Yun Won-ryang (尹元亮, 1495 – 1569) was a military officer and royal in-law of mid-Joseon. His courtesy name was Myeongsuk (明淑), and his family seat was Papyeong (坡平). He was the son of Yun Ji-im (尹之任), Prince Consort Pasan, and the elder brother of Yun Won-hyeong (尹元衡) and Yun Won-ro (尹元老). He was the elder brother of Queen Munjeong, the second queen consort of Jungjong, the maternal uncle of Myeongjong, and the father of Royal Consort Suk of the Yun clan, a concubine of Injong. Through the artifacts found with the mummy of his granddaughter, a daughter of a secondary line, discovered in 2002, he was confirmed to be the elder brother, not the younger brother, of Queen Munjeong. He was a native of Gyeonggi Province.
In 1524 (19th year of Jungjong's reign), he served as Sesa of the Crown Prince's Guard, and in 1530 (25th year of Jungjong's reign) as Busagwa, and he rose to the rank of Dojeong of the Office of Royal Relatives. In 1546 (1st year of Myeongjong), he was registered as a Wisa Wonjong Merit Subject. He did not come into conflict with Yun Won-hyeong and Yun Won-ro and thus enjoyed a long life, although from 1546 his name was occasionally mentioned in the process by which Yun Won-hyeong eliminated Yun Won-ro. He lived to see the accession of Seonjo and died. In September 2002, his granddaughter, a secondary-line daughter who had died while giving birth, was discovered as a pregnant mummy in the family cemetery of his clan, which drew public attention.1 The mummy was the daughter of his son Yun So, who had died early.
Biography
Birth and family background
Yun Won-ryang was born in 1495 in Paju County, Gyeonggi Province, as the second son of Yun Ji-im, Prince Consort Pasan, and Lady Jeonui Lee (全城府夫人 全義李氏), Lady of Jeonseong. He was the 19th-generation descendant of Yun Sin-dal, a Taesa of Goryeo, and the 15th-generation descendant of Yun Gwan, Munha sijung. His elder brother was Yun Won-gae, and his younger brothers were Yun Won-pil, Yun Won-ro, Queen Munjeong, and Yun Won-hyeong.
He was a member of the same family as the Daeyun and Soyun factions, being a maternal relative of Queen Munjeong, the wife of Jungjong, but he was closer to the Soyun. The faction of Yun Im was called the Daeyun, and the faction of Yun Won-hyeong was called the Soyun. Yun Won-hyeong and Yun Im were relatives: the daughter of Yun Won-hyeong's fifth-generation ancestor Yun Beon was Queen Jeonghui, the consort of Sejo, and Queen Jeonghui's younger brother Yun Sa-heun was Yun Won-hyeong's fourth-generation descendant. Yun Im was a descendant of Yun Sa-yun, the second son of Yun Beon, and was a eighth-degree cousin of Yun Ji-im, the father of Yun Won-ryang, Yun Won-hyeong, and Yun Won-ro. Yun Won-ryang was the great-grandson of Yun Beon's third son Yun Sa-heun.
His daughter, Royal Consort Suk of the Yun clan, became a concubine of Injong.2 His younger sister, Queen Munjeong, became the second queen consort of Jungjong, so Jungjong was both his brother-in-law and a co-in-law of his family. His early life is unknown.
Official career
In 1524 (29th year of Jungjong's reign), when he became Sesa of the Crown Prince's Guard, the Office of the Inspector-General and the Office of Censors impeached him on the grounds that he was unsuitable for guarding the Eastern Palace, but Jungjong did not listen.3 Afterwards, Jangnyeong Yu Yun-deok (柳閏德) and Heonnap Choe Geuk-seong (崔克成) and others attacked him repeatedly, but the king did not listen.
In 1530, while serving as Busagwa, he was impeached by the censors, who said that he had received a high rank and salary despite holding a military post that should have been abolished, and that he should be dismissed from office. However, Jungjong refused the dismissal, saying how could they have known he would be dismissed.4 In 1536, when his daughter was selected as a candidate for Yangje, a concubine of the crown prince, Sagan Kwon Gi (權祺) raised objections on the grounds that she was a close relative of Queen Munjeong, but Jungjong did not listen.5 There is also a theory that Kim An-no had incited this selection in order to place his maternal granddaughter or granddaughter as a concubine of the crown prince.6
In 1543, Lady Kwon (權氏), wife of Hyeongam Song Ho-rye (宋好禮), and her nephew by marriage Geumgye Jeong Gi (錦溪正 祺) broke down the door of the house with slaves named Seok Geup, Choe Eok-nyeon, and Ji Seok-gyeon, barged in, and behaved violently before fleeing. He was blamed for hiding them in his house. In January of the following year, he was impeached by Daesaheon Min Je-in (閔齊仁) and placed under investigation. During this process, Yun Won-ryang insulted officials of the Saheonbu, which also became an issue.7 Afterwards, the Saheonbu repeatedly submitted memorials, but Jungjong did not listen.
