Naval officer and direct aide to Yi Sun-sin who fought at Hansan, Myeongnyang and Noryang; Left Jeolla Naval Commander; pen name Samgyudang
| Life | 1553 ~ 1623 |
| Era | 조선 중기 |
| Clan | 여산 송씨 |
Song Hui-rip (1553-1623) was a mid-Joseon naval officer of the Yeosan Song clan, with the courtesy name Sinjung (信仲) and pen name Samgyudang (三規堂). He was born in Maryun village, Heungyang County (today Maryun-ri, Donggang-myeon, Goheung, South Jeolla), the son of the magistrate Song Gwan and a mother of the Boseong Seon clan. With his elder brother Song Dae-rip and younger brother Song Jeong-rip, all three brothers fought in the Imjin War.
He passed the special military examination in 1583 and in 1591 became a direct aide of Yi Sun-sin, charged with teaching and supervising the building of the turtle ships. When the war broke out he distinguished himself at Okpo, Sacheon, Hansan and the Busanpo naval battles, and in the second invasion he also fought at Myeongnyang.
At the Battle of Noryang in 1598 he is said to have offered Yi Sun-sin a plan of action, and he was gravely wounded rescuing the Ming admiral Chen Lin off Gwaneumpo; Yi Sun-sin died in that battle. After the war he served as Jido manho, magistrate of Yangsan, Dadaepo commander and Gyeongsang Right Deputy Commander, and in 1611 rose to Left Jeolla Naval Commander. He is said to be enshrined at Sechungsa in Goheung and to be honored at Jedong Seowon, Chungmusa and Mugwangsa, and a statue stands at Sangmudae in Gwangju.
Song Hui-rip is remembered as having stayed at Yi Sun-sin's side through the Battle of Noryang, which Yi commanded for the last time. Yi's dying request not to announce his death in the heat of battle is well known, and Song Hui-rip is said to have been among those who carried on the fight, but sources differ in their accounts, so this cannot be stated definitively.
The location of his tomb could not be confirmed.