INTERACTIVE MARCH

The Bunroku Campaign

April 1592 – July 1593 · Korean Peninsula

On Hideyoshi's orders 160,000 Japanese troops crossed to Busan, took Hanseong in twenty days and Pyongyang in two months. Yi Sun-sin's navy then cut the sea route, and righteous armies and Ming reinforcements pushed them back. In 1593 they withdrew from Hanseong to coastal forts in the south and opened talks.

The Bunroku Campaign — Korean Peninsula

Course of the battle

1 13 April 1592

Landing at Busan

Konishi Yukinaga's first division took Busanjin and then Dongnae. The divisions of Kato Kiyomasa and Kuroda Nagamasa followed, opening the crossing of 160,000 men.

小西行長

Leads the first division and takes Busanjin fortress

加藤清正

Crosses over behind the first division

黒田長政

Crosses over behind the first division

豊臣秀吉

Directs the expedition from Nagoya in Hizen

Sources4·Certainty: High

2 28 April 1592

Battle of Chungju

The Korean general Shin Rip charged with cavalry but was broken by Konishi's arquebuses, opening the road to Hanseong.

申砬

Charges with cavalry and is defeated

小西行長

Breaks the Joseon army with firearms

Sources4·Certainty: High

3 3 May 1592

Entry into Hanseong

The capital fell twenty days after the landing. King Seonjo had already fled north, and the Japanese entered an empty city.

小西行長

Enters the abandoned capital of Hanseong

Sources4·Certainty: High

4 15 June 1592

Taking Pyongyang

Konishi Yukinaga entered Pyongyang. This was the northernmost point the Japanese reached; they advanced no further.

小西行長

Enters Pyongyang

Sources4·Certainty: High

5 July 1592

Kato Kiyomasa into Hamgyong

Kiyomasa pushed north through Hamgyong and captured two Korean princes at Hoeryong. He even crossed the Tumen into Jurchen territory.

加藤清正

Captures the two Joseon princes at Hoeryong

Sources4·Certainty: High

6 8 July 1592

Battle of Hansando

Yi Sun-sin enveloped the Japanese fleet in a crane-wing formation and won decisively. Cutting the sea supply route was the main reason the land advance stalled.

李舜臣

Destroys the Japanese fleet with the crane-wing formation

Sources4·Certainty: High

7 8 January 1593

Loss of Pyongyang

Li Rusong of Ming attacked Pyongyang with over 40,000 men; Konishi abandoned the city and fell back south. The tide of the war turned.

李如松

Attacks Pyongyang with over forty thousand men

小西行長

Abandons Pyongyang and withdraws south

Sources4·Certainty: High

8 26 January 1593

Battle of Byeokjegwan

Kobayakawa Takakage and Tachibana Muneshige met Li Rusong's advance and drove the Ming back. Unable to press on, the Ming turned toward negotiations.

小早川隆景

Meets the Ming army at Byeokjegwan

立花宗茂

Meets the Ming army at Byeokjegwan

李如松

Advances south and clashes with the Japanese

Sources4·Certainty: High

9 April 1593

Withdrawal from Hanseong

Out of provisions, the Japanese abandoned Hanseong and pulled back to the southern coast. From here on they garrisoned the coastal forts of Gyeongsang.

宇喜多秀家

Withdraws from Hanseong as commander in Joseon

Sources4·Certainty: High

10 29 June 1593

Second Siege of Jinju

The Japanese besieged Jinju, which had held out the year before, with over 90,000 men and took it in nine days. It was the last major battle of the Bunroku campaign.

宇喜多秀家

Besieges Jinju fortress

Sources4·Certainty: High

Key figures

豊臣氏

7

豊臣秀吉

総大将

肥前名護屋城に在陣し、渡海はしていない

Sources4·Certainty: High


宇喜多秀家

在朝の総大将

漢城に入り全軍を統べた

Sources4·Certainty: High


小西行長

一番隊

釜山から平壌まで先鋒を務めた

Sources4·Certainty: High


加藤清正

二番隊

咸鏡道を北上し二王子を捕らえた

Sources4·Certainty: High


黒田長政

三番隊

黄海道を進んだ

Sources4·Certainty: High


小早川隆景

六番隊

全羅道へ向かい、のち碧蹄館で明軍を退けた

Sources4·Certainty: High


立花宗茂

六番隊

碧蹄館で先手を務めた

Sources4·Certainty: High

朝鮮軍

3

李舜臣

全羅左道水軍節度使

閑山島などで日本水軍を破り海路を断った

Sources4·Certainty: High


権慄

全羅道巡察使

幸州山城で日本軍を退けた

Sources4·Certainty: High


申砬

三道都巡辺使

忠州弾琴台で騎兵を率いて戦死した

Sources4·Certainty: High

明軍

1

李如松

提督

四万余を率いて平壌を奪回した

Sources4·Certainty: High

Notes on the data

Scene coordinates are given at city or county level, not to the street. The peninsula is drawn from the eight Joseon provinces derived from Natural Earth.

Sources consulted

  1. 国立公文書館「年表―歴史と物語」
  2. 九州国立博物館メールマガジン341号
  3. 長崎県文化財データベース「文禄の役松浦家供養塔」
  4. ja.wikipedia.org「文禄・慶長の役」および各戦闘の記事

The numbers in the text refer to the list above. Certainty indicates how far a statement is supported by the cited sources; it does not refer to the precision of the coordinates or the dating.

View the 1592 map
View the 1592 map

Advertisement