Gyeong Dae-seung

Gyeong Dae-seung (Hangul: 경대승, Hanja: 慶大升) (1154 – 4 August 1183) was the third major military dictators who ruled during the late period of the Goryeo. Unlike his predecessors, General Gyeong was determined to fix the Goryeo's problems and help the people prosper. His popularity with the people aroused the jealousy of King Myeongjong of Goryeo. His military dictatorship over Goryeo signified a brief period of peace within the war-ravaged kingdom.

Background

General Gyeong Dae-seung was born to Gyeong Jin into the Cheongju Gyeong clan in the year 1154. At the time of his birth, the warrior-class of the nation was highly undermined and deprived of the luxuries that its civilian and scholar counterparts were able to see excessively. The young Gyeong began his military training at the age of 15, and served under the regimes of both Yi Ui-bang and Jeong Jung-bu. When his father died, he took charge of his household and began helping the poor, and made the decision of using the private army that his father had built.