『임진기록壬辰記錄』을 통해 본 정탁鄭琢의 임진전쟁 기억과 전쟁기록 = Jeongtak (鄭琢)’s Memories of the Imjin War (壬辰戰爭) and War Records from <Imjin Records (壬記錄)>

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

The Imjin War (壬⾠戰爭), which changed the history of Joseon (朝 鮮), Ming (明), and Japan (⽇本) in the late 16th century, was an international war in East Asia. Various studies on the Imjin War, an international war, have been conducted in the historical academic of Korea, China, and Japan to grasp the outline of its history. Nevertheless, many specific research projects remain consistent with the historical characteristics of the Imjin War. One of the most representative areas is the study of war through war records left by important figures in the war. Such research will serve as the basis for analyzing the Imjin War from a comprehensive perspective, not just from the perspective of war history.
This study aims to pay attention to Jeongtak (鄭琢), an important figure who actually led the war by escorting the king and crown prince during the Imjin War. Jeongtak was a person who was well versed in international affairs with his experience of envoy to Ming before the war.
Jeongtak’s diplomatic career led to Ming’s participation in the war and liaison service, which led to a change in the war situation of the Imjin War. Afterwards, Jeongtak actively collected various military and diplomatic information reflecting the Ming army’s perception of war to prepare Joseon’s response to the operation of the Allied Forces. In particular, Jeong Tak was mindful of the withdrawal of Ming army. When the Ming army demanded that the crown prince of Joseon be directly at the forefront of battle, he escorted the crown prince and led the war. Jeongtak’s experience and activities in the war were not limited to gathering scattered Joseon troops and recruiting righteous army (義兵). His activities extended to the level of smooth settlement of his relationship with Ming army.
Jeongtak was heartbroken by the fall of Joseon royal authority and the suffering of the people due to the Imjin War. Jeongtak’s memories and awareness of the Imjin War were thoroughly left as a war record (戰爭記錄), leading to the completion of the war and the compilation of ‘Imjin Records (壬⾠記錄)’ and ‘Yongsajablok(⿓蛇雜錄)’. ‘Imjin Records’ contains 16 official documents and ‘Yongsajablok’ contains 56 official documents including war poetry and diary texts. This reflects that Jeongtak wanted to record his experiences and memories of the Imjin War based on facts. In addition, Jeongtak recognized the Imjin War as an international war and wanted to leave a war records, he experienced and remembered in case another war broke out in the future.