Queen Sindeok

Early life and lineage

The future Queen Sindeok was born during the reign of King Gongmin of Goryeo, as the younger daughter among four sons and two daughters. Her father was Kang Yun-seong and her mother was a lady from the Jinju Kang clan (진주 강씨).

Whereas Lady Kang's maternal Jinju Kang clan was an elite military lineage that traced its roots to Goguryeo, her paternal Goksan Kang clan had been minor gentry for the vast majority of the Goryeo period and it was only near the twilight of the dynasty that they suddenly catapulted to prominence. Nevertheless, they were more influential in terms of immediate, high-level backing, whereas the family of Yi Seong-gye's first wife, Lady Han, lacked direct political leverage in the capital at that crucial time despite being a sprawling aristocratic clan. Additionally, Lady Kang's uncle, Kang Yun-chung (강윤충), was married to a daughter of Yi Seong-gye's uncle, Yi Ja-heung. All these factors combined made it possible for Lady Kang to come into contact with Yi Seong-gye and become his wife.

Marriage

According to legends, Yi Seong-gye's first meeting with Lady Kang happened as such: one day while hunting a tiger, Yi Seong-gye got thirsty and found a well, and there was a woman at the well. When Yi Seong-gye asked the woman to pour him some water, she poured water into a gourd and then floated a handful of willow leaves on top of the water. At this, Yi Seong-gye rebuked her, saying, "What kind of evil is this?". The woman replied shyly that she had to rush because he was thirsty, and if he drank the cold water, he would get sick. After hearing this, Yi Seong-gye was deeply moved by, and looked carefully at the oustandingly beautiful woman. He was mesmerized by her wisdom and beauty. The woman at the well was Lady Kang. This story is the same as the story of the meeting between King Taejo of Goryeo and Queen Janghwa. Both Queen Janghwa and Lady Kang were daughters of local gentry clans that had newly gained renown, as well as the second wives of the founder of their respective dynasties.

During the Goryeo period, aristocratic men were allowed two wives; one wife was known as the gyeongcheo (경처), the capital wife, while the other wife was known as the hyangcheo (향처), the countryside wife. Lady Kang married Yi Seong-gye in the late 1360s or early 1370s as his second (gyeongcheo) wife. At the time of the marriage, Lady Kang was more than 20 years younger than her husband; he already had a first (hyangcheo) wife and at least four sons, with the eldest among them being older than Lady Kang.

In early 1392, when Yi Seong-gye was seriously injured after falling off his horse and Jeong Mong-ju attempted to eliminate him, Lady Kang urgently sent Yi Seong-gye's fifth son, Yi Bang-won, who was observing mourning at the tomb of his mother, to bring Yi Seong-gye to safety. Furthermore, it was said that it was Lady Kang who appeased Yi Seong-gye's anger when he severely rebuked Yi Bang-won for assassinating Jeong Mong-ju.

Involvement in politics

With the founding of the new dynasty in 1392, Lady Kang became the first queen of Joseon and received the honorific title hyeon (현; lit. ''illustrious'').

She then formed a political alliance with Jeong Do-jeon and successfully convinced the newly enthroned Yi Seong-gye (posthumously King Taejo) to choose her second son, Yi Bang-seok, as successor to the throne. The adult sons of Lady Han, particularly Yi Bang-won, were outraged by the fact that their youngest half-brother, who was 10 years old at the time and hadn't contributed in any way to the founding of Joseon, had become the crown prince.

Death and aftermath

Lady Kang died four years after her second son's appointment as crown prince. She was buried within Jeongneung (정릉) in present-day Seongbuk District, Seoul.

Her death affected King Taejo immensely. To pray for her soul, he built a small hermitage next to her tomb, and had incense and tea offered every morning and evening. He then ordered the construction of Heungcheonsa Temple to the east of the tomb; as soon as it was completed, it became a daily routine for Taejo to visit his wife's tomb and the temple. After touring the two sites, he would spend the evenings with his two sons by Lady Kang, and only return to his chambers upon hearing the temple bell ringing to announce the offering of prayers at the tomb. Moreover, Taejo would only pick up his chopsticks to eat during meals after hearing the Buddhist scriptures being chanted to pray for Lady Kang's repose.

In 1398, the First Strife of the Princes broke out, resulting in the elimination of her sons and the death of her son-in-law, leaving her only daughter, Princess Gyeongsun, to become a Buddhist nun. Shortly after, King Taejo abdicated in favor of his eldest surviving son, Yi Bang-gwa (posthumously King Jeongjong), who later passed the throne to Yi Bang-won (posthumously King Taejong).

As she had completely captivated King Taejo and, with the help of figures like Jeong Do-jeon, had her own son appointed as crown prince, the resentment of Lady Han's children against her had long reached its peak. Ultimately, this resentment persisted after Lady Kang's death and became the cause for King Taejong establishing regulations that banned sons of concubine birth from taking the civil service examination, effectively barring them from becoming high-ranking government officials.