Independence patriot · Righteous army (의병) · Independence Medal (독립장, 1977)
| Life | 1849 ~ 1911 |
| Era | 근현대 |
| Clan | 전주 이씨 |
Yi Jae-yun (李載允, 1849–1911), courtesy name Seongjip and pen name Miseok, was a scholar-official of the Jeonju Yi clan from Yangju, Gyeonggi Province. He passed a special civil examination in 1877 and rose to the post of Right Deputy Secretary, but under the influence of his teacher Choe Ik-hyeon's anti-Japanese "Wijeong cheoksa" ideology he petitioned the throne in 1905 to execute the officials responsible for the Eulsa Treaty.
After Choe Ik-hyeon's 1906 righteous army uprising was crushed and Choe was exiled to Jido Island, Yi Jae-yun, who had served as Choe's chief aide, joined forces with Im Byeong-chan to plan a new uprising, spending his own fortune to buy weapons and rallying some 300 volunteers into a righteous army across the Gyeonggi region, even appealing to Qing China for support in the fight to save the nation.
Massing at Mount Seorak in Yangju, his forces were surprised by Japanese troops and fought running engagements at Minhori on the upper Han River and Geumgok-ri in Migeum-myeon before a final battle at Songpajang in Gwangju county, where they were ultimately defeated by a shortage of provisions and arms.