Mangyangjeong

About this place

Mangyangjeong, one of the Eight Scenic Views of Gwandong (關東八景), was, according to tradition, built during the Goryeo period on a hill by the shore in Mangyang-ri, Giseong-myeon. In the reign of King Sejong of Joseon, Chae Sinbo, saying that the pavilion had grown old and worn, moved it to the foot of Mount Hyeonjong in Mangyang-ri. After it was toppled by a storm in 1517, it was rebuilt in 1518 (13th year of King Jungjong) when the inspector Yun Hui-in asked Kim Se-u, the magistrate of Pyeonghae-gun, to restore it. In 1860 (11th year of King Cheoljong), Yi Hui-ho, the magistrate of Uljin-hyeon, together with the district clerk Im Hak-yeong, relocated it to its present site in Dunsan-dong, Sanpo-ri, Geunnam-myeon. Mangyangjeong stands on a hill where one can look out at a single glance over the Wangpicheon Stream, which flows down in front of Seongnyugul Cave, and the vast rolling waves of the East Sea. Because its scenery was regarded as the finest among the Eight Scenic Views of Gwandong, King Sukjong bestowed upon it a plaque written in his own hand reading 'Gwandong Jeil-ru' (The First Pavilion of Gwandong). Writings handed down include poems personally composed by kings Sukjong and Jeongjo, the Mangyangjeong poem of Jeong Chu, the draft of the Gwandong Byeolgok by Jeong Cheol, and the Mangyangjeong-gi record by Chae Su.