Is there a royal family in modern Korea?

Answer? The last king and grandson wanted to restore?

Lee's Korean dynasty (1392- 19 10) was the last feudal dynasty in the history of the Korean peninsula. After nearly a century of silence, the descendants of Lee's Korean royal family began to appear frequently in 2006. The Last Sun King also called for restoration, and in June 2006 1 1, a nationwide signature campaign was held. The Korean government has adopted a policy of non-interference. This series of actions became one of the hot spots of Korean media at that time.

Li Xi got rid of poverty.

? Died in Curie in another country.

Li Xi's daughter Li Hong.

First, the story of the characters

In 2006, 65-year-old Sun Lixi, the last king of the Lee Dynasty in North Korea, surfaced. In 2003, he was still a homeless tramp.

Singing at the declining Wangsun nightclub

Li Xi is the grandson of Gaozong, the last king of the Lee Dynasty in South Korea, and the only male descendant of the Korean royal family currently living in South Korea. The Lee Dynasty ruled the Korean Peninsula for 565,438+08 years until the Japanese invasion in 65,438+09,654,38+00 years.

1948 south Korea established the Republic of Korea, and the first president Li Chengwan confiscated most of the royal property, but still allowed members of the royal family to live in the palace. Li Xi recalled: "When I was in primary school, we had a maid, and my mother called me Your Highness. Every day at noon, four ladies-in-waiting send me meals, and a meal often includes 30 dishes. " According to the rules of the royal family, the prince can't run around casually, which is against the royal system. Therefore, Li Xi never went to physical education class at school, and it was often the principal who came in person to complete the credits for him.

After park chung-hee's military government came to power in the early 1960s, it cut off the living allowance for the royal family. Li Xi, then a freshman, was forced to drop out of school. He started singing in nightclubs and then performed at the US military base in South Korea. His American songs are so popular that American soldiers call him "the singing prince". 1967, Li Xiyin's song "Pigeon's Nest" was popular all over the country, which described a happy family life. This song, Li Xi, has been sung more than 7,000 times on various occasions, and it has become one of the most popular songs at Korean weddings. After the news that Li Xi made a living by busking reached her aunt, she was so sad that she shed tears and said, "The prince has become a clown."

Transfer to America to open a small hotel.

1979 After Quan Douhuan came to power, members of the royal family were driven out of Changde Palace and Li Xi moved to the United States. To make a living, he mowed the lawn, painted the swimming pool and served as an armed guard. In order to gain a firm foothold, he also took out all his savings of $654.38 +0.5 million, married a Korean-American woman and got a green card. The couple opened a small shop selling wine and gradually settled down.

1989 Li Xi's aunt passed away. He went back to China to attend the funeral and decided to stay. When I first came back, I had no place to live. I wanted to go to Changde Palace, but the doorman wouldn't let me in. He had to sneak over the wall to sleep at night. It's cold and humid inside, so he won't go for a long time. With the help of friends, Li Xi fought guerrilla warfare everywhere. He also lived in a temple for two years and had the idea of becoming a monk. 2003 was the saddest year in Li Xi. He wandered around in a two-seater van during the day, full of books, clothes and a microwave oven, and slept in the public bathroom at night. In despair, he thought of suicide several times.

Committed to protecting the royal tradition

However, even at the lowest point of his life, Li Xi still kept the royal school he was born with. His speech is gentle and has an irresistible majesty. He wears a clean and ironed suit and always combs his hair before taking pictures with others. Even in the public toilet, he won't take off his clothes as long as someone is there. Li Xi has also established an organization called "National Alliance for the Protection of Korean Royal Family" to protect the royal tradition. The headquarters of the organization was originally located in his van, and later a bar owner lent him a small office for free.

Become an ambassador of tourism image

In 2004, Quanzhou reporter reported the living conditions of Li Xi, and the fate of the last prince and grandson began to attract social attention. As the birthplace of the royal family, Quanzhou Municipal Government regards Li Xian as the ambassador of the royal tourism image. They bought a house worth $380,000 for Li Xi, part of which was turned into a museum, and Li Xi introduced the royal family's clothing, diet, etiquette and other cultural traditions to tourists. Li Xi also began to explain the history and culture of the royal family in universities. He often says, "If I die, no one will tell the story of the last Korean royal family."

Being called your highness, I cried with joy.

Today, there are still many historical sites and some traditional sacrificial activities in Korea. However, few people think of the descendants of the Korean royal family who are still alive.

Members of Li's royal family became civilians after being deprived of noble titles and wealth. Li Xi was once down and out. Now, Li Xi lives in the south Korean city, the ancestral home of the Lee family in Jeonju, and leads an ordinary life. He is currently teaching history at a university in the whole state.

