Battle of Myeongnyang

For the 2014 film, see The Admiral: Roaring Currents.
Battle of Myeongnyang
Part of the Imjin War

20th century depiction
DateOctober 26, 1597 (September 16 according to Chinese lunisolar calendar, September 13 according to Korean lunisolar calendar)
Location
Myeongnyang Strait, near Jindo Island
34°34′6″N 126°18′28″E / 34.56833°N 126.30778°E / 34.56833; 126.30778
Result Joseon victory[1][2][3][4][5]
Belligerents

Japan

Joseon

Commanders and leaders
Tōdō Takatora (WIA)
Katō Yoshiaki
Kurushima Michifusa †
Wakizaka Yasuharu
Mōri Takamasa
Kan Michinaga
Kuki Yoshitaka		 Yi Sun-sin
Kim Eok-chu
Kim Ung-ham
An Wi
Song Yeo-jong
Bae Heung-rip
Strength
133-330 warships[6][3][7][5][8] 13 warships[9][10][11][3]
32 scouting ships (Yi's report, likely did not participate in combat)[12]
Casualties and losses
31 ships rammed open[13]: 314 
More than 30 ships destroyed (Hawley)[3]
About 30 ships destroyed (Lewis)[4]: 133 
Half of the elders (Tōdō clan memoirs).[11]
Half of the Japanese (prisoner's testimony)[12]		 No ships lost [3][13]: 315 [4]
At least 2 killed and 3 wounded aboard Yi Sun-sin's flagship (Yi's record)[13]: 315 
At least 8 drowned from An Wi's ship
Battle of Myeongnyang
Hangul
명량대첩
Hanja
鳴梁大捷
Revised RomanizationMyeongnyang Daecheop
McCune–ReischauerMyŏngnyang Taech'ŏp

In the Battle of Myeongnyang, on October 26, 1597, the Korean Joseon Kingdom's navy, led by Admiral Yi Sun-sin, fought the Japanese navy in the Myeongnyang Strait, near Jindo Island, off the southwest corner of the Korean Peninsula.

With only 13 ships remaining from Admiral Won Gyun's disastrous defeat at the Battle of Chilchonryang, Admiral Yi held the strait as a "last stand" battle against the Japanese navy, who were sailing to support their land army's advance towards the Joseon capital of Hanyang (modern-day Seoul).

The actual numeric strength of the Japanese fleet that Admiral Yi fought is unclear; Korean sources indicate 120 to 133 ships participated in combat, with an unknown number sitting out, up to 330 in total.[13]: 312 [14] Regardless of the size of the Japanese fleet, all sources indicate that the Japanese ships heavily outnumbered the Korean ships, by at least a ten-to-one ratio.[3]: 302 

In total 31 Japanese warships were sunk or crippled during the battle. Tōdō Takatora, one of the commanders of the Japanese navy, was wounded during the battle and many others were killed.[11] The result overall was a humiliating naval defeat for the Japanese. Even after their victory, however, the Joseon navy was still outnumbered by the remaining Japanese forces, so Admiral Yi withdrew to the Yellow Sea to resupply his fleet and have more space for a mobile defense.[15] After the Korean navy withdrew, the Japanese navy made an incursion into the western coast of Korea, near some islands in modern-day Yeonggwang County.

Given the disparity in numbers of ships, the naval battle is regarded as one of the most tactically brilliant victories in the history of warfare.

  1. ^ 山内譲, 松山大学論集. "来島村上氏と文禄・慶長の役" (in Japanese).
  2. ^ 上野市古文献刊行会（編）. "藤堂 高虎".
  3. ^ a b c d e f Hawley, Samuel (2005). The Imjin War: Japan's sixteenth-century invasion of Korea and attempt to conquer China. Berkeley: Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California. ISBN 9788995442425.
  4. ^ a b c Lewis, James B. (2014), The East Asian War, 1592–1598 ; International relations, violence, and memory, Routledge Press, ISBN 978-1-315-76720-8
  5. ^ a b 李舜臣, 李忠武公全書, 朝鮮硏究會,京城 , 大正6(1917)
  6. ^ "명량해전 당일 이순신의 일기". Archived from the original on 2022-10-08. Retrieved 2022-10-08.
  7. ^ Turnbull, Stephen 2002 Samurai Invasion: Japan's Korean War. Great Britain: Cassell & Co.
  8. ^ 李舜臣, 亂中日記草 ; 壬辰狀草, 朝鮮史編修會 編, 京城, 朝鮮總督府 昭和10 (1935)
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference 乱中日記草 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference 30年11月10日 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ a b c 史籍集覧. "藤堂家覺書". Archived from the original on 2022-08-23. Retrieved 2022-08-23.
  12. ^ a b 宣祖實錄, 朝鮮王朝實錄. "三十一年2月11日". Archived from the original on 2022-08-23. Retrieved 2022-08-23.
  13. ^ a b c d Yi, Sun-sin (edited by Sohn, Pow Key) 1977 "Nanjung ilgi: War Diary of Admiral Yi Sun-Sin." Republic of Korea: Yonsei University Press.
  14. ^ Yi, Sun-sin, (translated by Ha, Tae-hung) 1979 "Imjin Changch'o: Admiral Yi Sun-Sin's Memorials to Court." Republic of Korea: Yonsei University Press, p. 226
  15. ^ Yi Sun-sin, Nanjung ilgi, Sep 17 – Oct 2 in 1597 (Chinese Lunisolar Calendar)