Age of Steam and Steel: Gameplay Thread

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Joseon-Brazil Treaty of Trade and Amity

The realms of Brazil and Joseon pledge to the promotion of peace and amity between our subjects.

Among the measures taken to so promote amity shall be measures to promote commercial intercourse.

To that end, Brazilian ships and merchants shall be permitted to trade at the Joseon ports of Incheon and Donghae while Joseon ships and merchants shall be permitted to trade at the Brazilian ports of Santos and Manaus.

The navies of Brazil and Joseon will cooperate to aid the commercial vessels of both realms against the ravages of weather and pirates.

In the event of storms or other dangers, our commercial vessels shall be able to seek shelter and succor in the harbors of either of our realms.

King Heonjong

in consultation with and the agreement of
Queen Regent Sunwon

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

조선 법원 선포
Proclamations of the Court of Joseon

(Source: Wikimedia Commons)

King Heonjong in accordance with the advice of Queen Regent Sunwon and his advisors, announces on this Dano of the seventh year of his reign (1840) the following:

Post Office Act, 7 Heonjong
1. There is to be established a Bureau of the Post Office within the Ministry of Commerce.

2. A post office shall by the end of next year be established within each township of the Joseon Kingdom and within each county of the Duchy of Outer Manchuria. The bureau may establish additional post offices within the counties of the Duchy of Outer Manchuria as it deems them to be needed, but no more than one per township. Furthermore, each grand duchy shall be encouraged to establish a postal system of its own. If a grand duchy should choose to not establish a postal system in accordance with this act, the Joseon resident for that grand duchy shall establish and maintain a post office for the sending of mail to any valid address within the Joseon realm and to act as a reception point for General Delivery mail, as defined in section 4 of this act, addressed to a recipient in that grand duchy.

3. Mail intended for delivery within the Joseon Kingdom shall be addressed with the name and delivery address of the recipient in the Joseon language using the eonmun script. Mail intended for delivery within the Duchy of Outer Manchuria shall be addressed with the name and delivery address of the recipient in one or more of the Joseon language using the eonmun script, the Manchu language using the Manchu script, or in the Chinese language using Zhongwen. Mail intended for delivery within a grand duchy shall be in such form as the grand duke thereof determines, save that the use of the Joseon language using the eonmun script shall be an option under any grand ducal postal service that is established under this act.

4. General Delivery mail shall be achieved by addressing the postal item to the intended recipient, along with the term "General Delivery" (통상 우편) and the location of the post office. General Delivery mail shall be kept at the post office receiving it for a minimum of thirty days for collection by the adressee.

5. Recipients of mail may either use General Delivery, rent a post office box in which mail will be kept until collected, or make arrangements for delivery to their domicile or place of business.

6. Postage shall be paid by the sender. The sender may pay a surcharge as determined by the bureau for special delivery to the recipient's physical address even if their customary postal address is either general delivery or a post office box. The payment of the postage shall be stamped upon the article of mail in such manner as the bureau may determine.

7. Cards of no more than ¼ cheok by ½ cheok in size shall be subject to a rate of 3 mun for delivery within the same township, ¼ don of silver coin for delivery within the same province or duchy, and ½ don of silver coin for delivery within the Joseon realm.

8. Envelopes of no more than ½ cheok by 1 cheok in size shall be subject to a rate per nyang of 5 mun for delivery within the same township, ½ don of silver coin for delivery in the same province or duchy, and 1 don of silver coin for delivery within the Joseon realm.

9. The bureau may provide for the delivery to postal addresses of small parcels weighing no more than 5 gwan at such rates as it determines needful to cover the costs of such deliveries.

10. Members of the armed services will not be required to pay postage on postcards sent to their home address, nor will their parents, wives, or children be required to pay postage on postcards sent to them. Other forms of mail shall be charged postage as if it were to a recipient in the same province. Mail addressed to members of the armed services shall use as an address the name and service number of the addressee and either the Ministry of War or the Ministry of the Navy. The address shall not include the rank, unit, or post of the military addressee.

