Yi Seok

Sadong Palace in 1937

Yi Seok was born in Korea under Japanese rule, on 30 August 1941. By the time, his father Yi Kang was already 62 while his mother, Lady Hong was 19.[11] The place he was born, Sadong Palace (사동궁), was lost after 1945.[12] The rising of the Syngman Rhee government also caused many of their family properties to be confiscated. After the outbreak of the Korean War, Yi Seok and his family had to leave their residence in Samcheong-dong and lived in poverty.[12]

At the beginning of the era of Republic of Korea, the Imperial family was banished from the Imperial palace,[11] but their life became better after the president Park Chung Hee gained power. When studying Hankook University of Foreign Studies in Seoul, Yi Seok learned foreign languages, principally Spanish, as well as foreign relations and history, becoming fluent in them, and he prepared himself for the diplomatic service. A series of coup d'état and civil discord rendered that impossible. Meanwhile, he had an talent for entertaining, becoming a well known singer and professional musician in the 1960s while in his twenties, having several hit songs. Later, Yi Seok volunteered for the Korean military and served as an enlisted man in the Vietnam War.[13] During the war, Yi Seok wounded and needed to return to Korea, and around the same time, his mother died of stomach cancer.[11] Yi Seok was then 26 and attempted suicide for nine times.[11] After President Park was assassinated in 1979, the subsidy from the government is discontinued, and Yi Seok tried various jobs to support himself.[13] In 1980s, he moved to the United States as an illegal immigrant, doing jobs including lawn mowing, cleaning swimming pools and buildings.[11] At the same time, he attempted to retrieve family properties seized by the republic, which is now irretrievable under post-war Korean law. With the changing political climate in the early 1990s, Yi Seok returned to Korea. Yi Seok's past was made into a dramatic semi-fictional TV programme on the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS).

In April 2004, his eldest daughter, Yi Hong performed for the first time in a singing show from SBS, and Yi Seok starred on stage with her as celebration.[14] By August of the same year, Yi Seok started to run a guesthouse "SeungKwangJae" (승광재) in Jeonju Hanok Village, which is also his current residence. The name reference of the guesthouse is the era name of Emperor Gojong, Kwangmu (光武), and seung (승) stands for "succession".[9][5] In fact, "SeungKwangJae" is a place rent by the government of Jeonju and it was built in wood similar to the traditional way[13] and Yi Seok runs the place with his supporters.[15] He said, "There are many things to do in Jeonju since this is where the Joseon dynasty founded. I'm going to spread the culture of the royal family and re-illuminate Jeonju's history."[15]

On 16 July 2005, Yi Seok's cousin Yi Ku passed away without an heir, and the Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association announced, on July 22, that Yi Won would become Yi Ku's successor according to his will.[16][17] During the funeral, Yi Seok was angered by the decision and commented that "the funeral is yet ended, and it's inappropriate to discuss about adopting an heir by now". [17] Later, Yi Seok claimed that "adopting a son after death doesn’t make any sense," and he also claimed that Yi Bangja, his late aunt and the mother of Yi Ku, named him as "first successor" in her will.[18] In August 2006, for the purpose of monarchy restoration, Yi Seok founded the organization "Korean Imperial Family Cultural Foundation" (황실문화재단) and acted as its director.[9] On the other hand, Yi Hae-won, one of his elder half-sisters, self-proclaimed as an empress and held a coronation on 29 September 2006; Yi Seok was invited but he didn't attend the ceremony.[18]

The Statue of King Sejong in Gwanghwamun Plaza, Seoul

The Statue of King Sejong in Gwanghwamun Plaza was erected on 9 October 2009, and Yi Seok attended the unveiling ceremony.[19] According to a talk on 4 September 2014, Yi Seok revealed that there's no existing contemporary portrait of Sejong the Great, and the appearance of the statue was based on the faces of Yi Seok himself and that from the portrait of Grand Prince Hyoryeong, King Sejong's older brother, which is now preserved at Gwanaksan.[20][21][11]

On 7 August 2018, Harry B. Harris Jr., the United States Ambassador to South Korea, paid a visit to SeungKwangJae.[5] The mayor of Jeonju, Kim Seung-su (김승수), said, "The prince [Yi Seok] is our history and our spirit. I would like to express my deep gratitude to the ambassadors for visiting this symbolic space."[22]