Kim Chung-young's Suwon Microscope (121) A Eight-Day Festival Held in Suwon 228 Years Ago - The Royal Procession to Hwaseong (1)

Five years after the new town of Suwon was constructed, construction of Hwaseong Fortress began with the start of 1794. One year later, in 1795 (the Year of the Rabbit), it was the 60th birthday of Crown Prince Sado and Lady Hong Hye-kyung, and the 20th year since King Jeongjo ascended to the throne.

The 60th birthday celebration was scheduled for the intercalary second month at the Hwaseong Palace before the farming season began in earnest. To prepare for the celebration, which required court music, court dances, and court cuisine, a temporary organization called Jeongni-so (整理所) was established on December 11, 1794.

The first preparation involved the participation of approximately 6,000 people for the festival, most of whom had to travel from Seoul to Suwon. Until then, the route from Seoul to Suwon used the Jeju Road (also called the Samnam Road), which passed through Gwacheon.

At that time, crossing the treacherous Namtae Ridge in Gwacheon required considerable effort in road maintenance, and the difficult terrain made it challenging for 6,000 people to reach Suwon. Thus, they decided to construct a new route—the Siheung Road—which passed through Siheung and Anyang.

After thorough preparations, on the intercalary second month 4, 1795, a dress rehearsal was held to cross the Han River on a pontoon bridge. King Jeongjo issued stern instructions to his officials at this occasion, expressing concern about excessive loyalty.

First, do not seek and present rare and exotic foods from distant places.

Second, do not prepare food in an extravagant and ostentatious manner contrary to common customs.

Third, absolutely prohibit the stations and villages along the route from privately offering tribute.

Fourth, do not recruit court entertainers and performers from each province. Instead, select a limited number from officials of the Royal Infirmary, the Imperial Dispensary, the Ministry of Works, and the Royal Wardrobe, and assign performers equally between these sources and Hwaseong.

Fifth, ensure the costumes of musicians and entertainers are clean, but not ostentatious.

Sixth, limit the king's royal meal table to no more than ten dishes.

Seventh, since banquet music differs from ceremonial music, keep it simple, and repair and use instruments already available in Seoul and Hwaseong.

Even after these instructions, King Jeongjo remained anxious and dispatched a secret inspector on the 8th day of the intercalary second month, a day before the procession, to conduct inspections.

King Jeongjo's royal procession to Hwaseong proceeded over eight days.

First day (intercalary second month 9), King Jeongjo departed from the Yeongchun Hall of Changdeok Palace, visited the Sujeong Hall to pay respects to his grandmother (Queen Soonbin), and since his grandmother was at the palace, he left his queen (Queen Hyoui Kim) at the palace. He departed from the palace accompanied only by his mother Hye-kyung Hong, and his sisters Princess Cheongyeon and Princess Cheongseon.

When the third bell rang at dawn (6 a.m.), King Jeongjo, dressed in military attire, rode on horseback, while his mother Hye-kyung Hong and his two sisters rode in palanquins. According to the procession diagram in the 'Record of the Royal Procession in 1795,' the total number of participants included Prime Minister Chae Che-gong and reached 1,779 people, with 779 horses. The actual number of people who participated in the festival was approximately 6,000, of which about 4,500 were soldiers, including 3,000 from the Jangnyong Guard.

As shown in the procession diagram, the scene of hundreds of flags fluttering and 115 mounted musicians performing was spectacular. The procession of 1,779 people would have stretched well over 1 kilometer.

The royal procession departed from Donhwa Gate, the main gate of Changdeok Palace, passed through the street in front of Bosingak, crossed the Daegwangtong and Sogwangtong bridges over Cheonggyecheon, and continued to Sungnyemun Gate. As the procession reached the Yongsan direction, spectators gathered on the hillsides. King Jeongjo ordered that they not be stopped.

The procession then reached the pontoon bridge across the Han River. When it reached the Hongsalmun (red wooden gate) in the middle of the bridge, King Jeongjo dismounted and went to his mother's palanquin to greet her. After crossing the bridge, King Jeongjo arrived first at the Yongyang Bongjeong Pavilion to inspect the resting place for his mother. King Jeongjo personally served food to his mother at the pavilion. The food for the two princesses was the same as the king's, but the food for attendants varied according to rank.