11. The Bureau of the Post Office may enter into arrangements with foreign postal services, private or public, for delivering mail between Joseon addresses and foreign addresses, subject to the provision that the added costs to the bureau of such service shall be borne solely by the postage collected from the senders of the mail at such rates as it deems appropriate.

12. To facilitate the sending of the mail and other commercial purposes, the Bureau of the Mint may produce coins of ¼ don or of ½ don of coin silver according to the fineness standard of the Coinage Act, 6 Heonjong.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

조선 정부의 선포
Proclamations of the Military of Joseon

(Source: self-made)

Regulation of Army Uniforms and Equipment
1. Cloth for general service uniforms, tents, and other general purposes shall be dyed a color similar to that obtained by using walnut shells or bark as the colorant.
2. Winter dress uniforms shall be of a black color.
3. Summer dress uniforms shall be of a white color.
4. Trim on uniforms shall be of a color depending upon the branch of the service they are in as follows:

• infantry - blue
• dragoons - green
• cavalry - yellow
• field artillery - light red
• heavy artillery - dark red
• medical or veterinary - white (with service cloth edge piping on summer dress uniforms)
• staff - black (with service cloth edge piping on winter dress uniforms)
• generals - five thin stripes ordered yellow, black, red, white, blue, with yellow to be the color that is outermost in trim that encloses an area, and top leftmost in other usages.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

조선 정부의 선포
Proclamations of the Government of Joseon

(Source: self-made)

The Bureau of Railways announces that in this year of 8 Heonjong, in addition to maintaining the current railways, there shall be constructed the following railways:

• Gongju to Daejong
• Wonju to Donghae
• Sariwon to Haeju
• Anju to Kanggye
• Musan to Hyesan
• Raeson to Hwanhang

With the aforementioned constructions, the list of operating and planned railways of the Bureau of Railways will be:
Line 1: Hanseong (aka Seoul) to Incheon
Line 2: Hanseong (aka Seoul) to Suwon to Gongju to Daejong to Gimcheong to Daegu to Busan
Line 21: Daejong to Jeonju to Gunsan

Line 3:Hanseong (aka Seoul) to Wonju to Donghae

Line 4: Hanseong (aka Seoul) to Kaesong to Sariwon to Pyeongyang to Anju to Kanggye to Manpo to Chunggang to Junggyeong to Ningguta, Outer Manchuria
Line 41: Kaesong to Haeju to Sariwon
Line 42: Line 42W & (Manpo to Chunggang of Line 4) & Line 42E
Line 42W: Sinuiji to Manpo
Line 42E: Chunggang to Hyesan to Musan to Hoeryeong to Raeson

Line 50: Nampo to Pyeongyang to Kangdong & Line 57
Line 57: Kangdong to Gowon

Line 60: Donghae to Gangneung to Sokcho to Wonsan to Gowon to Hamheung to Seongjin to Cheongjin to Raeson to Hwanhang

Line 70: Sinuiji to Anju to Kangdong & Line 57

(Italics indicate railways that should be in operation by the end of the year. The above is not an exhaustive list of railway stations.)


Regulation Concerning Favored Joseon Industries
For the purposes of the Industrial Promotion Act, 5 Heonjong the following industries are henceforth eligible for loan subsidies:
1. Production of machine tools
2. Production of powered woodworking tools
3. Production of steam engines
4. Production of powered carding, spinning, or weaving equipment
5. Production of iron, steel, bronze, or other alloys
6. Production of railway engines, railway carriages, railway equipment, and rails
7. Shipbuilding
8. Operation of regularly scheduled commercial steamships either on the rivers of the Joseon realm or between a Joseon port and a foreign port on a trip of less than ten days round trip
9. Whaling for whale oil, ambergris, and other whale products other than whale meat
10. Production of porcelain and celadon
11. Production of cement

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Concordat of Pontianak

1. the OAKF recognizes that the Joseon Realm shall have suzerainty over the Sultanates of Johor, Brunei, Pontianak, Banjar, Gowa, and Tidore, as well as the Raj of Larantuka and cedes all claims to the Malay Peninsula and the Riau Islands (Johor), Borneo (Brunei, Pontianak, and Banjar), Sulawesi (Gowa), the Molucca and the Barat Daya Islands (Tidore), Flores and neighboring islands east of Sape Strait (Larantuka). In return the Joseon Realm abjures all interests in Sumatra, Java, the Lesser Sunda Islands west of Sape Strait, Sumba, Sawu, Timor, and New Guinea. This paragraph only asserts spheres of interest between the Joseon Realm and the OAKF in the East Indies and does not bind either party to support the other in asserting or retaining control of their respective spheres, nor does it preclude the parties from recognizing the claims of third parties or from transferring areas to third parties within their respective spheres of interest.

2. The OAKF shall transfer control of the port of Diego-Suarez at the northern tip of Madagascar to the Joseon Realm, in return for which the Joseon realm shall remit to the OAKF 100,000 silver won.

3. Hostilities shall end and normal trade relations shall resume between the OAKF and the Joseon Realm.  Furthermore, the two parties shall agree to grant each other most favored trading partner status in the East Indies. Moreover, the Joseon Realm agrees to not permit trade between other European nations and the Joseon East Indies, as defined by paragraph 1 above, save upon Dutch, Joseon, or OAKF ships unless the OAKF or the Netherlands (once the OAKF and the Netherlands are reconciled) shall by its own agreements extend trading privileges to the East Indies to a third party European government.

4. There shall be no monetary reparations for damages incurred by either party in the recent conflict. Prisoners of war held by either party shall be repatriated no later than the end of the current year. The Sultan of Pontianak shall be repatriated from Willhemstad to his sultanate with all deliberate haste.

5. The Joseon realm shall return to the OAKF all arms of Dutch manufacture captured during the recent hostilities that are still in their possession at the end of hostilities.

Kim Nam-gi
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Joseon Realm
on behalf of and by the order of King Heonjong and Queen Regent Sunwon

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

조선 법원 선포
Proclamations of the Court of Joseon

(Source: Wikimedia Commons)

King Heonjong in accordance with the advice of Queen Regent Sunwon and his advisors, announces on this Dano of the eighth year of his reign (1841) the following:

Joseon Indies Act, 8 Heonjong

1. This act supplements the Overseas Duchies, 6 Heonjong. Unless otherwise specified existing laws applying to grand duchies shall also apply to the sovereignties recognized under this act.

2. Within the Indies there shall be recognized certain sovereignties (주권 jugwon) which shall have autonomy in local matters, but military, navigation, and trade matters shall be subject to Joseon law and regulation. The Joseon realm shall provide assistance to the sovereignties to help them develop their culture, commerce, and defense against both private and state aggressors.

3. The ruler of each sovereignity shall be referred to in the Joseon language as a Jugwonja (주권자 Sovereign), and by such term as is deemed most appropriate in the Malay language by the Jugwonja thereof. In court functions, a Jugwonja shall have precedence over a Daegong (대공 Grand Duke).

4. This act applies to the Sultanate of Johor (조 호르의 술탄국 Kesultanan Johor), the
 Sultanate of Brunei (브루나이 술탄국 Kesultanan Brunei), the Sultanate of Pontianak (폰티 아낙 술탄국 Kesultanan Pontianak), the Sultanate of Banjar (반 자르의 술탄국 Kesultanan Banjar), the Sultanate of Gowa (고와 술탄국 Kesultanan Gowa), the Sultanate of Tidore (티 도르의 술탄국 Kesultanan Tidore), and the Raj of Larantuka (라란 투카 라지 Raj dari Larantuka) mentioned in the Concordat of Pontianak, as well as such other sovereignties as may be established or recognized in the future.

5.  The Bureau of Ducal Relations within the Ministry of State shall be renamed the Bureau of Vassal Relations and deal with Sultans, Rajas, and Grand Dukes.

6. For use within the Joseon Indies, silver ⅛, ¼, ½, and 1 won coins may be minted, which shall be marked on the obverse with the mugunghwa flower, the value of the coin in the eonmun script and the regnal year and regnal name of the year in which the coin was minted , while the reverse shall bear the name of the sovereignty for which it was minted, a value of 1, 2, 4, or 8 rupiah (1 won = 8 rupiah) in the Malay language using the Latin script and an image chosen by the sovereign thereof, save that no such coin shall bear the image of an actual person. Moreover, the sovereigns may issue brass cash coins of such value, weight, and design as they desire for use within their sovereignty.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

A General Statement concerning Intellectual Property Law in the Joseon Realm

I might or might not get done a fully fleshed out copyright law before the game ends, but I certainly won't have time for patent or trademark law.  Therefore, I decided to lay out the bare bones of my intentions here.

Copyright: 28 year term, renewable for additional 28 year terms during the lifetime of the author(s), with the heirs able to secure a final 28 year term following the death of the author. Works for hire are able to be renewed only once (maximum of 56 years).

Patents: 7 year initial term, renewable for a single additional 28 year term if the holder, a licensee, or an infringer of the patent has made use of the patent in a commercial product during the initial 7 year term. There will be provisions for compulsory licensing in the case of national security or medical emergency.

Trademarks: 7 year initial term, renewable for additional 28 year terms so long as the trademark is in use.

Foreign copyrights, patents, and trademarks to be generally respected on the same basis as Joseon copyrights, patents, and trademarks.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

조선 정부의 선포
Proclamations of the Government of Joseon

(Source: self-made)

The Bureau of Railways announces the following four-year construction plan for the years 9 Heonjong (1842) to 12 Heonjong (1845) to complete the primary routes of the Joseon Railways:

9 Heonjong:

• Kanggye to Manpo
• Cheongjin to Raeson
• Kaesong to Haeju
• Anju to Kangdong
• Donghae to Gangneung
• Daejong to Jeonju

10 Heonjong:

• Gangneung to Sokcho
• Seongjin to Cheongjin
• Manpo to Chunggang
• Sinuiji to Anju
• Kangdong to Gowon

11 Heonjong:

• Sokcho to Wonsan
• Hamheung to Seongjin
• Jeonju to Gunsan
• Sinuiji to Manpo
• Chunggang to Junggyeong

12 Heonjong:

• Wonsan to Gowon
• Gowon to Hamheung
• Junggyeong to Ningguta
• Chunggang to Hyesan

With the aforementioned constructions, the list of operating railways of the Bureau of Railways will be:
Line 1: Hanseong (aka Seoul) to Incheon

Line 2: Hanseong (aka Seoul) to Suwon to Gongju to Daejong to Gimcheong to Daegu to Busan
Line 21: Daejong to Jeonju to Gunsan

Line 3:Hanseong (aka Seoul) to Wonju to Donghae

Line 4: Hanseong (aka Seoul) to Kaesong to Sariwon to Pyeongyang to Anju to Kanggye to Manpo to Chunggang to Junggyeong to Ningguta, Outer Manchuria
Line 41: Kaesong to Haeju to Sariwon
Line 42: Line 42W & (Manpo to Chunggang of Line 4) & Line 42E
Line 42W: Sinuiji to Manpo
Line 42E: Chunggang to Hyesan to Musan to Hoeryeong to Raeson

Line 50: Nampo to Pyeongyang to Kangdong & Line 57
Line 57: Kangdong to Gowon

Line 60: Donghae to Gangneung to Sokcho to Wonsan to Gowon to Hamheung to Seongjin to Cheongjin to Raeson to Hwanhang

Line 70: Sinuiji to Anju to Kangdong & Line 57

(The above is not an exhaustive list of railway stations.)


The Bureau shall also enter into negotiations for the construction of a railway bridge across the Amnok (Yalu) River between Sinuiju, Joseon and Dandong, China.

