| Yi Hae-won | |
| Succession: | Head of the House of Yi[1] (disputed) |
| Reign-Type: | Period |
| Reign: | 16 July 2005 – 8 February 2020 |
| Coronation: | 16 July 2005 |
| Predecessor: | Crown Prince Yi Gu |
| Successor: | None |
| Spouse: | Yi Seung-gyu |
| House: | Jeonju Yi (by birth) Yongin Yi (by marriage) |
| Father: | Prince Yi Kang of Korea |
| Mother: | Yi Hui-chun, Lady Yi of Sudeok Hall (biological) Kim Su-deok, Lady Kim of Deokin Hall (adoptive) |
| Birth Date: | 24 April 1919 |
| Birth Place: | Sadong Palace, Keijō, Korea, Empire of Japan |
| Death Place: | Hanam, South Korea |
| Korean Imperial name | |
| Hangul: | 이진 |
| Hanja: | 李珍 |
| Rr: | I Jin |
| Mr: | I Ch'in |
| Hangula: | 이길운 or 이원 |
| Hanjaa: | 李吉雲 or 李瑗 |
| Rra: | I Gilun or Yi Won |
| Mra: | I Kilun or I Won |
| Othername1: | Registered Name |
| Hangul1: | 이해원 |
| Hanja1: | 李海瑗 |
| Rr1: | I Haewon |
| Mr1: | I Haewŏn |
Yi Hae-won (; 24 April 1919 – 8 February 2020), also Lee Hae-won, was a member of the House of Yi, the royal family of Joseon and the Korean Empire. Yi was considered a pretender to the throne[2] [3] until her death at the age of 100 in her house in Hanam, Gyeonggi Province.[4]
Yi Haewon was born in Sadong Palace, which was an official residence of her family in Keijō, as the second daughter of Prince Imperial Ui, fifth son of Emperor Gojong of Korea, and one of his concubines, Lady Yi of Sudeok Hall. She was raised in Unhyeon Palace. After she graduated from Kyunggi Girls' High School in 1937, she married Yi Seunggyu, who was kidnapped and compulsorily taken to North Korea during the Korean War. They had three sons and one daughter.
Following the death of her cousin Yi Ku on 16 July 2005, members of the imperial family chose his adopted son, Yi Won, as the next Head of the House of Yi, bestowing on him the title, the Hereditary Prince Imperial of Korea (Hwangsason), representative of an inherited title from Yi Ku.[5] Contesting her nephew's claim and appointment to the throne, Yi Haewŏn announced the restoration of the Empire. A private coronation ceremony was held on 29 September 2006, during which Yi Haewŏn was bestowed the title, the "Empress of Korea". According to one of her half-brothers, Yi Seok, another pretender, other close royal members didn't approve such a ceremony; Yi Seok himself was also invited, but did not attend, for he did not know who the members of the "Imperial Family Association of Daehanjeguk" were.[6]
Yi Hae-won's husband, Yi Seung-gyu, descended from the Yongin Yi clan, according to the Genealogy book of the clan published in 1983.[7]