| Alcheon | |||||||||
| Birth Date: | 577? | ||||||||
| Death Date: | after 654 | ||||||||
| Nationality: | Silla | ||||||||
| Office1: | Sangdaedeung of Silla | ||||||||
| Term Start1: | 647 | ||||||||
| Term End1: | 654? | ||||||||
| Predecessor1: | Bidam | ||||||||
| Successor1: | Kŭm Kang | ||||||||
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Kim Alcheon (aka So Alcheon, 577?–686?) was a Silla politician who served as a general during Queen Seondeok's reign, and as Sangdaedeung from 647 to 654, during Queen Jindeok's reign. He was the first politician to serve in Silla's highest military and political office, respectively.
Little is known about Alcheon's early life and ancestry.[1] The genealogy book of the Jinju So clan suggests that Alcheon was born in 577 in Saryang-bu, Gyeongju, and died in 686.[2] [3] According to genealogy records Alcheon was also the 25th great-grandson of So Bŏldori, who was a chief from Saro-guk, and the 14th great-grandson of King Adalla of Silla.[3]
A famous legend about Alcheon's bravery relates that once, Alcheon was out in the forest together with the other Korean: hwarangs. Suddenly, a tiger appeared and was about to attack them. The Korean: Hwarangs were terrified and started to panic, but Alcheon just smiled and attacked the tiger alone and killed it with his bare hands.
In 636, Alcheon, who was then a general, received orders from Queen Seondeok to drive off the Baekje forces in Yeoguen-gok. Alcheon and his 500 men ambushed and decimated Baekje general Uso's invading force near Doksan Fortress. Alcheon was promoted as the Grand General of Silla the following year. In early 638, Alcheon repelled invading Goguryeo forces outside, capturing and killing numerous enemy soldiers.
Despite his victories against both Baekje and Goguryeo forces, no records of his career as the Grand General of Silla after the 638 battle of Chiljungseong Fortress appear in historical sources. Thus, historians have speculated that Silla's failures during Uija of Baekje's 642 campaign may have led to his removal from his military position.
In early 674, Bidam, who was then the Sangdaedeung of Silla, launched a rebellion against Queen Seondeok. Bidam rallied the nobility, arguing that a woman was unfit for the position of a monarch. Nevertheless, Alcheon remained loyal to the throne, and the rebellion was suppressed under the leadership of Kim Yu-sin. Seondeok's death during the rebellion led to the coronation of Queen Jindeok. Possibly seeking a figure who would satisfy the Silla nobles, Jindeok immediately appointed Alcheon, who was a jingol noble from birth, as Bidam's successor.
The Seonggol lineage, which had been in a lack of a male heir since the death of Jinpyeong, came to a complete end with Queen Jindeok's death in 654. With no Seonggol heirs to inherit the throne, the Hwabaek Council offered Alcheon the position of king regent by procedure. However, Alcheon declined the offer on account of his "old age" and "lack of virtue"; he instead endorsed Kim Ch'un-ch'u, who would later assume the throne as King Muyeol of Silla.
No historical accounts of Alcheon after his endorsement of Kim Ch'un-ch'u exist. It is assumed that he resigned from his position as Sangdaedeung in 655 upon Kŭm Kang's appointment as his successor.