The Bureau shall also offer assistance to China in constructing railways within Liaoning Province, within Inner Manchuria, and between Dandong and Beijing.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

조선 법원 선포
Proclamations of the Court of Joseon

(Source: Wikimedia Commons)

King Heonjong, in accordance with the advice of his advisors and his grandmother Queen Regent Sunwon announces the following measures, modeled on the Township Councils Act, 7 Heonjong, that are intended to be passed in the next few years so as to improve the response of his government to the needs of his subjects:

District Councils Act, 9 Heonjong (1842)
1. To obtain input from the people of each district, it is ordained that each subject who has his principal household within that district and who owns taxable property located in that district worth at least 20 gwan of coin silver (200 nyang of coin silver) and has reached at least his thirty-fifth year of life (age 34 or greater by Western reckoning) shall be deemed an elector of the district council.

2. Each district shall establish a council consisting of eleven councilors elected by the electors  of that district on an biannual basis from among the electors of that district. In addition, each township council within that district shall select one district councilor from among the township electors of that township, to serve at the pleasure of the township council.

3. The district council shall at its first meeting of each year choose from among its members a district mayor (구장 gujang) to serve as the leader of the council and be the member of the council who regularly interacts with the district governor (구지사 gujisa) of that district.

4. The district council shall advise the district governor of the concerns and suggestions that the people of that district have concerning the good governance of the district.  They shall not be punished in any manner for bringing such concerns or suggestions to the attention of the district governor.

5. Subject to such regulations as the Minister of State may promulgate, a district governor may delegate the supervision of certain government functions and policies for that district to the district council, with the understanding that such delegation may not be for a term of greater than two years.

6.  To compensate them for their service, councilors shall receive a stipend of three don of silver coin per month, but neither they nor any members of their households shall be eligible for any other remuneration from the government during their service as councilors.

Provincial Councils Act, 11 Heonjong (1844)
1. To obtain input from the people of each province, it is ordained that each subject who has his principal household within that province and who owns taxable property located in that province worth at least 50 gwan of coin silver (500 nyang of coin silver) and has reached at least his fourtieth year of life (age 39 or greater by Western reckoning) shall be deemed an elector of the provincial council.

2. Each province shall establish a council consisting of thirteen councilors elected by the electors  of that province on an quadrennial basis from among the electors of that province. In addition, each district council within that province shall select one provincial councilor from among the district electors of that district, to serve at the pleasure of the district council.

3. The provincial council shall at its first meeting of each year choose from among its members a provincial mayor (도장 dojang) to serve as the leader of the council and be the member of the council who regularly interacts with the provincial governor (도지사 dojisa)  of that province.

4. The provincial council shall advise the provincial governor of the concerns and suggestions that the people of that province have concerning the good governance of the province.  They shall not be punished in any manner for bringing such concerns or suggestions to the attention of the provincial governor.

5. Subject to such regulations as the Minister of State may promulgate, a provincial governor may delegate the supervision of certain government functions and policies for that province to the provincial council, with the understanding that such delegation may not be for a term of greater than four years.

6.  To compensate them for their service, councilors shall receive a stipend of nine don of silver coin per month, but neither they nor any members of their households shall be eligible for any other remuneration from the government during their service as councilors.


While a national council may eventually be established, it is felt prudent that experience with the township, district, and provincial councils be first gained so as to determine what reforms to local are needed, and if the experiment with councils has improved the government of the realm before making any plans for a national council.

(OOC: Other players will likely note that all of these councils are purely advisory and have no independent authority.  They are intended more as a way for the king to have a check upon ambitious, greedy, and/or inept local officials than anything else.)

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

조선 법원 선포
Proclamations of the Court of Joseon

(Source: Wikimedia Commons)

King Heonjong in accordance with the advice of has advisors and of Queen Regent Sunwon announces in this eighth year of his reign (1841) the following:

Independent Districts Act, 8 Heonjong

1. For purposes of governance, there shall be established certain independent districts consisting of overseas territories held directly by the Joseon Kingdom that are too small to be governed as a province of their own and too distant to be incorporated within a province.  The governors of those districts shall report directly to the Minister of State or such deputy official as he may establish to act in lieu pf a provincial governor. The district minister of each ministry shall report directly to the minister in charge of that ministry or such deputy official as he may establish to act in lieu of a provincial minister. These districts shall be independent only in the sense of not being part of a province, but shall otherwise be treated as fully incorporated parts of the Joseon Kingdom.

