[Drama 2013/2014] ♚ Empress Ki (기황후) ♚

[Guest blckp]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toghtogha


id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading" lang="en"Toqto'a (Yuan Minister)
Toqto’a (Mongolian: Toqtogha (Cyrillic: Тогтох), simplified Chinese: 脱脱; traditional Chinese: 脫脫; pinyin: Tuōtuō, 1314－1356), also called "The Great Historian Tuotuo", was a Yuan official historian and the high-ranking minister of the Yuan Dynasty. With his banishment and later murder, the Mongol Yuan court might have lost its last chance to defeat the Han Chinese Red Turban Rebellion, which started in the early 1350s against their rule.


Toqto’a was born to the Mergid aristocrat, Majarday (also rendered as Chuan), in 1314. His uncle was Bayan (d.1340), who had raised to the grand councillor during the reign of Toghan Temur (r.1333-1370), the last Yuan emperor.

Toqto’a was given a Confucian education. Fearing that his uncle's ambitious character would harm their family's prestige, Toqto’a and his father, allied with the Khagan, organized a plot to dismiss Bayan. In March 1340, they closed the gates of the palace walls while Bayan was hunting in the nearby countryside. They refused to let him in and soon afterwards arrested him. Bayan was sent into exile and Toqto’a toppled him. In November Toqto’a replaced Bayan as grand councillor.

In 1343 Toqto’a led a team of officials to quickly compile Dynastic Histories of the Liao, Jin and Song Dynasties. The immense work was done within a relatively short period (a few years), which caused a lack of proofreading and textual criticism.[1] The three works produced were:

    The History of Liao, or Liao Shi (simplified Chinese: 辽史; traditional Chinese: 遼史; pinyin: Liáo Shǐ; "Dynastic History of the Liao Dynasty"), finalized in 1343.
    The History of Jin, or Jin Shi (Chinese: 金史; pinyin: Jīn Shǐ; "Dynastic History of the Jin Dynasty")
    The History of Song, or Song Shi (Chinese: 宋史; pinyin: Sòng Shǐ; "Dynastic History of the Song Dynasty")

At the time some Chinese scholars argued that the Khitans, being former non-Chinese barbarians, their Liao Dynasty did not deserve a compiled standard official history.[1] Due to the dispute over whether Liao Dynasty should be considered a legitimate dynasty, the Liao Shi was not officially compiled until 1342-1343, when Toqto’a finally decided to treat the Liao, Jin, and Song dynasties all as legitimate dynasties in Chinese history. The compilation of the Liao Shi was finished in one year[1] by highly skilled imperial historians, but without elaborate proofreading and textual criticism.[1] Because of this double time and lack of supporting context, the Liao Shi is known for its technical errors, naiveness, lack of precision and over-lapsing. It has been argued the compilation team did not have suitable contextual material to provide an in depth analysis, and audacious comments.[1]

In 1344, however, a grand plan to divert the Yongding River to facilitate water transport to the capital of Dadu (modern Beijing) generated heavy opposition, and Toqto’a resigned, joining his father in Gansu. During the 1330s plague and famine devastated the Huai River area, while unrest appeared in South China, Manchuria, and the Sino-Tibetan borderlands. Massive flooding of Yellow River inundated more than a decade of cities, putting the Grand Canal out of service and beginning the river’s migration to a new channel north of the Shandong peninsula. Meanwhile, piracy made the sea route for transporting South Chinese grain to the capital increasingly risky. Toqto'a's successor, the new councillor, Berke-Buqa, was too weak to handle all those issues. In August 1249 Toqto’a was recalled to the imperial capital and reappointed grand councillor.

In winter 1350–51 Toqto'a failed to suppress the activities of the pirate chief Fang Guozhen failed. With the support of Emperor Toghan-Temür, Toqto’a advocated rerouting the Yellow River back to its southern channel as a way to repair the Grand Canal. In April 1351 he began his great project, employing 150,000 civilian workers, 20,000 soldiers, and 1,845,636 yastuq of paper currency. Earlier issues of paper currency had been limited by silver reserves, but Toqto’a issued 2 million ding of unbacked paper currency to pay for labor and materials. This certainly affected the empire's overall economy.

