Anseung

Anseung (안승, 安勝) (fl. 668–683), alternately Ansun (안순, 安舜), was thought to be either the nephew or illegitimate grandson of king Bojang of Goguryeo, the last King of Goguryeo. He was named the new King of Goguryeo by general Geom Mojam, but later he murdered Geom and submitted to the Korean kingdom of Silla, taking up residence in the Silla capital of Gyeongju.

Background

Go Anseung was the nephew of King Bojang of Goguryeo, and a prince of Goguryeo before its fall. In some Chinese sources, Go Anseung is recorded as the grandson of Bojang, the last king of the ancient Korean kingdom of Goguryeo.

Ruler of a rump Goguryeo

In 668, Prince Anseung was in Silla, where he had been held as hostage for many years. Upon hearing of his kingdom's defeat and downfall, he searched for survivors and first sought permission to revive his kingdom. Anseung encountered the high Goguryeo official Geom Mojam, also in flight. Together they forged an alliance to revive the Goguryeo kingdom. Anseung was crowned ruler of the new Goguryeo, centered in the city of Hansung, in today's South Hwanghae province, North Korea. Envoys were soon dispatched to Silla seeking a restitution of some territory for a revived Goguryeo kingdom as well as a defensive alliance with "the Great State" (i.e. Silla). Silla, eager to break its ties with Tang, which following the defeat of Goguryeo and Baekje now threatened to impose its hegemony over the former Baekje and Goguryeo territories, agreed to reestablish, and ally with, a revived Goguryeo under king Anseung. In the eighth month of 670, King Munmu of Silla sent a royal decree to Anseung, reading in part: