16세기 말~17세기 전반 唐糧의 성격에 대한 검토 = The Nature of Dang’ryang(唐糧) Grains, at the end of the 16^th century and early half of the 17^th

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

During the Imjin Wae’ran war, the term “Dang’ryang(唐糧)” referred to a collected supply of grain transported from Ming China to the Korean peninsula, in order to feed the Ming troops that had come to Joseon as a relief force. The Joseon government relayed all these Dang’ryang grains －which had been transferred initially to Joseon’s Euiju area in the North－ to southern locations of the peninsula, in order to address all kinds of local grain shortages throughout the country. And when the war ended, Dang’ryang grains were no longer needed. It naturally disappeared for the time being.
Then later, to aid the Mo Mun-ryong army, the Joseon government began collecting taxes from local Gun/Hyeon units under the name of, again, ‘Dang’ryang(唐糧).’ In 1622(14^th year of King Gwang’hae-gun’s reign), Mo Mun-ryong’s troops camped in the Gado area and demanded food and grain from Joseon. The Joseon government had no other choice but to comply, and levied additional taxes throughout the country, with 1 Du 5 Seung of grain from every Gyeol unit of land in the dynasty. Because of the fact that these grains were delivered to Mo Mun-ryong, the grain was also called as “Mo’ryang(毛糧).” Interestingly enough, this quasi-tax continued to be collected even after 1629(7^th year of King Injo’s reign), when Mo was finally arrested and beheaded.
In 1634(12^th year of Injo’s reign) the Gabsul-year land survey was conducted and completed, and more than one hundred thousand of Gyeol units were secured in the three Southern provinces of the Korean peninsula. With new sources of taxation established as a result of such effort, other miscellaneous taxes were summarily abolished. But for some reasons the Dang’ryang tax was not and continued to be collected. Later, during the Byeongja Ho’ran war these Dang’ryang grain was used as military provision to be stacked at the Namhan Sanseong fortress. And after the war, they were sent to Shim’yang-gwan (where Crown prince Sohyeon was staying). With dynastic crises continuing, the presence of Dang’ryang was continuously required, and discussion of abolishing it only began in the 23d year of Injo’s reign.
Dang’ryang, which was first formed with foreign Ming grain that was transferred from China to Joseon in the early phase of the Imjin Wae’ran war, continued to exist for quite some time because of all the external variables disrupting Joseon dynasty’s security, and remained during that time as a relatively huge diplomatic & military cost the Joseon government had to pay. Only in the mid-17^th century when Dang’ryang tax was finally abolished, the Joseon dynasty was able to truly overcome the aftermath of both wars and redesign its tax structure.