Early Joseon civil official renowned for his filial piety
| Life | 1360 ~ 1439 |
| Era | 조선 |
| Clan | 전의 이씨 |
Yi Jeong-gan (李貞幹, 1360-1439) was born in late Goryeo and served as an official in early Joseon; he belonged to the Jeonui Yi clan. His courtesy name was Gobu and his posthumous name Hyojeong. A descendant of Yi Ja-hwa, founder of the Jeonseo-gong branch, and son of the merit subject Yi Gu-jik, he is revered as a mid-founder of the clan for his filial piety.
Entering office through his father's privilege, he served as an inspector of the Office of the Inspector-General and in 1405 became magistrate of Ganghwa, where he is said to have captured a tiger that had broken into a pasture without harm to people or horses and was rewarded with silk. According to Korean Wikipedia and other sources, as magistrate of Gongju in 1400 he built the Sameun-gak pavilion beside Donghaksa temple to honor Goryeo loyalists. After a range of posts he became governor of Gangwon Province under King Sejong, then resigned and returned home.
At home he devoted himself to caring for his aged mother; it is said that in his seventies he put on a child's colorful jacket and played like a little boy to amuse his mother, then in her nineties. King Sejong praised his filial piety in a royal letter, promoted him to the Privy Council and bestowed an armrest and staff; clan tradition holds that the king also granted the eight characters 'a family that hands down loyalty and filial piety, and for generations keeps benevolence and reverence.' Congratulatory writings by leading figures of the day, including a poem by Right State Councillor Yu Gwan and a preface by Jo Mal-saeng, were compiled as the Gyeongsu-jip.
His descendants flourished: his son Yi Sa-gwan became magistrate of Hanseong, and his grandsons Yi Hyo-jang, Yi Ui-jang, Yi Ye-jang, Yi Ji-jang and Yi Ham-jang passed the civil and military examinations one after another and founded several sub-branches of the Jeonseo-gong line. He is enshrined at Songcheon Seowon in Cheongju and at the Chunghyojae and Mogyangsa shrines in Yangji-ri, Ochang-eup, Cheongju, where his filial example is still remembered.