Namin official who served as Inspector-General and the father of Yi Ik; pen name Maesan; died in exile at Unsan after the 1680 purge
| Life | 1628 ~ 1682 |
| Era | 조선 후기 |
| Clan | 여주 이씨 |
Yi Ha-jin (1628-1682) was a late-Joseon Namin official of the Yeoju Yi clan, pen name Maesan (also Yugudang). The Encyclopedia of Korean Culture introduces him as a Royal Secretary, Inspector-General and Magistrate of Jinju, noted for verse and cursive calligraphy. A grandson of Yi Sang-ui, his youngest son was the Silhak scholar Yi Ik.
In the 1680 Gyeongsin purge, as Grand Remonstrator, he urged that Namin leaders such as Yun Hyu and Heo Mok be reinstated, angering King Sukjong and being demoted to Magistrate of Jinju. Amid a rivalry with Kim Seok-ju he was then exiled to Unsan in Pyongan, where he died in 1682 aged 55.
Yi Ik was born at Unsan in 1681, youngest of five sons and four daughters, and lost his father at age one. Yi Ha-jin's memorial tablet is kept with those of descendants at shrines such as Maesansa in Wonju. Details such as his collected works could not be confirmed in this survey.
His sons included the Silhak scholar Yi Ik and Yi Jam.