2. The territory obtained from the OAKF now known as "Diego-Sanchez" under the Concordat of Pontianak is hereby established as the District of Jacobport (제이콥항 Jeikobhang).

3. The territory leased from the Sultanate of Brunei now known as "Pulau Labuan" under the Concordat of Brunei is hereby established as the District of Labuan (라부안 Labuan).

4. The territory obtained in the Moluccas from the former Sultanate of Ternate that was not turned over to the Sultanate of Tidore under the Concordat of Tidore, namely the islands of Ternate and Hiri, is hereby established as the District of Ternate (테르나테 Teleunate).

5. This act does not apply to the District of Ulleng established by the Edict Concerning Joseon-held Islands, 2 Heonjong, which remains part of Gyeongsang Province, nor does it apply to any of islands comprising Jeju Province.

(OOC: I first approached the Sultan of Ternate with the prospect of autonomous rule over the whole of the Moluccas save the island of Tidore, when the Sultan of Ternate failed to respond, I approached his rival, the Sultan of Tidore.)

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Annals of the Joseon Dynasty
Veritable Records of Heonjong
Volume 1: The Regency of Sunwon
Introduction: Summary of the Regency Period
    The twelve years of the Regency (1834-1845 CE) proved to be an era of much change within the Joseon Realm. While in the later years of the regency King Heonjong chafed at what he perceived as her reluctance to end her regency, both her public comments and her private diaries indicate that she saw her principal task as preparing her grandson to rule by shaping both his experiences and character. Moreover despite the whisperings of some, especially among the Andong Kim clan of her father, that she continue the regency longer or transfer it to someone else of her paternal clan, when Heonjong began his twentieth year of life (1846 CE), she ended the regency, though she continued to advise him privately, even when he would rather not be advised. However, true to her perceived mandate, once the regency ended, she never overruled the king once he made a decision, or contradicted him in public.
    The Regency began at almost the same time as the Chinese Civil War that would eventually see the Mandate of Heaven for the Middle Kingdom transfer from the Qing Dynasty to the Xing Dynasty. Queen Sunwon was troubled by the events in the Middle Kingdom and her policies were largely shaped by a desire to ride the current of events unleashed upon the civilized peoples of East Asia by the intrusion of the European barbarians upon them rather than be overwhelmed by them as China had been.
    Characteristic of her approach was her decision early in her regency to found the Church of Joseon upon a Lutheran model. Rather than attempt to fruitlessly keep out foreign beliefs, such as Christianity, she sought to find ways they could be tamed and made less dangerous to the continued independence of the Joseon people or its continued rule by her husband's Yi clan.  As such it can easily be seen as inaccurate those who would propose she be made a saint of the Church. At most, she might be viewed as a Joseon Cyrus in her relationship to the Christians. Viewing her as a Christian saint is as inaccurate as viewing her as a promoter of democracy for establishing the various advisory councils elected by propertied commoners, as she clearly saw the councils solely as way of ensuring the government received advice on the desires of the king's subjects, not as a way for them to potentially impose unwise policies upon the government.  If she was a secret anything, it was a secret Daoist, though even that can only be inferred by her actions, and not by anything she said or wrote, even privately. In her speech and writings, she was always a firm adherent to Neo-Confucian doctrine, and certainly not either Christianity or Republicanism.
    Still, it cannot be denied that her regency brought many changes to Joseon and a transition from looking inward to looking outward. The steamboats, railways, postal system, and telegraph knit all Joseon together, while the Navy she encouraged secured Joseon commerce and helped ensure that rather than being colonized, Joseon would have colonies of its own in the Pacific, in the Indies, and in Madagascar. Indeed, perhaps the most fitting tribute to her was King Heonjong's decision to posthumously name her as the Great Admiral of the Joseon Navy, and establish Navy Day as being celebrated annually on her birthday.
    However, as remarkable and important as her championing and reform of the Royal Joseon Navy was, even more so was her decision, despite her Neo-Confucian ethos, to adapt the commercial, financial, and intellectual property laws of European realms to the service of Joseon society.  The Bank of Joseon and the Library of Joseon can both justly claim her as their founding muse.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

The Final Memorial of Queen Sunwon

Published at Hanseong (Seoul) in accordance with her will following her death in 1857. Translated by the British Oriental Society, and published by the Oxford University Press, 1859.

