Jwamyeong merit subject and Third State Councillor under King Sejong; founder of the Yanggyeong-gong branch
| Life | 1374 ~ 1429 |
| Era | 조선 전기 |
| Clan | 한양 조씨 |
Jo Yeon (趙涓, 1374-1429) was an early Joseon official of the Hanyang Jo clan, originally named Jo Gyeong (趙卿), with courtesy name Yeojeong and posthumous title Yanggyeong (良敬); he was born in 1374 and died in 1429. His father was Prince Yongwon Jo In-byeok and his mother Princess Jeonghwa, eldest daughter of Yi Ja-chun, which made King Taejo his uncle. His grandfather was Lord Yongseong Jo Don and his great-grandfather the Ssangseong commander Jo Yang-gi; his younger brother Anjeong-gong Jo Hu (趙候, 1377-1444) served as Jidonnyeongbusa.
He entered service through his father's merit and passed the civil examination in 1386. After posts in the Personnel and Works offices, he became a guard general when Joseon was founded in 1392 and, as a close royal relative, guarded Taejo as sword-bearer. He rose to general in 1396 and served as royal secretary and in the Three Armies Command. In the Second Strife of Princes in 1400 he aided Yi Bang-won, becoming a fourth-rank Jwamyeong merit subject and Lord Hanpyeong.
Under Taejong he served as army commander, selected 33 officers as examiner of the military examination, and in 1408 was sent to Ansan and Bupyeong when Japanese ships were reported; in 1409 he became commander in charge of studying military texts. In 1410, as pacification commissioner of Gilju, he killed the chiefs of Jurchen raiders on the frontier and destroyed their base. After serving as commander of the Central Army, Minister of Works and head of the Left Army Office, he was made Prince Hanpyeong, served as Chanseongsa under Sejong and became Third State Councillor in 1426. That year he was impeached for accepting slaves as a bribe and briefly banished to Suan before being released. Gentle in character, he was a civil official noted for military success against the Jurchen. His career is recorded in the annals from Taejo to Sejong and in the Haedong Myeongsillok, and his descendants form the Yanggyeong-gong branch.