Busanjinseong Fortress

Among the apartment blocks and markets of Beomil-dong in Busan's Dong District, one small hill has been left as woodland. Busanjinseong was a Joseon naval fortress, closely tied to the first battle of the Japanese invasion of 1592. The walls on the hill today were built by the Japanese army during that war and later repaired by the Joseon navy, so one hill shows the building styles of both countries.

History: a fortress built twice

When Joseon opened the port of Busanpo in 1407, it stationed troops at Busanjin to keep watch on Japanese traders. In 1490 a fortress about 950 m round was built below Jeungsan hill, now called the "early Busanjin Fortress". When Japanese forces landed in April 1592, commander Jeong Bal, his soldiers and local people fought to the end, but the fortress fell.

The following year the Japanese pulled it down and built a main castle on top of Jeungsan and a satellite castle on the seaside hill to protect it. After the war, in 1607, the Joseon navy moved its base into that satellite castle and rebuilt it. This is the "late Busanjin Fortress" that survives. It was then about 2.4 km round with gates on all four sides, but most of it was demolished during the Japanese colonial period and the sea around it was filled in.

What to see

• Geumnugwan, the West Gate: the main entrance to the park. Stone pillars on either side are carved with phrases calling the fortress the "throat of the southern frontier" and the "lock of the west gate".
• Japanese-style walls: the walls around the hill slope inwards in the Japanese manner. Two tiers survive, reaching about 10 m at their highest.
• Jinnamdae and the East Gate: the east gate, the west gate and the command post on the hilltop were rebuilt in 1974–1975.
• Memorials: a stele honours Cheon Man-ri, a Ming general who fought in the war, and a small pavilion honours General Choe Yeong, who fought Japanese pirates in the late Goryeo period.
• Yeonggadae: a pavilion first built by the shore in 1614, where Joseon envoys to Japan made offerings to the sea god before sailing. It was lost to railway construction and rebuilt inside the fortress in 2003.

Good to know

For a long time the site was called "Jaseongdae", a name reflecting the Japanese view of it as the "child castle" of the main castle on Jeungsan. After a local campaign, the heritage site was renamed Busanjinseong in 2020 and the park became Busanjinseong Park in January 2023.

What once stood inside

In the late Joseon period the walls carried 483 sections of parapet, with four gate towers: Jindongmun to the east, Geumnugwan to the west, Jinnammun to the south and Gujangnu to the north. On the summit was Mangongdan, an altar to the Ming general Wan Shide who came to fight in the war, with the Gongjingwan guesthouse to the northwest and government offices to the southeast. A moat fed by the sea surrounded the walls, so boats could come right up to them.

Tripto tips

• Hours and fees: always open, free entry. The site covers about 24,000 m², so 30 minutes to an hour is enough for a loop.
• How to see it: enter through the West Gate, climb to Jinnamdae on the hilltop, then walk around the foot of the walls on the way down to see the sloping Japanese stonework. There is a small forest library and resting areas.
• Combine with: to follow the story of 1592 further, visit the Jeonggongdan shrine to Jeong Bal in Jwacheon-dong or other sites in Busan's old town.