When the religious oriented Red Turban Rebellion broke out in Yingzhou in 1351, the Yuan attacks failed. Toqto'a was ordered to march against them and assembled the army of mostly Chinese volunteers in 1353-54. He was successful in defeating the rebels. On October 23, 1352, he retook the strategic city of Xuzhou after a six-day siege. Other provincial officials raised Chinese, Mongol, and Miao armies to attack the rebels. By winter 1353–54 the “Red Turban” movement was virtually extinct. Even so, piracy and the occupation of the Grand Canal at Gaoyou by the salt smuggler Zhang Shicheng still blocked grain shipments from the south and caused hunger in the capital. Toqto’a proposed another grand plan for rice farming in central Hebei, importing 2,000 South Chinese farmers and spending 5 million ding of currency, all the while assembling another army to attack Gaoyou and reopen the Grand Canal.

However, Toqto'a's former protege and now court rival Hama of the Qanqli and the heir apparent, Ayushiridara, backed by the Emperor's Korean consort Öljei Khutugh, falsely accused him of corruption and induced the Khagan to strip him of his dignities in 1354. They quickly arranged his dismissal and banishment by imperial decree, just as the siege of Gaoyou was nearing victory.

Although, Toqto’a had a vast number of loyal troops under him, on January 7, he accepted the Khagan (Emperor)'s decree and gave instructions to his soldiers that they must respect their new commander who had come to replace him. Because of his popularity, many of the troops under his command refused to serve under a new commander and left the army or joined the rebels. While Toqto'a was in exile in Yunnan, he was poisoned by Hama's assassins on January 10, 1356.

[larus]

Thank you @blckp for all the information. I love reading about real history. I know that the characters/ events in a drama are romanticized but sometimes the real history is really exiting and dramatic. The real life beats fiction.

[screambyscared2]

new stills for next episode ;


and Let see them, Empress Ki 'Ha Ji Won' MBC TV Section 

credit to all korea media

[briseis]

http://hinatai.tumblr.com/post/67205612539

[briseis]

http://hinatai.tumblr.com/post/67204729641/dilemma-sungnyangs-style-empress-ki

[briseis]

http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/Empress-Ki

[briseis]

She looks so pretty

Source: as tagged

[SeGafanlady]

hello chingu deul.... my first time comment here.. anneyong haseyoooo.... 



I think... Empress Ki will always have her husband Emperor Huizong under her feet. I hope Huizong will explain what was the real situation to her so the misunderstanding will be cleared. There is no way that Huizong can live without her.. I watched the first 5 minutes of episode 1 for 20 times and all that I can say, if the WRnim have no intention to clear up the vendetta of Empress Ki to Emperor Huizong, than that is really unfair for Huizong.
I ship them to death... noona and dongsaeng marriage.. (real life Empress Ki was also older than Emperor Huizong)

[mittiin]

Post episode 4, I'm starting to enjoy the series so much more now. 
Ji Chan-wook is seriously good looking and is doing a great job as Togon (Ta-hwan); infact such a great job as a lily-livered weakling that I'm starting to find the not-so-handsome-in-comparison Joo Jin-mo's character, warts et-all, wildly attractive. I reason, saying, though beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder, handsome is as handsome does.
Then why I wonder, does this not apply to these three: Dangkise, Bayan (Baek Ahn) and Taltal? 
Bayan's appearance on screen was what kept me watching this serial - I was so disappointed at how the supporting cast was being portrayed, and it was so heartening watching this man take his meagre lines and make it all awesome.Yes, his character's flawed, and history paints a sorry picture of him, but he's played so well here by the actor.
And along came Taltal; the calm to Bayan's tempest. Almost no expressions flit across his face, yet he plays the foil to Bayan beautifully. Their's is a partnership I love watching. There's such unspoken understanding between the two characters.And then Dangkise. I must admit I didn't start as a big fan, but with every passing episode and the more the shave his hair, the more attractive he gets in my eyes . Him sniffing Seung-nyang's neck was such an interesting scene.
Maybe I just like bad boys, but there's someone else I'm waiting for with bated breath.Him 

[valsava]

Well finally got the time to catch up to this wonderful historical drama as I read all the comments and facts that you guy's have posted It has really enlighten me.I have always loved historical dramas can't wait to see how this plays out with such a wonderful cast It has me full of awe with the beautiful scenes, I will be joining in on the discussions look forward to next week. So until then hope your safe in what ever you peace out.

