Jagyuru Pavilion and Gwanpungheon Hall

In the middle of Jungang-ro, the main street of Yeongwol, a two-storey pavilion and an old government hall stand beside a ginkgo tree. Jagyuru is where the boy king Danjong, deposed and exiled to Yeongwol, is said to have eased his grief by writing poetry, and Gwanpungheon is where, according to tradition, he died. Lying between Cheongnyeongpo and Jangneung, the two buildings are the missing link in Yeongwol's story of Danjong.

Danjong's last residence

Danjong (r. 1452–1455) gave up the throne to his uncle, King Sejo, and in 1457 was demoted to the rank of prince and exiled to Cheongnyeongpo in Yeongwol. When floods struck that summer he was moved into town, to Gwanpungheon, and it was here, later that same year, that he is said to have been given poison and died at the age of sixteen. Gwanpungheon was a local government office in the Joseon period and is also described as the east wing of the Yeongwol guesthouse for officials. Today it serves as a mission centre for Bodeoksa Temple of the Jogye Order.

A poem about the scops owl

About 50 m from Gwanpungheon stands Jagyuru, first built in 1428 by the county magistrate Shin Kwon-geun and originally called Maejungnu. Danjong often climbed up here to write his jagyu poems; the jagyu is the oriental scops owl, a bird said to cry so mournfully that it seems to spit blood. His verses comparing his own fate to that cry were so sad that people renamed the pavilion Jagyuru. In later years it collapsed and houses were built on the site, until in 1791 the governor of Gangwon Province, Yun Sa-guk, tracked down the spot and rebuilt it. In 1971 the two buildings were jointly designated a provincial Tangible Cultural Heritage of Gangwon.

What to see

• Jagyuru: a two-storey pavilion three bays wide and two deep, with a hipped-and-gabled roof. Its raised upper floor on red pillars is easy to see from the street.
• Gwanpungheon: a hall three bays by three with an annex. It is still used by the temple, so walk around quietly.
• The ginkgo tree: in autumn the ginkgo in front of Jagyuru turns bright yellow and frames the pavilion beautifully.
• In the Woljungdo album: Woljungdo, a late Joseon album of paintings of Danjong's sites in Yeongwol (a designated Treasure), devotes one leaf each to Jagyuru and Gwanpungheon, so you can compare the old views with what stands today.

Danjong's trail in Yeongwol

Yeongwol has kept the places that trace Danjong's last months: Cheongnyeongpo, his place of exile, wrapped on three sides by the river and reachable only by boat; Gwanpungheon and Jagyuru in town; and Jangneung, his tomb. After his death no one dared to claim his body, until Eom Heung-do, a local official in Yeongwol, is said to have recovered it and buried it in the hills. That spot is today's Jangneung, though the grave was only given a proper burial mound 59 years later, in 1516. Standing in front of Gwanpungheon with that story in mind, you realise these modest buildings in the middle of town sit at the heart of Danjong's story.

Tripto tips

• Time needed: 20–40 minutes is enough for both buildings.
• Best time: late October to early November, when the ginkgo leaves turn. Each spring the Danjong Cultural Festival brings events to venues around town.
• Getting there: about a 5-minute walk (roughly 450 m) from Yeongwol Bus Terminal, or about 1 km from Yeongwol Station across the Donggang River.
• Follow Danjong's story: visit his place of exile, Cheongnyeongpo (about 2.3 km away), then Jagyuru and Gwanpungheon, then Jangneung, the royal tomb where he lies (about 2 km away). All three are within ten minutes of each other by car.
• Note: because Gwanpungheon is used for religious purposes, access to the interior may be restricted.