— Overview
The notes stay with Changdeokgung’s history and its approach, and they do not wander into another Seoul palace.
— Contents and key concepts
1405, the fire of 1592, and the rebuild of 1610
Changdeokgung was built in Taejong’s fifth year, 1405, the second palace after Gyeongbokgung. It was meant as a secondary palace, yet the kings lived mainly there, and it served in practice as the principal one.
In 1592, in the seven-year Jo-wae war as the notes write it — the Imjin War — it burned. Gyeongbokgung’s site was called unlucky, so that palace was not restored, and in 1610 only Changdeokgung was rebuilt. Until Heungseon Daewongun raised Gyeongbokgung again, it was, for a long time, Joseon’s foremost palace. Used without a hard line with Changgyeonggung, and east of Gyeongbokgung, the two were also called Donggwol, the Eastern Palaces.
A free placement, and the rear garden
Among Joseon’s palaces, the notes say, this one keeps the most of its original form. Buildings sit fairly freely with the hills, their scale and use in harmony with the land.
The rear garden sets pavilions of many shapes on the natural slope, with ponds, trees, and strangely formed rocks, and is called the finest garden of the period. After the Imjin loss it was the first palace in the capital to be rebuilt, and then served as the main palace for some two hundred and fifty years.
Donhwamun, and an approach that turns twice
Donhwamun is the main gate, yet it stands at the southwest corner. From the approach one must turn at a right angle twice to reach the main hall.
That path, laid to the ground, differs from Gyeongbokgung or from Chinese palaces that keep a straight north–south axis. The notes stop at that comparison. The same Korean report, at fuller length, is on CampusDown.
Sources
- The notes, a student account of Changdeokgung: built in 1405, burned in the Imjin War of 1592 as the notes’ “seven-year Jo-wae war” is read, rebuilt in 1610, with a rear garden and an approach from Donhwamun that turns twice.
Last updated: 15 November 2026
Frequently asked questions
When was Changdeokgung built, and how did it become the main palace in practice?
Changdeokgung was built in the fifth year of King Taejong, 1405, the second palace after Gyeongbokgung. It was raised as a secondary palace, the notes say, yet Joseon’s kings lived mainly there, and it served in practice as the principal palace. In 1592, in what the notes call the seven-year Jo-wae war — the Imjin War, as that wording is read — it burned. The site of Gyeongbokgung was held to be unlucky, so that palace was not rebuilt, and in 1610 only Changdeokgung was restored. Until Heungseon Daewongun rebuilt Gyeongbokgung, it remained, for a long stretch, the foremost palace of Joseon. It was used without a hard boundary with Changgyeonggung, which had been strengthened as inner quarters, and, lying east of Gyeongbokgung, the two were also called the Eastern Palaces, Donggwol.
What do the notes say about placement and the rear garden?
Of Joseon’s palaces, they write, this one keeps the most of its original form, and shows Joseon palace building and garden clearly. The buildings sit fairly freely with the mountain terrain, yet their scale and use stay in harmony with the land. The rear garden, over a wide ground, sets pavilions of many shapes on the natural slope, with ponds, trees, and strangely formed rocks, and is called, in this reading, the finest garden of the period. As a secondary palace it served as a royal seat for about two hundred years in early Joseon; lost in the Imjin War in the late sixteenth century, it was the first of the capital’s palaces to be rebuilt, and then served as the main palace for some two hundred and fifty years.
How does one reach the main hall from Donhwamun?
The palace follows the basic forms of Confucian ritual building, the notes say, yet the way one enters and the way the buildings sit show features of Joseon’s own palaces. Donhwamun is the main gate, but it stands at the southwest corner, and from the approach one must turn at a right angle twice before reaching the main hall. That path, laid to the lie of the land, differs from Gyeongbokgung or from Chinese palaces that keep a straight north–south axis. The notes stop at that comparison, and do not go on into a later shop summary of tourist numbers.
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