In 1546 (1st year of Myeongjong), he became a Wisa Wonjong merit subject and was promoted to the first grade of the seventh rank.
Later life
Until then, he had been known as a younger brother of Queen Munjeong, Lady Yun, but in November 2002, the discovery of the mummy of his granddaughter, Lady Yun, at the ancestral mountain of the Papyeong Yun clan revealed that he had been the elder brother of Queen Munjeong.8910 He did not show any particular ambition for power and did not clash with his younger brothers Yun Won-hyeong and Yun Won-ro, although his name was briefly mentioned during the conflict between Yun Won-hyeong and Yun Won-ro. He resigned from office and withdrew as Dojeong of the Office of Royal Relatives. After the death of Queen Munjeong in 1565 and the downfall of Yun Won-hyeong, he was not harmed.
In his later years, he lived alone. Although the lonely Yun Won-ryang frequently visited the house of Yun Won-hyeong, Yun Won-hyeong kept him standing outside the gate and refused to meet him, citing illness.11 He died in 1569 (2nd year of Seonjo's reign), after witnessing the accession of Seonjo. The date of his death is unknown.
After death
Whether he received a posthumous title or posthumous rank is unknown. He was buried in the family cemetery of the Jeongjeonggong branch at Wadong-ri, Gyoha (now Dangha-ri, Gyoha-dong, Paju), and his grave is located in the Sinjwa (辛坐) direction of the family cemetery of Jeongjeong Gong Yun Beon at Dangha-ri, Gyoha-eup, Paju, Gyeonggi Province, where he is buried together with his wife, Lady Suncheon Jang. In the Yujwa (酉坐) direction of the Yun Beon family cemetery is the grave of his elder brother Yun Won-gae. The epitaph was written by Song In, the husband of Princess Jeongsun, a secondary daughter of Jungjong.
Later, his son Yun So's secondary daughter died while giving birth at her natal home and was buried near the ancestral mountain of her natal family. She was later discovered as a mummy in April 2002, which drew public attention. At the time of discovery, the mummy was estimated to be 450 and 440 years old. (See EBS program "Science, Talking with a Mummy," broadcast on Thursday, July 31, 2009.) The mummy, named the "Papyeong Yun Clan Mother and Child Mummy," was confirmed to be the granddaughter of Yun Won-ryang through letters sent by Yun Won-ryang or the woman's elder brother, and vernacular letters exchanged between Royal Consort Suk and her natal family. However, the identity of the woman's husband has not been determined. The mummy of a woman of the Papyeong Yun clan was discovered during the relocation of a grave. The mummy of Lady Yun is a natural mummy formed because of the grave structure, which did not allow air to pass through.
Family
He was the maternal uncle of Myeongjong and was a double relative of Injong, being his tenth-degree cousin and also becoming his nephew-in-law. Queen Jeonghui, consort of Sejo, was the elder sister of his great-grandfather Yun Sa-heun. He was also a co-in-law of Kim An-no.
- Grandfather: Yun Uk (尹頊), served as Magistrate of the Naejasi
- Father: Yun Ji-im (尹之任, 1475 – 1534)
- Mother: Lady Jeonui Lee (全城府夫人 全義李氏), Lady of Jeonseong
- Elder brother: Yun Won-gae (尹元凱)
- Younger brother: Yun Won-pil (尹元弼)
- Younger brother: Yun Won-ro (尹元老, ? – 1547)
- Younger brother: Yun Won-hyeong (尹元衡, ? – 1565)
- Younger sister: Queen Munjeong (文定王后 尹氏, 1501 – 1565)
- Wife: Lady Jang of Suncheon (順天張氏), daughter of Jang Il-chwi (張日就)
- Son: Yun So (尹紹, 1515 – 1544), served as magistrate
- Granddaughter: Lady Yun (尹氏, ? – October 1566)812
- Son: Yun Chan (尹纘)
- Son: Yun Chi (尹緻)
- Eldest daughter: Royal Consort Suk of the Yun clan (淑嬪 尹氏), concubine of Injong
- Father-in-law: Jang Il-chwi (張日就)
Assessments of character
According to the Joseon Dynasty Annals, his character was described as foolish13, and as a confused and mediocre man.14
Miscellaneous
The mummy of his secondary granddaughter, buried in 1566, had the Korean ink inscription "Byeongin Yun Siwol" (병인윤시월) written on the drawstring of the waist of her linen underpants, which allowed her exact date of death to be known. The colorful clothing buried with her also came to light, drawing the attention of the press and academia.15
The Museum of Korea University received the mummy from the Papyeong Yun clan association in September 2002 and asked the university's College of Medicine to conduct a detailed examination. According to the findings, the College of Medicine stated that the cause of the mummy's death was "massive bleeding due to uterine rupture during childbirth."15
Other references
- Jungjong Sillok
- Myeongjong Sillok
- Papyeong Yun Clan Genealogy
Footnotes