Chapter III Koryo Dynasty's Administrative Policy for Ullngdo and Tokdo

1. Five-stage Administration

The dynasty of Koryo (918-1392), which followed the Unified Silla to rule the Korean Peninsula, inherited Tokdo (Liancourt Rocks, Takeshima) and Ullngdo as its territory and exercised its sovereignty over them. Its administration can be broken down into the following five stages.

First stage: The founder of the new dynasty, Wang Kn, (King T'aejo) received representatives from Ullngdo in audience and a tribute of staple products. In return, be awarded them titular official ranks. In this way, the monarch exercised his sovereignty over the islands:

Wang Kn founded the dynasty in 918, defeated King Kynhwn of the Later Paekche (892-936) at Koch'ang (today's Andong in North Kyongsangdo) in December 929, and unified the Later Three Kingdoms. Then in September 930 (13th year of King T'aejo), Ullngdo sent Paekkil and Tod as envoys who were received in audience by Wang Kn and were conferred titular ranks in return for their pledge of allegiance. In this way, the government exercised its sovereignty over these islands.

As many people on Ullngdo were engaged in fishing at that time it is not difficult to assume that they naturally went over to Tokdo for fishing, which was a part of the same tribal state, Usan'guk.

Second stage: This covers the period from 1009 to 1031 during the reign of King Hynjong, when the government tried hard to cope with the difficult situation Ullngdo faced due to the invasion of the Barbarians.

In 1018, in the 9th year of King Hynjong, Ullngdo and Tokdo were raided by a tribe of the Jurchen (also called the Yain or the Barbarians) in the northeast region of Korea. The farmland was ravaged and many took refuge in the mainland. In November of the year, the government sent Yi Wn-gu to Ullngdo and supplied farming tools to the islands. In July of the following year, the government ordered all the refugees to return to Ullngdo.

Three years thereafter, in July 1022, the 13th year of Hynjong, those who balked at going back to the island were settled down permanently in Yeju (Today's Tokwn, Wnsan in North Korea) and given food.

Third stage: During the reign of King Tokchong (r. 1031-1034), Ullngdo was called Ullngsng (sng: castle) and a castellan was appointed and the central government fortified and tried to promote the self-defense capability of the island against foreign invasion.

Fourth stage: This is the period when Injong (1122-1146) was on the throne. When the central government delegated its powers to Myngju province (today's Kangwndo). By that time, Ullngdo was free from invasion by the Jurchen, but its population decreased sharply, making it unnecessary for the central goverment to control the island directly and thus the islands were placed under the jurisdiction of Kangwn province.

Fifth stage: This is the period when King ijong (1146-1170) encouraged people to migrate to Ullngdo for resettlement. The King became aware of the fertile land on Ullngdo and of a government organ that once existed there to control the island, and planned on promoting migration. In 1157, Kim Yu-ip was sent to Ullngdo for inspection and he found the island covered by too many stones and rocks to farm, and the royal plan was discontinued.

Later, during the military-dominated government of Koryo, Ch'oe Ch'ng-hn once tried to settle the people living on the eastern coast of the mainland on Ullngdo, but the ships carrying them were often struck by typhoons, drowning many people and the plan was finally put to an end.

From these, it can be safely said that Koryo succeeded Silla and managed these two islands which once belonged to Usan'guk and its policy became more positive after the invasion by the Jurchen in 1018. But the population of Ullngdo decreased greatly and the migration policy by the central government was not successful.

However, the government did not prohibit voluntary migration of the people on the east coast, but encouraged it. Accordingly, the island continued maintaining a certain degree of population up to the end of Koryo dynasty.

There is no doubt that for these new and old residents, Ullngdo and Tokdo must have been their main area of fishing activities. Around the end of the Koryo dynasty (the end of the 14th century), however, Japanese pirates had become rampant and the east and south coasts of Korea as well as the southeast coast of China were subjected to their plundering. Naturally, Ullngdo suffered.

2. Ullngdo and Tokdo in Japanese Documentary Records in the 11th Century

From the mid-Koryo period on, records on Ullngdo began appearing in Japan. According to Gongki (權記) in the Documents on Great Japan's History (Dainihon shiryo), islanders from Ullngdo of Koryo had drifted to Japan in 1004, and the eleven repatriated to Korea included some from Silla's Ullngdo.

Also the documents refer to the same incident and state, "people of Uruma of Silla have drifted [to Japan]. Uruma is Ullngdo," and the passage is translated, "islanders of Uruma of Silla have come."

What is interesting here is that Japanese called Ullngdo "Uruma" and used Chinese characters in transcribing it: Uruma Island-宇流馬島, Uryoto-芋陵島 or 迂陵島.

The documents record what happened in 1004 (fourth year of King Mokjong of the Koryo dynasty) and clarify that Japan knew the islanders of Ullngdo were Koryo people.

It is also evident from this description that the Japanese knew the island of "Uruma" belonged to Silla before Koryo. Although these first Japanese documents do not mention Tokdo or Usan'guk, they clearly record that Ullngdo belonged to Silla first and then to Koryo.

However, as Tokdo was appended to Ullngdo, was associated with it and constituted part of Usan'guk, the documents reveal that the Japanese involved were cognizant that Usan'guk, comprising Ullngdo and Tokdo, belonged to Silla and then to Koryo.