Upright Goryeo official who took part in the truce talks with the Mongols and stood up to the Choe regime; Minister of Punishments
| Life | 1250 |
| Era | 고려 후기 |
| Clan | 진천 송씨 |
Song Guk-cheom (宋國瞻, ?-1250) was a late-Goryeo official of the Jincheon Song clan. The Digital Bucheon Encyclopedia says he came from Jinju (old Jincheon) and Wikipedia calls him a grandson of Song In; Yongin Sinmun says he was the third son of Song Won-gyeom and a younger brother of Song Sun. The Goryeosa describes him as upright, hating evil and gifted at writing. Wikipedia says he passed the examination in 1212 and became Jikssagwan.
In 1226, when the Jurchen general Wugaha invaded, he served as right army commander with Kim Hui-je and Son Seup-gyeong, leading over 10,000 troops to repel him. In 1231, when the Mongols invaded, he accompanied Prince Hoean Wang Jeong in the talks with the Mongol commander Sartaq, and was praised for his dignified bearing. Rising to Panbiseo-seongsa, he entered the Jeongbang but incurred the dislike of the strongman Choe I (Choe U) for refusing to flatter, and left claiming illness when Park Hwon abused power.
In 1243 he was sent on Choe U's order as Daeseongsa with Hong Gyun to survey the land at Annam, in the old Bucheon area, for a canal that was never built; whether for drainage or navigation is unclear. As Minister of Punishments and Gyeongsang inspector he impeached Manjeon (Choe Hang, Choe U's illegitimate son), a monk at Songgwangsa harming the people, and had him recalled. Sources differ on whether his demotion to Dongyeong deputy governor came from Hang's slander or from Choe U himself.
When Hang took power he was pushed to the northwest as Jiseobungmyeon byeongmasa, never returned to Gaegyeong, and died in 1250 in frustration. The Goryeosa judges him an unbending official thwarted by the envy of the powerful. Note that this Choe Hang is Choe U's son and not the early-Joseon Choe Hang of the Sakryeong Choe clan.
Yongin Sinmun notes that Sartaq, with whom Song Guk-cheom concluded the truce, invaded again and was killed at Cheoin Fortress by the monk Kim Yun-hu. Cheoin Fortress is an earthen fortress in Agok-ri, Namsa, Cheoin-gu, Yongin.