too much for the defenders. Seoul was evacuated and then brutally occupied by the Japanese. However, decisive victories at sea changed the course of the war. The brilliant admiral, Yi Sun-Sin, developed the famous Turtle Boats, the earliest ever ironclad warships. Using superior tactics and just 12 Turtle Boats, Admiral Yi decimated a Japanese fleet of more than 100 ships, sinking 31 and chasing the survivors away, thereby cutting the enemy’s supply lines. Defeated at sea and increasingly harassed on land, the Japanese withdrew, but returned with a new army four years later. The Koreans, allied with Ming China, beat back the Japanese onslaught, and Admiral Yi won additional decisive victories. When Japanese leader Toyotomi Hideyoshi died in 1598, the Japanese finally pulled out and the Koreans were victorious. See also Wikipedia:Goryeo Wikipedia:Joseon Wikipedia:Korean Empire Wikipedia:History of Korea