A visit to South Korea’s 3rd largest city, which is Daegu, offers an experience that would reflect Daegu’s colorful ancient history, which involves dynasties and the tale of the three kingdoms.
According to history, the pioneer tribe in Daegu was called the Dalgubeol and they thrived in the hilly grounds of the city. It was also by this name that the Daegu was known for in the olden times. They initially occupied the lower hills and to defend themselves from any invasion by other nearby tribes they have decided to build walls made of earth mounds surrounding their residential area.
It was said that during the Ancient Times, people flocked to Daegu due to its abundant natural resources. The place is surrounded by two rivers called the Geumhogang River and the Sincheon River which is a branch of the former, which formed very spacious fields coupled with fertile soil. Various ancient pots and knives made of stone were discovered in Daegu that indicate the existence of ancient locals throughout the prehistoric period.
Three kingdoms namely the Goryeo, Hubakje, and Silla were known to exist in Daegu. It was in this region that the famous battle called the “Dongsudaejeon” was staged by these kingdoms since the place was a significant strategic point for each of them. During the war, a general named Shin Sun-gyeom of the Silla kingdom was made famous by saving the life of “Wang-geon”, King of Goryeo Kingdom fighting against the attacks of the Hubakje army when the Kingdom of Goryeo came to the aid of Silla Kingdom.
The dramatic event happened when Wang-geon was on the verge of getting killed in the Dongsu battlefield and General Shin came to the rescue by pretending to be the King in the way of wearing the King’s helmet while running away attracting the soldiers of Hubakje to chase him leaving the real King out of harm’s way and was able to get back to his kingdom safely by wearing a soldier’s uniform. After some time, Wang-geon was able to achieve his goal in unifying the three kingdoms leading to a new era of the history of Korea, establishing the Goryeo Dynasty.
The Joseon Dynasty followed in 1392 after the successful reign of the Goryeo. During this time, the population in Daegu continued to grow and the region developed into an agricultural capital in the province of Gyeongsang. It was also during this time that Daegu improved their educational policies by the introduction of Chinese Confucianism.
In the present times Daegu achieves the reputation of being a major textile center in the country of Korea, as well as a hub for metal and machine industries. Although the city is considered highly urbanized, it still has that countryside feel, and it is able to maintain structures and places that commemorate the stories of the ancient times.