Gwak Jaeu

Infobox Korean name
hangul=곽재우
hanja=郭再祐
rr=Gwak Jae-woo
mr=Kwak Chaewoo
hangulja=계수
hanjaja=季綬
rrja=Gyesu
mrja=Kyesu
hangulph=충익
hanjaph=忠翼
rrph=Chungik
mrph=Ch'ungikGeneral Gwak Jae-u (1552 – 1617) was a Korean patriot from Uiryeong; in 1592, nine days into Japanese invasions of Korea, he formed a militia to fight against the Japanese army. He was originally common people, but the King Seonjo granted him government service.

Raising an army

Gwak Jae-u disrupted Japanese supply lines around the Nakdong River in many guerrilla actions. Gwak also had the distinction of winning Korea's first land victory of the war: The Battle of Uiryeong. In part of a two-pronged offensive into Jeolla, Ankokuji Ekei led 6th division men from the south. Ankokuji needed to cross the Nam River to reach Uiryeong, an objective. He had his men find the shallowest parts of the river and mark them with stakes. While Ankokuji's army slept, Gwak's men moved the stakes to deeper sections of the river. When the crossing began, the Japanese soldiers foundered in the deep water, and Gwak's army attacked then. In multiple attempts to cross, Ankokuji suffered many losses, and was forced to abandon his attack on Uiryeong. The battle gave the Korean government respect for Gwak's abilities, and he was placed in command of the Korean forces in and around Uiryeong and the nearby Samga.

Trivia

In 1597 in the Battle of Hwawangsan. he defended the Hwawangsan Mountain Fortress.cite web|url=http://english.daegu.go.kr/Tour/Tour/view.asp?table=dg_Tour&item_no=265&tour_cat_id=1|title=Statue of General Gwak Jae-woo|work=City of Daegu welcomes the world|accessdate=2006-08-09]

There is a statue of Gwak Jae-u in Mang-u Park in Daegu.

Gwak Jae-u's pen name was Mang-udang. He was called the "Red Robe General" (천강홍의장군, 天降紅衣將軍) after his habit of wearing red costumes dyed with blood of maidens murdered by japanese and riding a white horse in battle. [citeweb|url=http://www.yu.ac.kr/english/intl/data/Guidelines_for_International_Students_20050615.pdf|title=Mangu Park|work=Your Guide to a Successful Campus Life at Yeungnam University|format=PDF|accessdate=2006-08-09]

References

ee also

*‎Japanese invasions of Korea (1592-1598)
*Siege of Jinju (1592)
*Righteous army

External links

* [http://www.lifeinkorea.com/Travel2/taegu/185 Mangu Park]