After eating and resting at Noran, the procession headed toward the Siheung Palace, 13 ri away. Siheung was originally called Geumcheon. The county name was changed to Siheung when the county was redesigned and a new road was constructed for the 60th birthday celebration.

The procession left Yongyang Bongjeong Pavilion, passed through Manan County (popularly known as Mannyangkogae), went through Jangseong County (present-day Jangseung Baekyi), and headed toward Bundaebangpyeong in Siheung. When the procession reached Munseong-dong in Siheung (present-day Siheung-daero), King Jeongjo temporarily halted the procession. He ordered a blue cloth tent to be pitched around his mother's area and personally served her 'mium-taban (a drink of boiled jujubes).'

King Jeongjo summoned Yun Haeng-im, the chief director, ordering him to go ahead to Siheung Palace to conduct a personal inspection, and said he would also go ahead shortly to inspect it himself. King Jeongjo arrived first, thoroughly inspected the palace, waited for his mother, and escorted her inside. The Siheung Palace had been newly constructed for this procession. When the director brought the evening meal, King Jeongjo personally served it to his mother. He repeated this practice at every stop.

King Jeongjo said, "The weather is clear and my mother is in good health, so I cannot suppress my joy," and, distributing food to his officials, said, "This food is presented by your mother, so eat your fill."

Second day (intercalary second month 10), after spending the night at Siheung Palace, King Jeongjo headed toward Sagun Station Palace (the site of present-day Uiwang City Hall annex) for lunch. The royal procession traveled through present-day Siheung-daero toward Anyang. After crossing the newly constructed Manan Bridge built for the procession and reaching Anyang Station, the procession rested briefly. The royal procession then resumed and arrived at Sagun Station Palace. King Jeongjo first inspected the facilities of Sagun Station Palace, escorted his mother inside, and then partook of 'juutcha-byeolpan-gwa (mid-morning refreshments)' and 'juusura (lunch)'.

At this point, rain began to fall. King Jeongjo said, "I am concerned that the officials and soldiers will get wet from the rain, but since Hwaseong is not far from here, we can arrive today," and, prepared with rainwear, departed. The procession then reached Mireuk County. Originally called Sagun Ridge, it was renamed Mireuk County as the royal processions became more frequent, and later renamed again to Jiji-daero. King Jeongjo again halted the procession and greeted his mother. The royal procession resumed and passed through Goemok Jeong Bridge and traveled through the Noseong-jidae (old pine tree avenue). The Noseong-jidae avenue was created by planting pine trees along the roadside as King Jeongjo's visits to Hwaseong became more frequent.

Upon reaching Jinmok Pavilion, Prime Minister Chae Je-gong, who had arrived earlier, welcomed the royal procession while performing 'go-chui (encouraging music).' Here, King Jeongjo offered his mother mium-taban. At this location, King Jeongjo changed into armor and helmet and entered through Jangmun Gate. Several officials and Hwaseong Magistrate Jo Sim-tae, leading soldiers from the rank of general, prostrated themselves by the roadside to welcome him.

The royal procession entered through Jangmun Gate, turned right toward Jongga (Jong-ro), passed in front of the Left and Right Guard Camps, and entered Shinpung Gate, the main gate of the palace. It then passed through Jwaik Gate and Jungyang Gate before arriving at Bongsu Hall, the main building of the palace.

King Jeongjo escorted his mother to Jangrak Hall, located next to Bongsu Hall, and offered her mid-morning refreshments. In the evening, he served the evening meal. Thus, the two-day procession came to an end.

King Jeongjo went to his quarters at Yuryeo Mansion and instructed his attending officials:

"I regret that everyone got wet from the rain today, but there were no major problems. We should not always expect everything to go perfectly. Yesterday the weather was clear and warm, and tomorrow there will be many auspicious occasions. The rain fell over dozens of ri and then suddenly cleared, which is fortunate. Moreover, as farming is about to begin, how can the farmers not rejoice at the wet rice paddies?"

228 years later, in 2023, the royal procession of King Jeongjo is being jointly reenacted by Seoul, Suwon, and Hwaseong cities.

The Seoul segment takes place on October 8 from 10:00 to 18:00, the Suwon segment on October 8-9 from 09:30 to 18:30, and the Hwaseong segment on October 8 from 11:00 to 13:30.

As autumn deepens, do not miss the royal procession to Hwaseong, the epitome of Joseon court culture.