[tessieroo]

@Lyly and @larus -
I was confused on who the Dowager Empress is! On the subs, Ta Hwan called her "Mother" but I don't think she's his biological mother. And on "The Talking Cupboard" there is a very detailed list of all the characters -
http://thetalkingcupboard.wordpress.com/2013/11/04/empress-ki-character-introduction/

(which I've used as reference a million times cuz I keep forgetting who is who - LOL) that shows she is Ta Hwan's Aunt? I'm also really happy Ta Hwan has a few people inside the Palace who will help him. (although at the end of ep 6 - it looked like General Baek-Ahn was being sent away) How creepy was that, it seems like El Temur is everywhere and hears everything. 
@SeGafanlady! You're here! *dances* I'm loving all the amazing discussion here, it's so interesting to read. I'm trying not to pay too much attention to the factual history but those little tidbits are interesting too. 
@mittiin - I LOVE the entire cast - I love how all of the characters are being fleshed out. I don't think any of the villains (so far) have been boring or one-dimensional with the exception of El Temur. (I need much more about him) General Baek-Ahn is awesome and even the creepy brothers are fascinating. You can see Ja-Hae is a bit afraid of his brother Ki-Se and he looks conflicted sometimes at his Father's orders. Very interesting cast of characters! 

[SeGafanlady]

@tessieroo

OMO!! Na doo neomu haengbokkhe chingu ya! So happy to meet familiar faces in this amazing drama thread.. (Harlem shake dancing)

Yup I agree with you. In the real history, Budhasiri Queen Dowager was Huizong's step mom. But in this drama, do they made her as his birth mother?

Well.. this is a drama anyway so it is possible that WRnim would change the story or not 100% adopting the real history.

And FYI.. King Wang Yu character is also a friction.. So the silver lining of the drama has actually clearly written. This is about Huizong and Seung Nyang's love story.. with a love rival, intriques and revenge in it.

[SeGafanlady]

Empress Ki wikipedia

(sorry if repost)

Qi Empress (奇皇后; Mongolian: Öljei Khutugh Өлзий хутуг (完者忽都), Korean: 기황후) (1315–1369/70) was one of empresses of Toghun Temür Khan of the Yuan Dynasty and the mother of Ayushiridar from a Korean aristocratic family.

Öljei Khutugh, a Yuan name by which she came to be known, was born to Gi Ja-o (奇子敖) in Haengju (幸州), in the Goryeo Dynasty of Korea. She had an elder brother named Gi Cheol (奇轍). She became a concubine of Toghun Temür and mothered Ayurshiridar. After the primary empress Danashri was overthrown in 1340[citation needed] because of the rebellion by her brother Tanggisi, Toghun Temür tried to install Öljei Khutugh as the empress. However Bayan, who held real power, opposed it. When Bayan was purged, Öljei Khutugh became the secondary empress in 1340 (the primary one was Bayan Khutugh of the Khunggirad clan). Her son Ayurshiridar was designated Crown Prince in 1353. Using her Korean eunuch Bak Bulhwa (朴不花) as her agent, she began a campaign to force the emperor to pass the imperial throne to her son Ayurshiridar. However her intentions became known to the emperor and he grew apart from her.

Depending on Öljei Khutugh's position in the imperial capital her brother Gi Cheol (Bayan Bukha) came to threaten the position of the king of Goryeo which was a client state of the Mongols. King Gongmin exterminated the Gi family in a coup in 1356. Upon this incident in her homeland Öljei Khutugh chose Tash Temür as the new king of Goryeo and dispatched troops to Korea. The Mongol troops were defeated by Goryeo army in crossing the Yalu River.