Prologue

Grandson,
First let me say that while in the decade since the burdens of the regency were lifted from me, that while there are some things I would have done differently, I can only say they would have been different, not better. I am content knowing that Joseon has had, and will continue to have good governance under a sovereign who recognizes that the Mandate of Heaven is not a mandate to do as you please. Not that monarchs alone are susceptible of that error which laid low the Qing Dynasts. One need only look at the Luciferian Republicans of South America and Poland, to see that. While they claim to be bringing the light of God into the world, they resemble much more Lucifer than Christ, in that they serve their own wills rather than that of Heaven.

Second, as you will no doubt already noticed, for you are not a witless courtier who thinks only of what pleasant repast and entertainment they will be enjoying tonight, I am being my usual acerbic self in this memorial, with only the fact that I am sharing my spiciness more broadly than has been my wont as a departure from my custom. One of the benefits of being dead is that one no longer has to worry about what others may think.

I have heard it said that the relationship between Joseon and Japan is that of a tiger and a dragon. If we have a dragon in the neighborhood, it is to our west, not our east. I see the relationship between us as that of a tiger and a tanuki¹, with the possibilities of us being either best of friends or worst of rivals, though I hope we shall be friendly rivals, each seeking to do better than the other, but glad when the other does well.

However, I have not arranged for this to be published merely to repeat all of my counsels to my grandson. He already has those, and I trust in his wisdom to make wise use of them, including when the best thing to do is ignore them. My purpose is to provide counsel, but to the nation as a whole, in the hopes that each of us can enjoy the Mandate of Heaven and bring prosperity and peace to each of our realms, be they a home, a hearth, a farm, a factory, a kingdom, or a kinship.

¹ In the original, "tanuki" was written as たぬき using the Japanese hiragana word for the raccoon dog, Nyctereutes procyonoides, with a footnote giving the Korean name for the animal (너구리 neoguri). In Japanese folklore, the tanuki is a mischievous trickster, much like our own Reynard the Fox.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

An excerpt from:
Economics of the Early Joseon Empire

by Edwin Cannan

London School of Economics Press, London 1910

Chapter 6: Coinage and Currency

The Joseon Empire began coining machine struck coinage in 1837, though only in silver at first, and continued the use of brass cash coinage for small change rather than struck coinage until the late 19th century. What made Joseon coinage distinct was not the manner of its manufacture, but that by accident they ended up with two distinct forms of silver coinage for their core and colonial economies.  The first, the nyang, was based on East Asian weight standards, and was the standard used on the Joseon peninsula and in the Duchy of Outer Manchuria.  The second, the won, was based on the Spanish silver dollar and was originally intended strictly as a trade coinage, but when the Joseon kingdom acquired its colonies in Nusantara, where similar trade coinage was already in use, the won and its octal fractions became the standard coinage.

Unlike some economies, that of the Joseon empire never flirted with bimetalism and remained on the silver standard, never embracing the gold standard, with only a very limited amount of gold coinage minted, as large values were typically transferred via gold or silver ingots, or banknotes of the Bank of Joseon. This meant that the Joseon Empire has suffered both the problems and benefits of being on the silver standard over the past few decades.

The main effect of the dual silver coinage was that despite an intrinsic silver value that should have valued the won as 0.72 nyang, for ease of administration, the won was officially valued at only 0.7 nyang, which gave the core a slight economic advantage over its island colonies.  A differently valued colonial currency is hardly unique to the Joseon Empire, as for example with the French livre and the French Indian roupie.