Yi Gongsu

Yi Gongsu (李公壽, 1059 – 1137) was a civil official and politician of mid-Goryeo and a member of the Incheon Yi clan. His birth name was Su (壽) and his courtesy name was Wonro (元老). His posthumous name was Munchung (文忠). He was the son of Ye (預) and the maternal grandson of Choe Yu-seon (崔惟善), who had served as a minister.

He was a member of the same clan as Yi Ja-gyeom and Yi Ja-ui, as well as the mid-Goryeo literary figure Yi In-ro. Choe Chung was his maternal great-grandfather. Although he was a maternal relative of the royal house of Goryeo, beginning with Yejong and Injong, he handled affairs fairly. For his part in suppressing the rebellion of Yi Ja-gyeom, he was recorded as a Meritorious Subject of Chuchung Wisa Dongdeok (推忠衛社同德功臣).

Life

Early years

He was the grandson of Vice Director of the Secretariat Yi Ja-sang. His father was Ye (預), Pyeongjangsa (平章事), and his mother, of the Haeju Choe clan, was the daughter of the Chief Minister of the Secretariat-Chancellery Choe Yu-seon and the granddaughter of Choe Chung. He was a lineal descendant of Yi Ja-yeon, the father-in-law of Munjong. He was a sixth-degree cousin of Yi Ja-gyeom and Yi Ja-ui. Also, Yi In-ro was the great-grandson of his great-uncle Yi Ryu and the son of his cousin Baek-seon.

Career as an official

In 1086, during the reign of Seonjong, he passed the civil service examination and held several posts, including Judge of the Palace Office, before becoming Straight Academician of the Hallim Academy (直翰林院). He then served as Secretary of the Chamber for Provincial Affairs, Drafter in the Office of Remonstrance, Left Remonstrator (左拾遺), and Junior Secretary of the Chief Office, and then became Judge of the Western Capital Governor's Office. When Yejong was at the Western Capital, he was praised for governing the people well. When the king returned to , he was ordered to accompany him but declined on his own accord.