Song Siyeol

Song Si-yeol (1607-1689) was a scholar-official and Neo-Confucian thinker of late Joseon who led the political scene as a leader of the Westerners faction and later of the Noron party. He took part in King Hyojong's plans for a northern campaign, led the Rites Controversy debates, and upheld Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism as an absolute standard, leaving a deep mark on the learning and politics of his time. He was ordered to take poison and died during the Gisa Purge of 1689, and today his uncompromising ideas and role in factional strife remain matters of divided assessment.