Joseon Korea · 1592-1598

The Imjin War and Admiral Yi Sun-sin

In 1592 Toyotomi Hideyoshi sent a huge army into Korea on its way to conquer Ming China. Korea's armies collapsed, but Admiral Yi Sun-sin won battle after battle at sea. Students follow a seven-year war and ask how it shaped three countries.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
50 minutes
Ages
12–15
On the map
3 steps, AD 1592 to AD 1597
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

In 1592 Toyotomi Hideyoshi sent a huge army into Korea on its way to conquer Ming China. Korea's armies collapsed, but Admiral Yi Sun-sin won battle after battle at sea. Students follow a seven-year war and ask how it shaped three countries.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Describe the main events of the Imjin War from 1592 to 1598.
  • Explain how Admiral Yi Sun-sin and the Korean navy changed the course of the war.
  • Explain the war's effects on Korea, Japan and Ming China.
2

Explore the map

15 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

AD 1592

The landing

Open the map in 1592 and zoom in on Busan, the Korean port closest to Japan. Why did the invasion start here?

Open this view on the map
b

AD 1592

The road north

Follow the route from Busan north to Hanyang (Seoul) and Pyongyang. The Japanese took Hanyang in about three weeks. What made their advance so fast?

Open this view on the map
c

AD 1597

Narrow waters

Zoom in on the islands and straits of Korea's south coast. How could a small fleet use such narrow waters against a bigger one?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

15 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. Hideyoshi wanted to conquer Ming China by marching through Korea. Why did he think that would work?
  2. The Japanese army had many muskets. Why was Korea's army so badly prepared?
  3. Ordinary Koreans formed "righteous armies", and Buddhist monks took up arms. Why do people fight when their government fails?
  4. Yi Sun-sin won at sea while Korea lost on land. Why was the sea so important to the Japanese armies?
  5. Japan carried off many Koreans, including skilled potters. How should this war be remembered in both countries?
4

Game round

10 min

Play Rule History as Tokugawa Ieyasu, who kept his own troops out of Korea and helped end the war after Hideyoshi died. Let students take turns ruling. Discuss: why might a careful leader avoid a war of conquest overseas?

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

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