Overview
Gongbin Kim (; 26 November 1553 – 23 June 1577), or Concubine Gong, of the Gimhae Kim clan, was a consort of Seonjo of Joseon and the mother of Gwanghaegun.
Biography
Lady Kim was born into the Gimhae Kim clan in 1553 as the daughter of Kim Hui-cheol and a lady from the Andong Gwon clan. She was the eldest of three children. She entered the palace and became a concubine of King Seonjo. She was a royal consort of the junior second rank (), and was raised to the junior first rank () after giving birth to the king's eldest son, Yi Jin, in 1572. Following the birth of Yi Hon (future Gwanghaegun) in 1575, she was eventually promoted to the senior first rank (), with the honorific title gong (), meaning "courteous". It is recorded that King Seonjo cared greatly for her and when she died due to a postpartum illness he mourned for her. She monopolized the love of the king, and because of this, other concubines were often neglected.
When her life was in jeopardy, she told the king that someone was cursing her and she would die if he did not investigate quickly. After her son Yi Hon became king, she was given the posthumous name Queen Gongseong () and was further honored as Jasuk Danin (). In 1616, her son added Gyeongryeol () and Myeongheon () as her honorific name. But she was stripped of those titles and demoted to bin rank after her son was deposed in 1623. Her burial site is Seongmyo in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province.
Family
* Father: Kim Hui-cheol, Internal Prince Haeryeong (; 1519 – 1 August 1592) * Mother: Honorable and Respectful Madame, of the Andong Gwon clan () * Siblings ** Younger brother: Kim Ye-jik (; 1565–1623) ** Younger brother: Kim Ui-jik () * Husband: Seonjo of Joseon (; 26 November 1552 – 16 March 1608) ** Yi Jin, Prince Imhae (; 20 September 1572 – 3 June 1609), Seonjo's first som ** Yi Hon, Gwanghaegun of Joseon (; 4 June 1575 – 7 August 1641), Seonjo's second son
In popular culture
* Portrayed by Park Ju-mi in the 1999–2000 MBC TV series Hur Jur. * Portrayed by Jang Ji-eun in the 2013 MBC TV series Hur Jun, The Original Story. * Portrayed by Yu Shin-ae in the 2013 MBC TV series Goddess of Fire, Jung Yi.