Early Joseon military officer and merit subject of the 1506 Restoration who guarded the frontier and the navy (posthumous title Jangyang)
| Life | 1463 ~ 1536 |
| Era | 조선 전기 |
| Clan | 초계 정씨 |
Jeong Yun-gyeom (鄭允謙, 1463-1536), of Chogye, courtesy name Ikbu and posthumous title Jangyang, was an early Joseon military officer. He was the eldest son of Jeong On (鄭溫), a naval transport officer of Chogye; his wife, née Won of Wonju, was a daughter of Won Jung-chi. With a concubine, née Nam, he had two sons and three daughters, one of whom is said to be Jeong Nan-jeong, later wife of Yun Won-hyeong. His legitimate son Suk became magistrate of Dangjin, and Suk's son was the incorruptible official Jeong Jong-yeong.
He passed the military examination in 1492 and was recorded as a merit subject of the 1506 Restoration. After serving as magistrate of Ganseong, Ungcheon and Hoeryeong he was enfeoffed as Lord Cheonggye; as naval commander of Jeolla he refitted warships and repelled Japanese raiders, receiving a bow, arrows, clothing and silver from King Jungjong. In 1515 he went to Ming as an envoy and later served as army commander of Pyeongan. In 1518 he was involved in a case of his subordinates crossing the border without permission and was exiled to Dangjin and Hoengseong before being released.
He guarded the frontier for over thirty years and was said to have the bearing of a famous general of old; he was frugal and a heavy but restrained drinker. He was posthumously made Minister of Military Affairs and his tomb is in Hoje-myeon, Wonju. Wikipedia carries a source warning and notes inconsistent dates (naval post in 1512 or 1522; death in 1536 or, in the spirit-way stele, 1526); this entry follows 1536 but notes both.
As the father of Jeong Nan-jeong he appears in the SBS drama Yeoin Cheonha (2001-2002), played by Baek Yoon-sik. Dramatizations mix in fiction and should be read apart from the historical record.
His tomb is said to be at Jieumgok, Gyeokdong, Hoje-myeon, Wonju, Gangwon.