South Korea in terms of the cold war in 1975 was on the same side as Japan, which now had only defensive military capabilities and whose only threat was economic. That does not mean there was not still resentment of the Japanese occupation up till 1945 so why not fondly remember a long ago Admiral who knew how to make Japan pay a price for attacking Korea. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
Todays stamp sure doesn’t look like much. This was a bulk postage stamp for mainly commercial use. That in itself though was a sign of an advanced economy, and South Korea was then in it’s first decade of being described that way.
Todays stamp is issue A502 a 100 Won stamp issued by South Korea on October 10th, 1975. This stamp features 16th century Admiral Yi Sun-sin, the spelling seems to have changed in English since the seventies when his name was presented as Li. It was a four stamp bulk issue in various denominations whose subject matter did not relate to each other.
In the 1590s Japan under Toyotomi Hideyoshi had a ambition to conquer Korea, then united, and use it as a springboard to attack Ming Dynasty era China. The 1590s sound a lot like the 1890s. Korea was ruled by the Joseon Dynasty. The Japanese army and navy had a great numerical advantage over Korea and the invasion occurred in 1592. The Korean Army did not fare well in battle and the Koreans fell back to guerilla warfare against the Japanese who were able to take Seoul and Pyonyang.
One advantage the Koreans had was a small but well lead navy under Admiral Yi. The Korean ships were larger and carried more and better cannon. The Japanese had smaller ships that would pull alongside and attempt to board them. Admiral Yi had constructed a new type of ship called a turtle ship that had spikes on the top deck to make it difficult to board. It also had separate decks so the rowers could continue to row below and the gun deck with other sailors could fire. Korea was having a great deal of luck ambushing supply ships and The Japanese were having no luck using there overwhelming numbers to catch the Korean fleet in one place.
A ground force General wanted Admiral Yi to coordinate with a land attack on shore. The order came through the King. Admiral Yi refused, citing off shore rocks that would be dangerous for his precious ships. Admiral Yi was then stripped or his command, imprisoned and tortured near to death. He then became, a man of noble birth, a private in the army. The navy without Li was far less successful suffering its first defeats. Admiral Yi then had his command restored but the navy was down to 13 ships and 300 sailors. The King wrote him a letter suggesting he disband the navy and have his sailors join the army. Yi wrote back that he had 13 ships and while he was still alive the Japanese would not be safe in the Yellow Sea. At the Battle of Myeongnyang, he was able to ambush the Japanese fleet an inflict great losses. At a later battle, Admiral Yi was hit by a fatal wound and his last words that someone should continue to beat his war drum and the sailors should not be told of his death.
China later intervened on the Korean side turning the tide of the war. The Japanese withdrew from Korea after their own leader Toyotomi Hideyoshi died. The Joseon Dynasty lasted until 1897 when the Japanese again became ambitious toward Korea.
Well my drink is empty and I will pour another to toast the admirals that had to face one of those scary turtle ships. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.