Ch'oe U

Ch'oe U (1166 – 10 December 1249), also known as Ch'oe Yi, was the second Ch'oe dictator of the Ubong Ch'oe Military regime. He himself went out on the battlefield to lead in fighting off the Mongolian invasions. Then he realized that the government was no longer safe at the capital city of Kaesong, and so he forced the king and his officials to flee to Ganghwa island. He took some of his armies and went to Ganghwa island with them. He did this because he knew that the Mongols would not attempt a naval assault against Ganghwa. Therefore, the Goryeo government was kept safe for several decades even after the Ch'oe regime.

Background
Ch'oe U was the son of the Goryeo period military regime's founder, Ch'oe Ch'ung-hŏn, and grandson of the Grand General Ch'oe Won-ho (최원호,崔元浩). Ch'oe U's birthdate is unknown, but it is known that the Ch'oe family lived in the capital of Kaesong at the time when Ch'oe Ch'ung-hŏn assassinated Yi Ŭi-min. Ch'oe U was around the age of seventeen when his father assassinated the tyrant Yi in 1196 and saw how his father amassed and wielded power. Ch'oe U was said to have been a skilled general and fighter as well as an exceptional statesman.

Early life
He joined the Imperial army at the age of eighteen and served for about twenty years, and continued to serve while he was dictator. Not much is known about Ch'oe U's early life. There was the incident of succeeding his father. When the time came for Ch'oe Ch'ung-hŏn to select a successor, he had two choices. He selected U because he was the first son, and he was the more talented and capable of the two. U's brother, Hyang, did not take this lightly and so the two brothers faced each other in a sword duel, and it ended in U's victory. U did not kill his brother but put his fate in his father's hands. Ch'oe Ch'ung-hŏn announced that U would be his successor, and U became the Royal protector/prime minister, and leader of the Imperial Council.

Dictator
Ch'oe U controlled the Goryeo government with King Gojong as his puppet. He was able to preserve the Goryeo empire by hiding the government on Ganghwa island. At the same time, Ch'oe U did a better of appeasing the people than his father had done. He returned all of the treasures and that his father had taken and distributed it to the people. With this, the people of Goryeo became more willing to live under a dictatorship. Ch'oe U's rule was mostly composed of Mongolian Invasions. He directly led Goryeo forces to fight off the first Mongol Invasion.

Death and succession
Ch'oe U died suddenly of disease after the Fourth Mongol invasion of Goryeo (July 1247 – March 1248) and was succeeded by his son Ch'oe Hang.

Family

 * Father: Ch'oe Ch'ung-hŏn (1149 – 29 October 1219)
 * Grandfather: Ch'oe Won-ho
 * Grandmother: Lady Yu
 * Mother: Lady Song
 * Grandfather: Song Ch'ŏng
 * Wives and their issue(s):
 * Lady Chŏng, of the Hadong Chŏng clan (? – 1231); daughter of Chŏng Sukch'ŏm.
 * Lady Ch'oe ; married Kim Yak-sŏn
 * Grandson: Kim Mi
 * Grandson: Kim Wi-hang
 * Grandson: Kim P'il-yŏng
 * Great-granddaughter: Queen Jeongsun (정순왕후, 1222 – 29 July 1237)
 * Lady Ch'oe
 * Lady Tae, of the Hyeopgye Tae clan (? – 1251); daughter of Dae Jip-seong (대집성, d. 1236).
 * O Sŭng-jŏk – stepson, died after killed by Ch'oe Hang.
 * Lady Ch'oe, of the Cheorwon Ch'oe clan
 * Lady Seo Ryeon-bang
 * Ch'oe Man-jong
 * Ch'oe Hang (1209 – 17 May 1257)
 * Lady An Sim