Early Joseon civil official who served as Minister of Personnel under Sejong and Munjong; pen name Songdang; posthumous title Jepyeong
| Life | 1390 ~ 1456 |
| Era | 조선 초기 |
| Clan | 예천 권씨 |
Gwon Maeng-son (權孟孫, 1390-1456) was an early Joseon civil official of the Yecheon clan, with courtesy name Hyobaek and pen name Songdang; his posthumous title is Jepyeong (齊平). According to Wikipedia his great-grandfather was Gwon Heun-seom, his grandfather Gwon Gun-bo and his father the magistrate Gwon Sang; his mother was a daughter of Im Gyeong-jong. He is counted as the figure who raised the Yecheon Gwon into a Joseon-era official lineage.
He passed the 1408 regular civil examination in the second class and again the 1427 re-examination. Starting as a Geomyeol, he became Heonnap in 1418, served as Byeongjo Jeongnang and inspector in 1419, Jangnyeong of the Office of the Inspector-General in 1421, and in 1422 was sent to Gangwon as Uijeongbu Sain to relieve famine victims. In 1425 he served as Gangwon Chalbang.
Under Sejong he rose through Right Remonstrator (1430), Dongbu Daeon (1431), Left Royal Secretary (1434), Hyeongjo Chamui (1437), Vice-Director of the Jungchuwon (1441) and Gyeongsang Governor (1442), then Hanseong magistrate and Vice-Minister of Works. He cooperated in Sejong's court music reform, following the opinions of the musician Park Yeon. Other sources add posts such as Hamgil Governor and Grand Academician; titles and dates differ by source.
In 1450, as Minister of Personnel, he pointed to fundamental flaws in the Uichang granary system and urged a firm purge of corruption. He later served as Jungchuwon head and enjoyed the favor of Left State Councillor Kim Jong-seo. He died in 1456 and is enshrined with Gwon O-gi and Gwon O-bok in the annex shrine of Byeongamjeong in Yecheon.
In 1422, when famine struck Gangwon and Pyeongan, he was sent to Gangwon as Uijeongbu Sain to feed the hungry, and in 1442 he served as Gyeongsang Governor. Wikipedia's career outline shows him alternating between censorial posts at court and relief or supervisory missions in the provinces.
In 1450, the first year of Munjong, he is said to have pointed out contradictions in the Uichang granary system and urged strict action against corrupt officials. One may suppose his hands-on relief work lay behind this, but that is an inference, not something the sources state directly.
The location of his grave was not confirmed in this survey.
His younger brother Gwon Yu-son's second son Gwon Seon had five sons, forming the Obokmun.