Li Xi seems to have maintained a "royal complex" and dreamed of restoring the royal family. He once intended to write to 4 1 countries that still retain the monarchy, telling them that there are still members of the royal family in Korea. Li Xi is a descendant of Li's royal family, but he is not immediate successor of the Li Dynasty. Li Xi's cousin, Li Ju, the last immediate successor in the Li Dynasty, died quietly in 2005. As descendants of the Lee Dynasty, Li Xi and his cousin Li Jue have completely different attitudes towards their royal status. When asked about the existing monarchies in Japan and Thailand, Li Ju said, "I have no regrets." Regarding whether it is possible to restore the royal family, Li Ju thinks that "this is absolutely impossible". However, Li Xi seems to have maintained a "royal complex" and dreamed of restoring the royal family.

When asked whether Koreans still care about restoring the monarchy, Li Xi gave a positive answer. He said: "When I take part in some social activities, someone always regards me as a member of the royal family. They called me' Your Highness', which made me cry with joy. "

Half the people supported the restoration.

For the descendants of the Lee Dynasty, the Korean official newspaper has a more tolerant attitude. As long as they operate within the scope of the law, the Korean government adopts a non-interference policy. According to a poll conducted by Korean National Daily in 2006, 54% of Koreans support the restoration of the imperial system, provided that the imperial system can only be symbolic and is conducive to the preservation of traditional culture.

Second, relevant figures.

1, Wang Sun Li Jue died in another country.

On July 16, 2005, Li Jue, the successor of the Li Dynasty and another grandson of Gao Zong, died of a heart attack in Japan. The hotel where he died was his birthplace 74 years ago. Li Ju's body arrived in Seoul, the capital of South Korea, and was buried according to traditional royal etiquette.

Li Ju was born in Tokyo and educated in Japan. He studied at the Royal School of Japan since he was a child. He can speak Japanese and English fluently, but he hardly knows Korean.

When he 14 years old, Japan ended its colonial rule over Korea. 1948, the establishment of the Republic of Korea actually announced the abolition of the monarchy. With the help of American general douglas macarthur, Li Ju went to MIT to study architecture, and married American Julia marlock in 1958. However, due to Julia's long-term infertility, Li Ju divorced his wife under the threat of other family members.

1963, Li Ju returned to Korea with her mother and wife, and later returned to Japan on 1979 due to business failure. Li Ju lived in a small apartment in Tokyo and lived on the allowance provided by the Lee Family Committee in Seoul. He often said in his life: "I am just a person who happens to be named Li Ju. If there is an afterlife, I don't want to repeat this identity, this life. " Finally died in a foreign land, with no wife and children.

2. Princess Li Hong is devoted to movies.

Korean movie star Li Hong attended the screening of the new film "Korean Peninsula" in July 2006. At this point, her star dream has finally come true. As a descendant of the royal family, Li Hong tried to restore the already dim prestige of the royal family through his own success.

Li Hong, 4 1 year-old, is the great-granddaughter of Li Xi, Emperor Gaozong of the Lee Dynasty, and the daughter of Li Xi, the grandson of Gaozong. Because her parents divorced, she was raised by her grandmother. After three years of marriage, Li Hong's own marriage ended in 2003.

Before becoming famous, Li Hong was a private piano teacher and kept a low-key lifestyle. Later, she felt that being an actress was the most suitable career for her. So she chose drama school and began to learn the most basic acting skills. After unremitting efforts, she finally knocked on the door of the entertainment circle.

On the surface, Li Hong is slender, well dressed and cheerful. Through Li Hong's life track, it is not difficult to find that she is following her father's path. Father Li Xi is a singer because he loves music. The prince became an artist, which was absolutely intolerable to the royal family who insisted on Confucianism at that time. However, despite their harsh criticism, Li Xi still insisted on his choice. Now, my grandparents have passed away, and no one has stood up against Li Hong becoming a movie star.

Third, the Korean royal family.

The history of the Korean royal family can be traced back to AD 1392. At that time, Li Chenggui of the Lee Dynasty established the Korean Dynasty, with its capital in Seoul, renamed Korea, and began to rule this land for more than 500 years. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Japanese invaded the Korean peninsula. 1907 After the envoy incident in The Hague, Li Xi, the last independent king of North Korea, was forced to abdicate, and his son Li Tuo ascended the throne, which was called Chunzong. 19 10 On August 22nd, Japan sent troops to surround Seoul Palace, forcing Li Tuo to recognize the Treaty of Japan-Korea Merger. From then on, Korea was completely annexed by Japan and became a Japanese colony. Later, Japan was defeated, but North Korea was split into two countries: South Korea and North Korea. During the Japanese occupation, the Lee Dynasty declared Jin Yong, another brother of Chunzong, as the Crown Prince, but he never ascended the throne.

In order to prolong its rule, Japan forced Jin Yong to marry a Japanese woman and gave birth to two sons. One of them died young, and the other Li Jue died in Japan in July last year, leaving the Li Dynasty with no designated heir.