Deoksugung Palace

Deoksugung is the palace in Jeong-dong, Jung District, right opposite Seoul Plaza and City Hall. Unlike Seoul's other palaces, traditional wooden halls and Western-style stone buildings stand inside the same walls, because it was the main palace of the modernising Korean Empire (1897–1910). Being in the heart of the city, it also stays open late into the evening.

History: from temporary lodging to an emperor's palace

The site was originally the house of Grand Prince Wolsan, King Seongjong's elder brother. When all of Seoul's palaces were burned during the Japanese invasion in 1593, King Seonjo, back from refuge, used the house as his temporary residence. King Gwanghaegun gave it the name Gyeongungung; sources differ on whether this was in 1608 or 1611. In 1623 King Injo was enthroned here.

It returned to the centre of history at the end of the 19th century. After Queen Min was assassinated in 1895, King Gojong took refuge in the Russian legation; in 1897 he moved back to Gyeongungung and on 13 October that year, after crowning himself at the nearby Hwangudan altar, proclaimed the Korean Empire. The Russian and American legations lay to the west of the palace and the British to the north, and Gojong hoped their closeness would protect him from Japanese pressure. Gojong bought land around the palace to enlarge it and built in both traditional and Western styles.

A great fire in 1904 destroyed most of the halls, but they were soon rebuilt. In 1907 Gojong was forced to abdicate, his son Sunjong moved to Changdeokgung, and the palace was renamed Deoksugung. Gojong lived here until his death in Hamnyeongjeon in 1919. In the colonial period the grounds were cut back and many halls demolished; today the palace is estimated to be about one third of its largest size.

What to see

• Daehanmun: today's main gate. Originally called Daeanmun, it was renamed Daehanmun in 1906.
• Junghwajeon: the throne hall. It was built with two storeys in 1902 but rebuilt with a single storey in 1906 after the fire. Two dragons, symbols of the emperor, decorate the ceiling.
• Seokjojeon: a neoclassical building designed by British architects and completed in 1910, now the Daehan Empire History Museum. With the fountain garden in front, it is the most photographed spot in the palace.
• Hamnyeongjeon: Gojong's sleeping quarters, where the 1904 fire started and where he died.
• Jeonggwanheon: a building with Romanesque columns and a veranda under a Korean-style roof, known as the place where Gojong held banquets and drank tea.
• Dondeokjeon: a French-style hall for receiving foreign envoys, rebuilt and opened as an exhibition hall on 26 September 2023.
• National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Deoksugung: an art museum inside the palace grounds with its own exhibitions.

More to see

• Gwangmyeongmun: the gate south of Hamnyeongjeon, completed in 1897. Moved in 1938 and used to display the Borugak water clock and the Heungcheonsa bell, it returned to its original spot at the end of 2018, ahead of the centenary of the March First Movement.
• Jeukjodang and Junmyeongdang: when Gojong first moved into the palace he used Jeukjodang as the throne hall, calling it at times Taegeukjeon and Junghwajeon.
• Seogeodang: a hall whose name goes back to King Seonjo's time; it burned in 1904 and was rebuilt the following year.

A shrinking palace

The palace changed greatly in the 20th century. In 1912 Taepyeong-ro was cut through its eastern side, demolishing the square in front of the main gate and several buildings, and the walls were pushed inwards. On 1 October 1933 part of the palace opened as a public park called "Central Park", and ten buildings were removed. The peonies planted then stayed popular even after liberation, but in 1985 they were replaced with pines and azaleas as a relic of the colonial period. Because of road widening, Daehanmun was moved to its present position in 1970–1971. The site of Seonwonjeon, north of the palace, was used for other purposes for decades before opening as a public park in 2024.

Did you know

• During the Korean War, US officer James Hamilton Dill persuaded his superiors not to shell the palace to save its heritage; in 1996 the Korean government presented him with a plaque of thanks.
• In 1946 Seokjojeon hosted the US–Soviet Joint Commission that discussed the future of the Korean peninsula.

Tripto tips

• Opening hours: 09:00–21:00 (last entry 20:00), closed on Mondays.
• Admission: adults (foreigners 19–64, Koreans 25–64) KRW 1,000, groups of 10 or more KRW 800.
• Getting there: right outside City Hall Station Exit 1 (Lines 1 and 2).
• Changing of the Royal Guard: in front of Daehanmun Tuesday to Sunday at 11:00 and 14:00. Times can change, so check before you go.
• When to go: enter around sunset to see Seokjojeon and the halls lit up. Afterwards, walk along Deoksugung Stone Wall Road towards Jeong-dong.
• Time needed: 1–2 hours for the palace grounds.