Within the Mongol capital an internal strife was fought between supporters and opponents of the Crown Prince. An opposition leader Bolud Temür finally occupied the capital in 1364. Ayurshiridar fled to Köke Temür who supported him but Öljei Khutugh was imprisoned by Bolud Temür. Bolud Temür was overthrown by Köke Temür the next year. Once again, she tried to install her son as the Khan, with the support of Köke Temür, but in vain. After Bayan Khutugh died, Öljei Khutugh was elevated to the primary empress.

The collapse of the Mongol rule of China in 1368 forced her to flee to Yingchang (應昌). In 1370 Toghun Temür Khan died and Ayurshiridar ascended to the throne there. She became Empress Dowager, but soon after that went missing.

[tessieroo]

@SeGafanlady -  ><  
So happy you're here! I was addicted to this one from the first week. (LOL) Very intriguing story and so far, the cast is amazing. Things move really quickly too, I'm not fast-forwarding through anything. I did read that in history the Goryeo King was horrible (raping women, killing people, etc) but they've made Wang Yoo the opposite of that. He seems to be a man of very strong moral fiber and very caring - willing to sacrifice himself for his people and his country. 
I can't wait for tomorrow! 

[Kathy]

Katie Nguyen said:   I was really disappointed with his betrayal, which indirectly caused Seung Nyang's father death **sob sob**, I can't help but still love him. 

[Kathy]

mittiin said:   And then Dangkise. I must admit I didn't start as a big fan, but with every passing episode and the more the shave his hair, the more attractive he gets in my eyes . Him sniffing Seung-nyang's neck was such an interesting scene.
Maybe I just like bad boys, but there's someone else I'm waiting for with bated breath.Him 

[Guest Geumchi]

Can't wait for this week's episode!! Since SN and WY are going to be together w/o TH, I'm expecting some skinship, kissing or whatever from this couple.. I'm a SN/TH shipper but I still want to see some SN/WY scenes to make my judgement right... kekeke.. The writers focus too much to Ta Hwan's character and he's chemistry with SN that people (I guess even in Korea) thinks he's the lead (or maybe he's the lead afterall).

With WY, I think he's character is somehow bland. From first episode up to now, he's character were not introduced properly and I must say too that he's so predictable. I guess here are the reason why many ship TH and SN:
1. Ta Hwan seems to like Seungnyang more than Wang Yoo does.2. TH have more interactions with SN than WY.3. People are anticipating TH's character development. WY is almost perfect that people are not expecting more from him.4. WY feels like the second lead. He keeps on reminding me of Kim Yushin (QSD) and Jeon Soo (Dong Yi). lol.. I love MBC sageuk anniversary drama.5. Probably, JCW looks more handsome than JJM.
As much as I wanted to, it's hard to root for WY this time, even after TH's "betrayal". WY is just lucky that he's not blamed to SN's mother death. I remember watching the first episode, I'm so angry with WY for letting go of the tribute carelessly. Though I know his young and his intention is clear, I think his action is stupid. Unless, the writers decide to tweak his character a little, more people will be drawn to Ta Hwan.

[Beekinga]

Ok, joining this band wagon.  Hello every one I recognise from yonder forums.
Watching ep 5 this afternoon, a thought suddenly popped up uninvited.  Has any of these saeguks that tell tales about women posing as men ever breached the issue of monthly menses???  I mean, wrapping bussoms in rags is all very well, but how did they cope with stomach cramps and copious bleeding in men infested barracks?

[chrissydiva]

I forgot to give Dangkise's credit for figuring out SN's identity. I know it was said that back then you couldn't tell the difference but I'm still skeptical. He was able to catch the first clue by the way she was running. He said SN ran like a girl lol Honestly if he wasn't such a creep and killed her mom, he'll be in the running of shipping hahaha At the end of this show, I wonder how many guys HJW will have chemistry with. I want Tal Tal and SN's scenes.

[Guest Geumchi]

Beekinga said: Ok, joining this band wagon.  Hello every one I recognise from yonder forums.
Watching ep 5 this afternoon, a thought suddenly popped up uninvited.  Has any of these saeguks that tell tales about women posing as men ever breached the issue of monthly menses???  I mean, wrapping bussoms in rags is all very well, but how did they cope with stomach cramps and copious bleeding in men infested barracks?