The Minister of War was a government official charged with overseeing military affairs in the Kingdom of Joseon. As the head of one of the Six Ministries of Joseon, he occupied one of the highest positions in the kingdom. While he officially served the King of Joseon, his true loyalty lay with the powerful Chief State Councilor, Cho Hak-ju. However, unlike most of the other officials he seemed to be occasionally willing to confront Lord Cho when he disagreed with his actions.
Season 1[]
The Minister of War oversees the interrogation of 89 Confucian scholars charged with plotting to overthrow the King by spreading rumors about his death. He remains impassive as a scholar denounces Lord Cho's corruption and the King's weakness. Later, he attends a meeting convened by Lord Cho to present apparently conclusive evidence of the scholars' plot and the involvement of the Crown Prince, Lee Chang. The minister quietly chides Lord Cho when the councilor violently slams Chief Scholar Kim Sun's head onto the table for questioning his allegations. Nevertheless, he goes along with Lord Cho's order to arrest Crown Prince for treason.
When the Chief Scholar learns that the corpses of court ladies have been found in the palace, he arranges a secret meeting with the Minister of War to share the information. The Chief Scholar insists Lord Cho is hiding something, and says that while he knows the minister is one of Lord Cho's men, he believes he knows right from wrong. He tries to get the minister to support his demand to see the king in person in spite of the Queen's prohibition by appealing to his loyalty to the King. The Chief Scholar also claims he has the support of Lord Ahn Hyeon, a hero of the war against Japan, which greatly impresses the minister. Though Lord Ahn retired to his hometown of Sangju three years previously to mourn the death of his mother, the Chief Scholar assures him the ministers and the people will follow whomever Lord Ahn sides with.
After the fall of Dongnae, the fugitive Crown Prince orders the warning beacons lit to alert the capital of the infection spreading in the south. However, the ministers are unsure of the beacons' meaning, and initially believe it could signify another Japanese invasion. The Chief Scholar insists that he must speak to the King, and to the other ministers' surprise the Minister of War agrees with him. Four of the high ministers go to the King's chamber, where the guards prevent them from entering. However, to everyone's shock Lord Cho appears and grants them entry, even over the protests of his daughter, the Queen. The officials are horrified when he reveals the King's state, but Lord Cho explains that although the king had become a mindless, man-eating monster as a result of a "severe illness", he was still alive and king of the nation. He then accuses the Chief Scholar of conspiring in treason with the Crown Prince, and shows the Minister of War the pact the two had signed with the other scholars. Lord Cho demands that the Chief Scholar be arrested and beheaded immediately. The furious Minister of War orders the palace guards to take the Chief Scholar to the Royal Investigation Bureau for interrogation. He then hurriedly leaves the King's chamber.
Season 2[]
Min Chi-rok informs the Minister of War about the mysterious murders of pregnant women at the Queen's residence, Naeseonjae. The Minister suspects a conspiracy, and encourages Min to investigate the killings, who is eventually arrested to protect the Queen's secret. The Minister suspects that the Queen has faked her pregnancy and stolen a baby from a commoner, and tries to convince the other officials to investigate. Lord Cho quickly silences the discussion once he returns to the capital, and threatens the Minister into dropping the subject. However, Lord Cho realizes that the Minister's allegations are true, and confronts his daughter, leading her to poison him and assume power.
Once Prince Chang returns to the capital to overthrow the Queen, he sends General Lee Gang-yun to meet with the Minister of War secretly. General Lee shows the minister Lee Seung-hui's patient journal, revealing the truth of what Lord Cho did to the former king. This convinces the Minister to join Prince Chang, and he uses his troops to take control of the Police Bureau in Hanyang for the prince. However, he dies soon after in the outbreak the Queen starts in the palace: he commits suicide after being bitten to prevent himself from turning into a monster.
Appearances[]
The Minister of War appears in the following episodes:
| Kingdom appearances | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 episodes | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||
| Season 2 episodes | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |