It can be said that one of the major reasons peace was maintained between Joseon and Japan for nearly 260 years—from after the Imjin War until the mid-19th century—was the important role played by the diplomatic letters exchanged between the King of Joseon and the Shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate through the diplomacy of the Joseon Tongsinsa (Korean Envoys to Japan), despite several crises in bilateral relations. The diplomatic letters exchanged between Joseon and Japan were reciprocal state documents sent directly between a single sender and receiver, namely the “King of Joseon” and the “Shogun of the Bakufu” (referred to as Taikun). Their contents were intended to refer only to their diplomatic counterpart, in order to preserve so-called jeongnye(敵禮), or diplomatic equality. For example, during the 1748 Mujin Tongsinsa mission(called the Enkyō Embassy in Japan), the Japanese side made excessive demands during the negotiations over ceremonial protocols. In addition to congratulatory messages for the shogun’s succession, they requested diplomatic letters and gifts not only for the current shogun but also for the retired shogun(退休關白) and the young heir(若君), extending across three generations of the shogunal family. In response, Joseon severely punished the officials involved—such as the Dongnae magistrate, reception officials, and interpreters—by sentencing them twice to exile because they failed to block the Japanese demands during negotiations and instead passed them directly to the royal court. Joseon also conveyed a warning to the Japanese side, specifically the Tsushima-han. This was done to uphold the principle that “there cannot be the etiquette of serving two rulers in neighborly relations,” thereby maintaining diplomatic equality(jeongnye). The diplomatic letter carried by the Mujin Tongsinsa mission, namely the “Letter of King Yeongjo of Joseon [Yi Geum]”(1748), reflected Joseon’s diplomatic policy of maintaining equal relations with Japan since the Imjin War. Another noteworthy feature of the Joseon king’s diplomatic letters is that they were written in the form of bongseo(奉書, formal royal correspondence). The letters delivered by the Tongsinsa envoys to the Tokugawa shogun at Edo Castle contained expressions related to friendship and established diplomatic precedent between the two nations. Similarly, the reply letters sent by the shogun and brought back by the Tongsinsa envoys included expressions emphasizing trust, eternal friendship, neighborly relations, and harmonious diplomacy. In conclusion, through the reciprocal exchange of diplomatic letters with the Tokugawa shogun, successive kings of Joseon secured promises of “neighborly relations and friendship.” This effectively served as a guarantee and confirmation of peace and security on Joseon’s southern frontier until the next request for a Tongsinsa mission was made.

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This article marks the initial stage of a historical-geographical investigation into the routes taken by Japanese envoys traveling up to Hanyang (modern-day Seoul) prior to the Imjin War (Japanese invasions of Korea, 1592–1598)—a subject that has received relatively less scholarly attention compared to the post-Joseon station networks and embassy routes, such as those of the Tongsinsa (Embassies to Japan) and Yeonhaengsa (Embassies to Qing China). First, by comparing the travel routes to the capital recorded in sources like the Chungwansi (Records of the Ministry of Rites) with the station networks and Tongsinsa routes of the late Joseon period, this study establishes hypotheses regarding the characteristics and historical background of these routes based on their similarities and differences. Regarding the land routes, prior to the Three Ports Rebellion (Sampo Waeran), the routes advanced to Hanyang via three distinct paths: the Right Route from Naeipo, the Middle Route from Busanpo, and the Left Route from Yeompo. Even after the rebellion, though the starting point for all routes was consolidated at Busanpo, these three distinct lines were maintained. This measure was intended to prevent the burden of hosting envoys from concentrating heavily on the residents along a single path, sharing the same underlying rationale as the Tongsinsa routes, which utilized the Left Road for the outward journey and the Right Road for the return. These three capital-bound routes were selected to offer the shortest possible distances from the Waegwan (Japanese settlements) at each port to Hanyang, clearly demonstrating a geographical interaction between the locations of the Three Ports and the trajectories of the capital-bound routes. Meanwhile, water routes utilized the Nakdong River and Han River systems, serving to supplement or substitute for the land routes. While it is well known that the routes of the Yeonhaengsa and those of the Chinese envoys visiting Joseon largely overlapped, the Tongsinsa routes and the Japanese capital-bound routes diverged significantly in many sections, notwithstanding the temporal gap before and after the Imjin War. Furthermore, they do not align with other major station network systems recorded by historical geographers of the late Joseon period. Notably, none of the routes completely match the Great Yeongnam Road (Route 4), which was the primary arterial road connecting Hanyang and the Yeongnam region, showing overlaps only in limited sections. Although the exact reasons remain unclear, this study proposes two hypotheses: first, it was the result of an intentional effort to keep the three routes from overlapping with one another; second, these linear trajectories might represent remnants of the station networks from the early Joseon or even the Goryeo period. This presentation represents merely the first step toward the geographical reconstruction of the capital-bound routes for Japanese envoys. Moving forward, I intend to finalize the reconstruction of these paths by incorporating other archival records, travelogues, pre-Edo period Tongsinsa routes, analyses of Japanese historical materials, and field surveys.

