Andong garrison commander killed at the Battle of Ssangnyeong in the Second Manchu Invasion; pen name Maegok
| Life | 1576 ~ 1636 |
| Era | 조선 중기 |
| Clan | 보성 선씨 |
Seon Se-gang (1576-1636) was a mid-Joseon military official of the Boseong Seon clan with courtesy name Sageo and pen name Maegok. A ninth-generation descendant of Seon Yun-ji and son of the jinsa Seon Bong-jang, he is said to have been born in Jangheung, Jeolla. His dates are 1577-1637 in Wikipedia and 1576-1636 in sources from the clan association.
He passed the military examination in 1603, served as commander of Byeokdan in Pyeongan, and is said to have been commended for directing construction of Yeongpyeong Fortress as Gyeonggi central commander. He served as Hongju garrison commander and then Andong garrison commander.
When the Byeongja invasion began in 1636 he went to Ssangnyeong in Gwangju, Gyeonggi, with the Left Gyeongsang commander Heo Wan to relieve King Injo at Namhansanseong. He argued that the small infantry should camp on the hill, but at Heo Wan's repeated orders camped in the valley and is said to have died fighting a night attack. Injo posthumously made him Vice Minister of War, and in 1862 he was made Minister of War.
The battle of Ssangnyeong is known as a great defeat of Joseon troops heading to relieve Namhansanseong in the Byeongja invasion. The story that Seon Se-gang urged camping on the hill appears largely in the descendants' records and is described as a disagreement between commanders.
An annual rite is said to be held at Jeongchungmyo in Gwangju, Gyeonggi, and seasonal rites at Boseong Ojungsa, Goyang Ojungsa and Jangheung Pojungsa. A monument is said to have been erected at the site of his death in 1979 in the name of the then KCIA director Yi Hu-rak.
He is one of the five loyal subjects of Boseong Ojungsa, together with Seon Geo-i and Seon Yak-hae.
An order is said to have been given to carry his body to Jangheung, Jeonnam. A monument was erected at the site of his death in Ssangnyeong, Gwangju, Gyeonggi, in 1979.