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This study examines the structure and significance of the maritime rituals of the 1811 Sinmi Tongsinsa mission, focusing on the Yeonsinje, Haesinje, and Sujongje recorded in the Sinmi Tongsin Illok. In the Sinmi Tongsin Illok compiled by Chief Envoy Kim I-gyo, the section entitled “Haesinje” contains the annotation “Yeonsinje Sujongje Bu,” indicating that these three rituals were understood as interrelated rites within the sea voyage from Busan to Tsushima. Rather than subsuming all three rituals under a single category of the Haesinje, this study understands them as a maritime ritual structure that unfolded in stages during the 1811 Sinmi Tongsinsa mission. The Yeonsinje was conducted aboard each vessel before departure under the supervision of shamans (muchuk), inviting divine spirits onto the ships. Through ritual purification and the wearing of new garments, participants entered a purified state, and the vessels themselves were transformed into sacred ritual spaces. The Haesinje was a state-sponsored ceremony performed at an altar on land at Yeonggadae, led by the chief and deputy envoys. It shared characteristics with the “Sea” component of the Akhwaedokje (Rites to Mountains, Seas, and Rivers), one of the middle-level state sacrifices of the Joseon dynasty. The selection of the ritual date, appointment of officiants, observance of ritual purification, construction of the altar, and preparation of sacrificial offerings and ritual vessels demonstrate its official and public nature. The Sujongje was a maritime passage ritual conducted by the captains when navigating the dangerous waters known as Sujong. The offering of a live pig and rice to the sea constituted a direct act of supplication to the sea deity for safe passage. Although differing in ritual space, officiants, and ceremonial form, all three rites shared the common purpose of confronting the dangers of maritime travel. Therefore, the maritime rituals of the 1811 Sinmi Tongsinsa mission, as recorded in the Sinmi Tongsin Illok, should be understood not as a series of independent ceremonies but as a ritual sequence consisting of departure preparation, state ritual, and maritime passage rites. This structure should not be generalized as a universal ritual pattern of all Tongsinsa missions; rather, it should first be understood as a case-specific structure found in the 1811 mission and in the documentary organization of the Sinmi Tongsin Illok.

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This article focuses on the people who supported the Korean embassy missions in Tokugawa Japan and examines the Chosenjin Goyo in Tonami, Etchu Province, in Kyōhō 4 (1719). As is well known, the embassies represented formal diplomatic missions dispatched by the king of Choson to the Tokugawa shogun on the premise of promoting diplomacy between equals based on the good-neighborly relations between Japan and Choson. Even under the “seclusion” (sakoku) policy, the arrival of the embassy missions in Japan was not only a solemn diplomatic ritual but also a state ceremony that demonstrated the legitimacy of the new shogun both in Japan and abroad. For this reason, the Tokugawa Bakufu established a state-level system for receiving and escorting the embassies on their journey to Edo. On the other hand, the Kaetsuno region (Kaga, Noto, and Etchu), held by the Maeda family of the Kaga Domain, lay outside the embassy route and had long been considered an area unrelated to the embassies. Recent research, however, has shown that the Kaga Domain undertook the joma-yaku in years when the embassies came to Japan, and that villages in the Kaetsunō region were mobilized for Chōsenjin Goyo. In this article, focusing on the case of Kyōhō 4 as recorded in the Chosenjin Goyo Uma Tomechō (Register of Horses for Chosenjin Goyo) in the Kawai Documents, preparations made by Tomura officials, including Kawai Mataemon of Toide Village, Tonami, Etchu Province, for the dispatch of post horses, horse drivers, and horse supervisors are analyzed. In the home territory, post horses suitable for official service were selected through horse inspections conducted by the Osanyoba, the domain accounting office. Specifically, 15 official-service horses were dispatched from Nakada, Hanyu, and Sagano villages under the district administration, and from Imaisurugi-machi under the town administration. Even after the horse inspection, the local Tomura officials made painstaking arrangements: they replaced horses suffering from eye disease and bore the cost of outfitting the horse supervisors and their retainers. The actual service of joining the embassy procession between Maisaka and Edo lasted only nine days. Even so, preparations for dispatch took four months, showing the thoroughness with which the Kaga Domain authorities back in the domain engaged with the task. Maeda Tsunanori, then lord of Kaga Domain, went to view the procession when the embassy entered Edo, watching over the contingent from Kaga as it carried out its task. Later, after returning to the home territory, the horse supervisors recorded the scenes of the procession that they had witnessed firsthand in a document entitled Chosenjin Nori Gyoretsu No Oboe (Memorandum on the Korean Procession on Horseback). The Tomura officials, too, compiled details of the official service in the Chōsenjin Goyo Uma Tomechō and transmitted it to posterity with their own hands. The Chosenjin Goyo (dispatch of post horses), which derived from the jōma-yaku of the Maeda family, in the Kaga Domain, was clearly carried out by the horse supervisors and horse drivers of the villages in the Kaetsunō region, as well as by the Tomura officials, who did not themselves travel to the site. Thus, it is an undeniable fact that the embassies were supported in their missions not only by persons connected with the Tokugawa Bakufu and Tsushima Domain, but also by large numbers of Japanese people gathered from distant regions to the route of passage. Further attention should be given to the fact that their earnest efforts made the embassies’ journeys to Edo possible and sustained the good relations between Japan and Choson.

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